Economy
While the populace in the wretched country is drowning in petty and naive discussions about whose sect is more virtuous and whose is more sectarian, no attention is paid by the citizen to the economy. As many theories of politics, society, and power suggest, the economy is a factor that has far wider influences than on mere financial issues. Economy does not simply regulate the flow of money, budgets, and living standards. It regulates the political system, social interactions, and the forms of conflicts.
In Lebanon people are too preoccupied with disgraceful and retarded polemics about whose leader is more corrupted, or whose leader can be called more names. This refers specifically to the governmental forces in their approach to any criticism, where it is shocking to see that for the last two years there has not been a single scientific answer to the budgetary deficit, the excessive social, economical and security problems, and the growing popular opposition to the current situation. On one hand the government disregards the massive popular support of the opposition (which in the smallest accounts has reached 55 percent of the population) and, in an utmost undemocratic stance, rejects half its population as being ‘Pro-Syrian’ (as if this is a crime in itself). On the other hand the government fails to understand, or neglects the fact that the growing opposition is not simply political, but has a considerable and increasing economical motivation due to surreal economical policies this government keeps adopting making the Lebanese economy one of the most phenomenally failed in the world.
It is unfortunate to see that those who are the most affected by the economical policies of the neo-liberal Sanioura government (and Rafik Hariri before him), are their staunchest supporters. While the people become poorer due to an absurd taxation policy (where the poor pay taxes to the rich bank holders, making those profit from the growing interest on the public debts), they become more dependent on the charity of the rich governing political class. Paradoxically this is how the feudal system works; peasants are exploited by the landlord becoming more and more dependent on him.
What is pitiful is the defensive discourse adopted by the supporters of the government. These are divided into two levels: one is the class that is profiting from the economical system, namely rich investors, bank owners, and the bulk of the corrupted political class who is still part of the government (others who are no longer profiting from the corruption are now in the opposition), the second is a growing poor class who adopt a discourse that defends the government on mainly sectarian grounds.
The political crisis in Lebanon cannot be solved unless the economical crisis is addressed. In other words a radical and complete reviewing of the economical system has to be undertaken.
Georges Corm provides an insightful analysis of this issue in a 2 part article published in the Lebanese daily Al-Akhbar.
Part 1
Part 2
posted by walid @ 1:53 PM
5 comments
5 Comments:
and you dare call your blog "Dialogus"????
Dear Walid, you are someone who needs a reality check. You write as if from an objective point of view, as if from no where as one philosopher once said, but you your point of view is very far from being impartial. I actually know people working at the ministries who can counter-argue each one of the points you made. But it is not this that matters. What matters for me is that there are different point of views and you cannot dismiss them just like that. The reality of Lebanon is much more complex than you show in such a propagandist way. A pity since you have access to resources many would neve dare dream about.
If you are not able to see this, how are you even planning to write a phd thesis???????
good luck coz you'll need it
1. i do not write from an objective view, in fact, i don't even believe in objectivity (thus the name dialogus that disturbs you so much). i write my opinions, thoughts, and subjectivities.
2. i wonder who this philosopher is.
3. i am very happy that you know people at the ministry, it must be a very useful thing. however, i know that there are counter-arguments (as you should know every argument has a counter-argument, this is what discussions are all about), and you should know that basically the job of people at the ministry is to find these counter-arguments (or should i say arguments, because what me, and in the article of Georges Corm - that i hope you took the time to read before doing the classic bashing - he is doing, is to counter-argue the ministry's arguments about the virtues of neo-liberal economy). Besides what is there to counter-argue? you mean people at the ministry will tell me that the lebanese economy is working fine? personally if Jihad Azour tells me that everything is fine, well i don't believe him, and i choose to believe the complex reality you are talking about.
4. the reality is always more complex than a text that doesn't even want to describe reality, but a fragment of this reality. but thank you for pointing that out.
