68th Lebanese Independence Day

Tomorrow, 22 November 2011, would be the 68th year since Lebanon has maintained its independence from the French mandate.

Happy Independence day, Lebanese people.

And for anyone interested, check out this video that really shows reality in Lebanon.. I hope we learn.. it just slapped me so bad!

www.youtube.com/watch?v=L76AERqV8jc&sns=fb

Happy Independence day Nana and Abed and all lebanese peopleeeee :)

Happy independence day to all Lebanese people.

Happy Independence Day Abed!

Happy Liberation day, Abed and all your country folks.

I think it's still the 22nd in Lebanon lol

Happy Independence Day Lebanon!

Happy Independence Day to Abed, Nana and the rest of the crew. :D

I watched the link...thank you for sharing. So many times and from so many different people in this video people say 'they'.Can I ask who 'they 'are?

Not all "they" 's are for the same person/target, hellon, as when the fisherman talked about the sewage, he refereed to those who are so careless and throw their garbage in the sea, "they" as well in that video refereed to those in our government, "they" who made wars against us and burned the green hills in South Lebanon, "they" who are stealing the citizens money (leaders)...who are selling the land for personal motives... our main problem in this country is the inner corruption in our government, which i believe all the countries suffer from...

Thank you all :)

Hellon.. Nana said it all.
It's devastating.

I'm sorry...when I posted yesterday I hadn't watched the full video and...I still haven't got through it all but I now have a slightly better understanding of who 'they'are and...also with the explanation from Nano so thanks for that.

LP...you say happy independance day but the people in the video clip are far from happy. Can you tell me what it would have been like when Lebanon was under french rule? Obviously I know you weren't around then but perhaps you would have heard stories from grandparents/been taught in school etc? Is your country better or worse off now?

So many things about this clip made me sad but two that really kicked me in the gut 1) there are hardly any birds there now and then you heard a gunshot and the guy says this lone bird was probably just shot. 2) People in other countries are planting trees native to your country when the country itself has very few trees left. Is this true?

Hellon, I think that during the French mandate Lebanon was a battlefield because of the revolutions, the executions and the system diffusing people according to their religious sects just to keep on ruling us...

and that was Independence day when we got rid of the foreign armies in our land .. It made us happy.

but now, we don't have any mandate, maybe an internal one and an indirect external one (like most countries)... Blood is there when Israel massacres our land.

Lebanon, between 1950-1975 used to be called: Switzerland of the East.

But after 1975, the Lebanese civil war, chaos was there and the ruling system became mostly religious... and everything became uncontrolled.

~ and to what you said last, that is true.

More than 85% of Lebanon was GREEN. (before 2000)
Now, the green area is almost 9%, and it keeps getting less.

Is this all in the name of progress? The lack of green areas I mean? I know, in the video, it says that the ocean can no longer be seen because of all the tall buildings that have been erected on the shoreline? What are these buildings...they don't look like hotels so...offices perhaps?

Also, do you drive....it seems the traffic is chaotic over there? Sorry for so many questions but...I'm always keen to get a glimpse into the lives of people around the world.

I remember from my days in Living in Beirut, Anywhere from 7 AM to 11 50 PM or so, It would be crowded heavily, a 10 minute drive in the car would easily turn into a 2 hour stuck in rush hour gam somewhere, Yet if you cruise around anywhere from 12 am to 5 am, You can Go from all the way north to south or east to west of Beirut in less than 5 minutes maxx,
in short, Where NANA lives, It gets very crowded, up to the point where it's anoying and you decide to take public transportation because it's faster

Where abed Lives it's different, Saida Is very small in size compared to beirut, and the Trafic never really bothers you unless it's a friday where everyone decides to take a ride,
but Saida is like heavan on earth, a small city where almost everyone is somehow related, Everybody knows everybody, even though they have never talked to them. I love the community there

however the Highway that connects Siada to beirut is pretty anoying, Any form of accident happens and
your stuck for the rest of the day in the road.

