The purpose of this post is not to rebuttle or argue about who's right and wrong, just an assessment of Lebanese society and situation so far - and to put things into perspective for the foreigners here before the shout Jewish, Islamist, or American Conspiracy.......
Lebanon's 1975-1991 civil war was based on a sectarian domination. In the mid to late 1970s (and possibly early 80s) there was the famous habit of Sectarian identity killings, whereby a military check point would ask the driver to reveal his identity papers and either kill him (and the passengers too) if he was of the "wrong" sect.
This was done by all sides. I don't know who started it...some say it was the Palestinians who started the trend, and the rest of the militia's followed suit. The first incident happened in 1974 (before the war) when a man refused to stop at the check point and was machine gunned immediately afterward.
The war went thru 3 or 4 phases, and each phase brought with it political parties, elite individuals and personalities who all eventually were granted a "pardon" under the Taif accords (although there is no mention of this pardon in the actual document).
That was in 1991.....everyone had their own space, and people minded their own business....probably the last scuffles or shootouts happened in 1992 (some history books will say the war ended then). South Lebanon was still at war though, since it was occupied by Israel. The rest of it was indirectly occupied by Syria. All our administrative decisions, laws, policies etc...had to be "Syria-friendly" in order for them to be implemented.
* * *
Fast forward to 2006. Lebanon had prospered thru-out the 1990s in terms of regaining stability, and for it to become a tourist hot-spot in the summer for people to enjoy the beaches (and the hot chicks that lay there :toast: ) and in the winter for various Europeans who enjoyed the wonderful skiing season.
(I bumped into a Belgian skiier while going up on the ski-lift, and he told me that the facilities we had were beyond his expectations
)
Right...back on topic. I've spared you thru ALOT (and believe me when I say ALOT 1991-2006) of details since that time........[EDIT] but instead of writing a huge column full of details just to explain this very simple point, I'd never finish. So here it is:
Lebanon has changed the type of rivalry it had since the 1970s (and even 1960s, the Palestinian cause, and the breakdown of the state). The mid 2000s have given birth to a new mindset of people who have overcome shallow and racist sectarianism, yet have been divided over
political ideology.
Now you have two sets of Christians, both Maronite (eastern Catholics) who are divided from within and have different political ideologies for what they believe is for a better Lebanon.
The same applies for each and every other Sect - Sunni Muslim, Shi'a Muslim, and the Druze. (and the Armenian, and the Orthodox as well)
We no longer have identity killings as we did before...it's just become a huge mess now, with limitless political bickering in public and on national TV.
Some might say, well isn't this more politically "healthy" for a country? Isn't the USA like that, supposedly the world's "exemplary archetype" of a democracy where the people have the freedom to choose what they believe in the right to excercise those beliefs?
Just curious by what the other Lebanese here think about this? (not being sarcastic here
-people who know me tend to suspect me of that- this is supposed to be an objective post whereby I'm merely writing my own observation on our society)
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