5. Propaganda has many definitions (check wikipedia). However, if my dialogus title is bothering you so much, why don't you accept the invitation of entering a dialogue with me instead of attacking me in this way. i suggest instead of promising me possible counter-arguments, to provide these counter-arguments. because allow me to say that if you insult me this doesn't really convince me, nor does it provide a good example of dialogus. i have not rejected any other opinion, while you did, you are very welcome to discuss, but not to put an end to dialogus by automatically attacking me for having a different opinion than yours. so basically i think i very much dare to call my blog dialogus, because dialogus is a meeting of different views in a dialectic relation. Therefore i have done my part by presenting my view, you however, have rejected my view without even attempting to enter into dialogue with me, but simply accusing me of propaganda. This my friend is the prototype of non-dialogue.
6. What are the resources i have access to may i ask?
7. finally i assume that you know me, since you know i am writing a PhD thesis, and i wonder who you are. Nonetheless, i appreciate your concern for my academic standing, and i assure you that i can provide arguments (that are not mere insults and personal offenses) to back my thesis.
now i can just wait and see whether you will answer me in a dialogical way or simply carry on with the insulting, or instead remain silent.
The philosopher is T. Nagel
I know and read Corm. I used to defend him teeth and nails. This is no longer the case.
I have not said anything on my views here. So you cannot know what I think. All I care for is to see an analysis that is open to incoporate other perspetive. A sine qua non condition for writing is some sort of impartiality I think but not neutrality or equi-distance from all (contra Nagel).
I am just surprised that you are doing a PhD [I googled your name to find out that:)] and you provide such an uncritical analysis in particlar that you rest your case on Corm whose position on Lebanese politics is too skewed in one direction.
This bashing of the gvt, which is basically, the only thing you do, is cheap talk. We need to transcend this. You are merely replicating what our poor politicians are doing. I am sure you are capable of much more.
First I must say that I am unfamiliar with the philosopher in question, so I have to thank you for pointing him out.
I am glad to hear that you read Corm and you are, certainly, entitled to your opinions. However, what still troubles me is that you have not expressed your views which is exactly what I demand to read.
I have repeated many times before that my style of writing on my blog is neither objective, impartial, nor scientific. I am a citizen who is entitled to his opinions, and this I believe is a basic right, and you are free to express yours and we can then enter a discussion. Nonetheless, I do agree with you that I am clearly against the current Lebanese government, and to say even more I am staunchly hostile to it (and I hope that this will not automatically place me in the 'opposition' camp). However, to say that the only thing I do is 'bashing the gvt' and 'cheap talk' (it would be good to note that the Lebanese saying declares that talk is free rather than cheap) is something I find deeply misleading for several reasons: if you read more of my writings, and I assume you did since you have included 'all I did' in your judgment, you will notice that it is not devoted to 'bashing' the government or 'replicating what our poor politicians are doing'. Perhaps lately a considerable part of my writings has been political and part of it referring to Lebanon, and I must say that I do not see where I am replicating our politicians, perhaps you can enlighten me on this issue.
In fact I would appreciate it if you did not call my small introduction of Corm's article, an analysis (not to mention an uncritical one), since the main, if not the only, reason for this blog post is to introduce Corm's article (notice the lack of a conclusion and the last sentence opening towards the article published by Georges Corm). In other words it is not a work of analysis that is being done, but an emotionally motivated opinion referring to another specific opinion (namely that of Corm).
As for your faith in my capacities, I have to warn you of the dangers that blind faith can concoct. My capacities might be far more limited than either me or you believe they are.
Don't want to revive the controversy that went on here... but I have to ask you this. For a while I've believed the claims that there is a lack of transparency in the pro-majority government's operations. I know for a fact there is a lot of corruption still going on, but there might be more transparency than we think. Take a look at this. Do you trust it, or are you skeptical at such a report?
http://www.finance.gov.lb/NR/rdonlyres/695069F1-7159-48B3-A875-D24A3FCEB9E8/0/FiscalAccounts19932006final.pdf
Just to say.. the people might be the ones to blame again. liked your post when it talked about blaming the people!
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