<3

One thing about Motor bikes though

They are not allowed inside the city Of Saida, Strictly prohibited, and if they find one, they Will confiscate it and fine it's owner, Due to murders that used to take place with people using bikes and guns, I think they killed a judge in Saida and that is when they banned it,

In beuirt however, it's a different story, Bikes are only allowed from 6 :30 am to 6 30: pm or so, and after that they are strictly prohibited, with the same laws applying if they find one on the street after 6 :30
however, In Beirut, It's very easy to get a special pass to use bikes after 6 :30 PM if you know someone from the government, Given the nature of Lebanon however, Everyone knows someone in the government, I say that because I had a special pass >.< so the laws only apply to poor people who do not know anybody.

and on a 2nd note, Most of these bikes you see in the video abed posted are unregistered, studied back from 08-09 tells that more than 200 bikes are confiscated in the city of Beirut everyday.

Haha Rabea.. true true :p

- Hellon, the lack of green areas is due to many factors, some are forest fires which are mostly caused by people (for certain political issues) not by nature and because of the unstudied destruction for pebbles and sands...

The sea can no longer be seen because of extending hotels areas..

Traffic is so chaotic. Like in the video, if someone stops at the red light, they tell him/her you're a dumbass...

Well...Australia has a lot of bush fires..some are started deliberately (not for political benefits )...just by pyromaniacs I guess but, the vegetation eventually comes back and, more trees are planted if necessary. Does your country not do something similar?

I have been in several Asian countries where people ignore the red light so....I don't really like driving overseas.

What the guy said in the video about how people transport Lebanese seeds to grow overseas is very true, chances that you will find Lebanese fruits outside of Lebanon are the same if not higher the chances of finding it in lebanon, it is absoultlely sad to see exported vegatbles and fruits in markets in Lebanon where the structure of the country is picture perfect for growing any kind of seed.

anyways, If you go to the villages of Lebanon, specifically to the south next to the Lebanese/Palestinian borders, you will be amazed and mind dazzled of how green it is, it's breath taking
I remember visiting The highlands there and while we were on the road I remember looking downwards while passing a bridge only to see a tree that I couldn't find it's roots from how tall and big it was, totally breath taking

So....why is this happening? Is it through greed...exporting things that are native to Lebanon rather than reproducing as necessary?

The process of initializing reproduction is very costly, and people who can afford it, choose not to, My friend I need you to keep in mind, that it's not only this barrier, Lebanon paid the most out of arab countries,
due to it being the warzone of the mother of all fights,
between the civil war, between paying the price of hosting palestanian refuges which really took it's toll on the Lebanese people,and between its war with israel, Lebanon in the 80s was complete ruins, and while it may not be occupied like Palestine it suffers the same, if not more,

In Lebanon, Electricity cuts for 6 hours hours a day,
as to 3 hours in Beirut, And while Lebanon has all the natural resources to reproduce electricity amongst other things, The cost of intalizing that is very very expensive, I remember seeing slogans when i was there, saying that Each Lebanese citizen owes the International bank up to 10,000 $ approx,
mutlityply that number with the number of Lebanese people and you will find that Lebanon is in a massive debt, That no one decides to cover, and when they receive Loans from the UN or any country, it goes to the officials, not to the people that need it.

mix that with the fact that the masses are more interested in showing their intimacy to their political/religious parties than actually rebuilding what was lost,

Anyone who tries to bring change to the political powers in Lebanon or tries to change the surface gets his mouth muzzled, if not killed, and an example of that would be martyr Prime minster Rafik al harrieri may he rest in peace.

and while what abed said about Lebanon being the Switzerland of the east, I disagree on one thing,
Lebanon IS and will remain to be the most beautiful Arab country in the world, with the potential of achieving the unacheivble, I've traveled alot in my life and Lebanon is about the only country where I see airplane hostess taking pictures of it while we are airborne, i swear i saw that happening in every single flight I took to Lebanon,

it amazes me how such a small country can have this much trouble, and yet have so much influence
in the arab world,

The fact that Lebanon maintains the highest Tourist
population in the middle east apposing to countries such as Egypt even with such dire and complicated situations shows what it's worth.

beautiful people, beautiful country, such a shame to see this happening =/

I wasn't talking about the reproduction of any other resources...just germination of the seeds that mother nature provides free of charge no matter where we live. I was simply asking....rather than let these seeds grow were they collected and exported out of the country?

Just to explain this question a little more...if you squeeze tomato/capsicum seeds into a plant pot (you do not need to by a plant)...you will get a crop so...I don'treally understand why the people of Lebanon aren't doing the same thing with their vegetation?

