Sunday, September 23, 2007

qat war in yemen?

Disinfo has a few items on qat... kind of interesting.

Recent news is: Yemeni farmers and Yemeni authorities are at physical conflict over qat crops -- a new tax has been imposed -- who stands to profit? (other qat news here: link)
I've become slightly interested now in the role of qat in the Middle East and Africa. Has kind of a marijuana stigma to it -- it's thought that it makes for poor students, bad personal habits, lazy husbands, etc. But its effect is buzzy, like coffee -- and coffee/tea is well regarded: makes you quick and focused.

Maybe worth watching the developments.

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