The Middle East Information Network, Inc. Mailing List

Volume 1, Issue 2, January 3, 2000

Who are we?

The Middle East Information Network is an American Non-Profit company based in Boston, Massachusetts, in the United States. We are a small group dedicated to providing accurate and comprehensive information about the Middle East. We are non-partisan, meaning we do not take sides. We believe that all groups, faiths, and cultures of the Middle East should be given equal representation here. We strive to break down barriers and stereotypes that have been created about the people of the Middle East. Our primary mission is education.

As the Internet grows every day, there has been a lack of comprehensive, accurate information about the Middle East. There are many sites that deal with Arab issues, Israeli issues, Muslim, etc. It is our hope to unite the best of these sites and develop a unique platform for research and general interest. It is our goal to provide you with the best the Internet has to offer in the way of web sites, accurate and clear information about the Middle East, and to provide an opportunity for you to express your idea and thoughts. We use the academic standard definition of the Middle East, which includes North Africa, Turkey, and Iran.

What's new on the site?

We have made some very noticeable changes to the format and content of the web site in the past few months. The presentation of country information is being changed, and many new areas have been added to the site.

We are now able to offer Travel information, a travel bookstore, a map room, a search page and an expanded document room. Information is constantly being updated or added, so the site continues to grow to meet the demand of our visitors. To see the changes or additions visit the URL's below:

Travel page:  https://mideastinfo.com/travel.htm

Travel Bookstore:  https://mideastinfo.com/travel_books.htm

The map room:  https://mideastinfo.com/maproom/home.htm

Search the site or the web:  https://mideastinfo.com/search.htm

The Future of the Middle East Information Network

In the coming months we will be adding and changing more and more information. The religion section will be expanded, with a complete Baha'i page, and new sites added to the Islam, Judaism, and Christianity pages. The information provided in the Countries area will be modified to allow for expanded country profiles that include more detailed economic and social information. Each country will start showing links to the international organizations that they are members of, as well as links to the pages of their neighboring countries. All this information will be provided in new easy to access front pages, examples of which are now on the Israel, Egypt, Iran and Turkey pages.

We hope to greatly improve the selections available in the bookstore, including our own recommended readings and our favorite books from or about the region. This will include travel books, histories, novels, textbooks, and works about the culture and people of the Middle East.

We are happy to able to provide this information to anyone and everyone who is interested. It is difficult, though, to maintain this page without your help. While we are unable to solicit for donations to our non-profit company at this time, there are ways you can help us already! Through affiliations with other web sites we are able to earn the necessary fund to maintain this site free of charge to the user. We have agreements with Amazon.com, TES Software, GOTO.com, Lycos, Travelscape, and eBoodle. Find out how you can help:

Through the regular bookstore and our travel book selections, Amazon.com provides you with the best books there are in the fields that you are interested in. In addition to this, every time you buy a book through one of our links to Amazon.com, a small percentage of the price in given back to us to help maintain this site. This is true not only for books about the Middle East, but any book or item you purchase through Amazon.com by following the links from our site. So, if you are a regular customer of Amazon.com please help us by clicking on any of the Amazon.com logos you see on our site when you go to buy books, and help keep our site up and running. The prices on Amazon.com are as listed, no additional charge is added to allow us to receive money from your purchase.

TES Software is the leading supplier of Judaic and Hebrew software. By following the links available on the Israel or Judaism pages to TES and purchasing any of their products, we receive a small percentage of the money you pay to help us maintain our site. So, if you have any interest in Judaic or Hebrew software, please visit our site and follow the links to TES. No additional charge is added to your purchase from TES to benefit us.

GOTO.com and Lycos are two of the leading search engines available on the web today. By visiting or Search page at https://mideastinfo.com/search.htm and using either of the search boxes provided by GOTO or Lycos, a small donation is made to the Middle East Information Network to allow us to maintain our web site. So, whenever you see a GOTO or Lycos symbol on our site, click on it and help maintain this site!

Travelscape is one of the leading providers of travel information and services on the web. Through our affiliation with Travelscape, anytime you follow the links to their site from ours and make hotel reservations, buy plane tickets, rent cars, etc. a small percentage of the price you pay is given back to our site. See the Travelscape logos on the travel page or the travel bookstore. Click through and find out more! There is no increase in price for the services provided through Travelscape to allow for us to be paid.

eBoodle is the ultimate tool for e-commerce. Signing up for eBoodle  allows you to manage on-line commerce accounts, compare on-line retailers, and earn rebates for your purchases on-line. By signing up for eBoodle, you can help us maintain our site. Its fast, easy, and free! Follow this link:  http://www.eboodle.com/svcs/req/r.a?i=mideastinfo and help us through this special offer on behalf of eBoodle and the Middle East Information Network.

Have you visited the Library?

The Library serves our area of personal expression. It is here that we let you know our views on issues affecting the Middle East. The Library is made up of editorials, essays, and research projects that we think might interest you. The opinions expressed in the Library reflect the opinions of the individual authors. No article posted should be considered company policy, unless it is stated as such.

As many of you know we are a small company, and trying to maintain an active web site and keep the Library is a difficult task. But, you can help! The Middle East Information Network, Inc. is looking for volunteer writers. We are now accepting writing samples from our readers to be published in the Library. We are primarily interested in editorials or essays that you may have written for school or work. There are no requirements, any topic regarding the Middle East that interests you, may interest others, we will post here for people to read. Current issues, historical issues and the like are accepted.

There are, of course, rules. Essays should be no more than 10-15 pages printed and must be cited appropriately. Footnotes or endnotes are preferable and must be clear and accurate. In-work citations are acceptable. Editorials should cite any large copied sections of other people's works or comments. Works submitted with obvious citations that do not follow these requirements will not be considered for publishing.

We are a non-partisan service. This means we do not take sides. However, we do put limits on what we allow to be published. Written works should not be hateful, do not attack certain people because of their race, religion, or culture. Violent or inciteful commentary will not be published. We maintain the right to refuse any piece that does not match our editorial criteria. This does not mean you cannot be critical, simply keep it in the realm of good taste. Ethnic, racial, or slanderous commentary will not be tolerated and will be grounds for works not to be published.

We prefer your writing to be in Microsoft Word format, but will accept WordPerfect and text formats. The fastest way to get it to us is to email our editor at . You can also fax your work to us at (01) 617-507-5844. As a last resort you can mail it to us via ground or airmail, however, it will be a while before such works can be published on site. Please see our contact page for address information. The officers and editors of the Middle East Information Network maintain the right to edit and/or make corrections to errors or format problems in your works.

This is your chance. If you have something to say, we help you get the message out. Readers from around the world will see you work. If you're up to the job, we can get you started...

If you have any questions, please feel free to email us at: 

We hope to hear from you soon!

Thank you,

Edward Graham
President, Middle East Information Network, Inc.
mideastinfo.com