Learnt a lot about your country, from this interesting post, Abed and Nana, and Rabea Jadallah. It is indeed so sad to hear what unplanned modernization from growing population, wars and corruption can do to a very beautiful country.

I have some questions myself.....
Nana and Abed, you folks have amazing command over the English Language, as seen in your works, and discussions. What makes it possible? Is your medium of instruction in English entirely, or only select schools have that medium?

And thanks to Rabea Jadallah for such a detailed picturization of the country's beauty. So is it really true what Abed said that only 8% of the greenbelt is left....or did he mean that for the burgeoning large cities?

(Hellon): "I don'treally understand why the people of Lebanon aren't doing the same thing with their vegetation?"

^ I think what people said in the video is related mainly to trees, not vegetation seeds. For example, Cedar trees.. and as for vegetation seeds, there are some spices which we use in our kitchen, but I don't know what they call them in English lol :p

~~~~~~

(A lonely soul)

- Nana is great at English because she loves the language (with all the cultural stufff... movies... fast-food... music...) and because her major in university is English literature.

- Rabea's english is also great, I cannot talk fluently like him!!

- As for me, I watch lots of movies, listen to music, read novels.... I think I'm somehow good at it :p

"Is your medium of instruction in English entirely, or only select schools have that medium? "

^ Lebanon is a francophone country because it was ruled by the French mandate. And almost 95+% of schools in the past used to teach French as a slighter main language alongside Arabic.

In 1990s, English became more demanded, I think, that's why The first foreign languages to be taught in schools became either French, or English, and that's according to the choice of the parents.
I'm in a school that has the two languages as the first foreign language after the main which is Arabic. My parents chose English knowing that both were French :p

Lebanon's Education system is without a doubt the strongest in the Arab world, a very powerful school system that makes you absolutely ready For strong qualified university studies which also is the strongest university's in the region, that is why both Nana and Abed's skills in English are the same of those who speak it as a native language, Also not forgetting French studies, they both do speak and understand french, much like almost half of the population of Lebanon.

I think The exact percentage is 13% around the Main areas of-course, dropping from 35% 10 years ago,
On a side note, I'm not Lebanese but I'd be proud to be one, :p my love for that country comes from being a university student for a couple of years.

Life without liberty is like a body without spirit.
Khalil Gibran

Gibran was by no means a politician. He used to say : "I am not a politician, nor do I wish to become one" and "Spare me the political events and power strugges, as the whole earth is my homeland and all men are my fellow countrymen"

Read more: http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/k/khalil_gibran_3.html#ixzz1ejwe8HCK

Another qn: Please try to answer it without a political or religious bias. And also without negativism on religion or countries that influence the politics in Lebanon.

Is the Christian Lebanese still battling with the Muslim Lebanese, or is their truce now. Do children and families mingle, go to same schools and are the streets/neighborhoods now safe?

Mmm.. Actually, the Christian Lebanese have equal rights, and they are the cause of the colorful atmosphere in Lebanon.

Battling with muslim Lebanese? -- I think no. Maybe in very very low percentages, only because of silly debates. (percentages less than 1%).

I think it's normal because we have 18 different sects in Lebanon, so the chance of having religious-related problems is there... and there are several cities and villages that have mixed sects/religions.

Before grade 10, I was in an Evangelical school, and 3 of my friends were Christians. Bugging each other and comparing our differences took place so many times, it's a must. But we managed not to let anything influence the bond between us.
Even I entered the Christmas chorus in my school, and I sang along. It was real fun, and the chemistry was there :)

We do mingle. YES!

Streets are safe, but there is fear.. due to many factors external and internal that sometimes widens the gap between both religions.
I mean we were in agreement before the French and Ottoman mandates.

But you know... how can someone rule a tightly connected population without diffusing them???????

And to their luck, we have so much sects (we're 4 million Lebanese) to diffuse...

But thank God, we're still able to overcome the external forces. Thanks God. THEY WON'T EVER HAVE A PIECE OF US!

- e

But the internal issues caused what you've seen in the video.

LOL, trying to answer this question is def going to confuse you, It's def a truce, people are ever more loving and ever more mingled, Disputes amongst ISLAM and CHRISTAINTY is almost unnoticeable, unlike the times of the civil war, however, There are Two major political communities in Lebanon

14th of FEB
which includes The Sunneh, a sect of Islam, and also include 2 major political christian leaders, of-course the masses of these two christian are also with their leaders, 14th of FEB used to control the government but it was overthrown by the 8th when they had the majority of the voices in the parliament earlier this year,

and the 8th of march
Which include the Shia, another sect of ISLAM, also include Drooz, a religon that is considered a sect of Islam but is noway related, Drooz are only found in Lebanon, and in syria and palestine, and it also includes a christian sect, the Maroons,

basically these two political parties fight over one thing,
the 8th Is a pro Syrian movement, and defends the Syrian existence in Lebanon, and the 14th is anti Syrian,

ofcourse they mingle, in school, and in everywehere, my best friend there was a doorzi, and i'm sure abed and nana would both agree to that as well, and yes they do go to the same schools, and everywhere.

yet some areas are heavily populated by a certian sect, it's divded, one side of beirut has the majority of Sunneh, while the other has the majority of shia population, and other countires have the majority of chraitain population,

to put an example for you to understand, take california for example, San fransisco would be all one sect, while Orange county would be all a differnt sect, and LA would be a place where the population is evenly mixed between differnet sects.

Google a street in Lebanon called MAR ELYAS, i think that street is the most diverse street when it comes to different religions, you have alot of Shia people there, and alot of sunneh, and alot of palestanians refugees, and alot of christians and drooz as well

It's a bit complicated
the population of Lebanon is exactly 5.4 million
4 million Lebanese who are in 18 different sects
400 thousand palestanians who are mostly Muslims, but some christains are also there,
and 1 million foreign worker.

YET, 16 million Lebanese people live overseas, mostly chriastians who have fled during the civil war
in fact, the lebanese Christain communties in brasil and in the usa combined out number the whole population of lebanon,
so its really complex

hope that sheds some light <3

^ yup ;) he's right. lol I think he knows more about us than we do.. haha.. Rabea is a master!! :)

Sorry just read the posts, I have some points to make (:

the Green places Abed is referring to and those mentioned in the video can't be taken in one package, half lebanon is still very very GREEN, literally Green, South Lebanon, Bekaa, Jbeil, etc..(try google) But the green spaces around the coast and inside the cities vanished in a very sad way, you still see trees all around, but if compared to years back, cities were almost "villages". Some type of trees are on the gates of being extinct due to Breakers, Crushers..etc where buildings and blocks are being built, in addition for hotels, resorts and such stuff ...
when reminds me about the sewage that come from factories and those places were they are mostly directed toward certain parts of the ocean (not all the oceans nor all the seas) but certain parts are being polluted.

now Traffic, as Rabea said traffic in Beirut is a killer, but after all take Cairo as an example is a main City in Egypt and traffic there is suicidal, by the same token Beirut being the heart of Lebanon, it's always lively busy with noises, cars, children, workers, employees, bosses, citizens, foreign people, native people..bla bla and it's like that during the whole week. The bustle there can be as much as annoying, and as much as enjoyable...There is life in every corner, and there is nothing that you wouldn't find there, in that traffic XD but when you have work, or uni...you better leave your house one hour earlier XD.

For vegetation and such stuff...I will try sum the whole situation with few words, the problem here is with the government, why don't we solve this? it's been worked on for years now and I can say things are more promising now! Because the gov rather than providing more funds to give a push for our farmers, they tend to rely on importing :/.

Now the christian va Islam issue...I doubt there is such a major thing now, I wish Rabea didn't go about 8th of march and 4th of March, because personally I think this is going to end with time, the new generation is way more friendly than this one, with each other. I mean anywhere around this world, in any country, 10 % out of 100 % you would find a little group that still holds tension toward those with a diff color, diff belief. but not only do christian people have muslims as friends, and vice versa, but I have seen countless ones getting married from different religions...such as a Christian taking a Muslims, bla bla... The main issues now are the stuff Rabea pointed out, but the fire turns on, only on certain occasions, not like people are always on fire...

I have friends from diff sects, diff religions, bla, we eat together, we sleep over, we visit, we hang out...it's very normal, there is no such a thing as picking those who share you the same shoes. It's over, trust me!

One more thing, Schools here whether private or not, do teach French and english along with Arabic, one will be focused on more than the other, regarding what the parents demand, like if my mother chooses to Teach me Arabic, English, i will still take French classes but in less less detailed manner, I am free though to work on myself... However some schools will teach the 3 languages as Main/native ones, it depends.

hope I cleared the situation here a bit more..

edit: btw Abed my major ain't English literature :P it's French/English/Arabic translation :P haha

Well, True lady nana, but the 8th and the 14th are what's happening right now in Lebanon, and while all the alliances are doomed to end, and destined to reformation, you're correct, I shouldn't of mentioned it <3

anyway, speaking of the noises, The MOST ANOYING VOICE IS THE SOKLEEEN @ 4am Clearing trash, Gosh i've always felt like hitting these guys, they woke me up EVERY SINGLE DAY @ 4 am, up to the point to where i usaully stayed up till after 4 to sleep just so i don't wake up grumpy and shiz >.<

Well, yes I mean if we want to mention them when talking about this country, when talking with each other then we are giving the tension more reasons and space to stay out there, when me as a Lebanese woman I not only disbelief in such stuff as 8th of march..I think it's a way for people to be played...and a tool to make issues where issues do not exsist! And HAHAHA i think you should come back to Lebanon really soon :P things changed especially with the Sokleen and trash pickers schedules, I think if you come to the suburb as well you might get lost, same for the district around the Sahel Hospital, you will triple like the changes!

"there is no such a thing as picking those who share you the same shoes"

Is there some meaning behind this phrase or is it your poetic expression?

Nope haha no meaning, what I was trying to say is now in 2011 in Lebanon we do not choose our friends ,lovers teachers, neighbors ..etc regarding their religious background, whether they wear a veil, or hold a cross, that doesn't matter, at all!

In essence Christians, and Muslims, do honestly have a good relation!

Abed, Rabea and Nana: You have given me and the rest of the members who visited this post a very in depth education on modern Lebanon. As I suspected, as the generations change, religious and other factions will disappear slowly...when Christian and different sects of Islam intermarry and raise up mixed families... in this I have the same vision as Nana and all of you as you project in your thoughts here. I think true peace to that part of the world will only come with EDUCATION and children growing up with friends who were once foes. People who are against progress or higher education and favor radical religious or sectarian or political views will slowly vanish or will be in a minority. I sincerely hope that the same happens in all of the Middle East. The reason, I believe that you folks in Lebanon are embracing it first, is again as Rabea said earlier "Lebanon's Education system is without a doubt the strongest in the Arab world, a very powerful school system that makes you absolutely ready." I would not be surprised if Lebanon will emerge as a torch bearer to the Arab world in this new age of Renaissance.

However, this is probably not going to happen overnight. Embracing the concept for one human to respect another without the interfering concept of a political, religious or social factional divide only comes with education, and overcoming one's own ignorance.

I really appreciate all your insights, and am truly impressed by your wisdom and foresight in dealing with my seemingly innocent question. Yes, you folks truly understand each other much better than the West understands you.

I have a question, how do you truly view your Jewish cousins a cross the boarder...?

^For me as a Syrian who had been in Lebanon for more than 2 years, we view them as we view everyone else, we never hated some group of people because of their religion maybe of their nationality, yes but not religion.

I'm sorry if this wasn't your question, Nicko, but if you meant Israel and its people then honestly? we see them as enemies. I haven't read all the posts above so if my answer makes to you no sense, then excuse me, my bad.

Edit: Lonely Soul, thank you for your gentleness :)

Nicko :), it's against my wills to talk about such sensitive subjects that may be misunderstood by others, so I will try and keep my answer as narrow as possible, yet that would give you a slight idea about your concerns.

Judaism is religion that I believe in as much as I believe in Islam and Christianity, " Turat" which is the holly book for Jewish people is one sent by God, which I believe in as much as I believe in mine..etc..

If you have an impression that we have a problem, with Jews or that we see those cousins as enemies then I can assure you that there is no such a thing, at all. It just happens that our problem, our issues and our major conflict is with "Isreali people" who happen to be mostly Jewish, as you know the Isreali army is of different cultures now, different nationalities, which is a wider debate and I no bet won't go there. But to answer your question, we see Jewish people the same way we see Christians...my first best friend over p and q "Casey" spoken silence
a member of this community was Jewish and we were really close, until i left the website for the 1st time. The problem ain't with the religion, the problem between middle east and Isreali people, is the Isreali conflict itself. :) hope that answered your question! XD