After you hang around the french bars in Beirut long enough, and if you make any trips outside the now-shrinking christian and sun'a arab enclave in that city and the northern part of the country, how long do you estimate it will take you to admit that Lebanon is just another failed multi-cultural state, a place that never was stable, never can be stable, and never shall be stable?
Lebanon is just another failed multi-cultural state, a place that never was stable, never can be stable, and never shall be stable..
States don't fail because they're multi-cultural. Our multi-culti state is fairly successful.
During the short time I was in Lebanon, I saw a lot of things that reminded me of Ireland, another mostly-unstable state that, until recently was constantly divided by sectarianism. Ireland became a successful state when it managed to crawl out from under the oppressive thumb of their neighbor, Great Britain. They did this by joining the EU and using their business connections in the United States.
Great Britain never encouraged a strong Ireland. The EU and America did. When Ireland's economy began to thrive, constant sectarian warfare lost its appeal in the North and the South (if you thought the South had nothing to do with the 'troubles' in the North, you'd be wrong)
Lebanon is obviously being manipulated by its neighbors - the source of the problem isn't in Beirut, it's in Damascus and Tehran. Not coincidentally, the source of many of the world's problems is located in the same place.
Ireland also probably got where it is now in part since the Soviet funding and arming and training for IRA guerillas dried up in the early 1990s. Amazingly, the Good Friday Peace Accords happened only a couple of years after that. Who'da thunk?
As for Lebanon: It was a stable, prosperous, free and democratic nation for some time before certain external forces worked to rip them apart. Mary's right.
Nonetheless, Lebanon is presently a failed state, inasmuch as it's government and armed forces only control part of the country and therefore share sovereignty with an outright terrorist gang.
"Stable, prosperous, free and democratic"? Indeed. Except that ever since Lebanon was carved out of the territory of the expired Ottoman empire after World War I, on land that traditionally had been under control of various governments centered in Damascus, all governments in Beirut had purposely avoided taking a national census. This was done in order to enable the perpetually shrinking christian arab communities to claim parity with the various moslem arab communities relative to power sharing.
I am old enough and have seen enough of the world to know better than to give credence to the conventional wisdoms by which most Americans typically view foreign affairs. And I tag societies for what they are, not what they might become under laboratory petri dish circumstances that none of you shall ever see.
The Ottoman empire, the Austro-Hungarian empire, the Soviet Union, Czechoslovakia, Jugoslavia, Lebanon and now Iraq are failed states. So too is Canada, whose unity depends more on political sleight-of-hand than on the genuine desire of Francophones and Anglophones to create a common society based on a common culture. For that matter, the UNO has been a failed state right from the beginning, and in the fullness of time, the European Union shall fall prey to the differing interests of its constituent nations -- each with its own unique cultural and historical baggage.
As for the United States, it has in fact survived because the white European-Americans whose forefathers put this country together have until now succeded in imposing their culture upon all others who reside in country.
If and when there arises evidence that this European-American culture has failed to deculturize the spanish-speaking millions who continue to flood across our borders, that will mark the beginning of the end for the unity of this country. And it will not be long after that before cracks begin appearing in the map of what for so long has been the United States of America. So take heed in regard to such warning signs.
Heh. Last night on CBC, I watched "The Hour", a talk show out of Canada. (I saw Alan Rickman was going to be on it, and I've been a fan since Die Hard. Plus I'd just watched Something the Lord Made, which I think by itself justifies the existence of HBO.)
At one point, some comic came on to discuss news that I had missed: Quebec has apparently been declared a "nation" within Canada, with a fleur d' lis as its symbol. I'm guessing that's related to Arnold's observation.
The comic proceeded to identify other new "nations" within Canada, each with their own distinctive symbols (including a raised middle finger). He kept dividing, and dividing, with lots of jokes that I'm sure made a lot of sense to Canadians, but went over my head. And by the time he was done, he declared that each and every viewer was a nation unto him- or herself. So if Canada's a failed state, they seem to find failure pretty amusing.
Michael
You sure attract the freaks in your comments section (note I posted there several times and happily include myself amongst them).
Do you really need comments? Your pieces are so much better than your run-of-the-mill blog post.
12.27.2006 9:18pm
Commenting on Dean's World is a privilege, not a right. Dean is your host, you are his guest, and you should behave in that fashion. Dean is not your babysitter, nor is he your punching bag. Please remember this. In general, you are free to disagree with anyone on any subject you wish, but abusive behavior will not be tolerated.
Of course we all lose our tempers now and then. Dean freely admits to being imperfect in this regard, which is why regulars to this establishment will generally be cut more slack than people who we don't know very well.
Still: behave like an adult, or go find somewhere else to play. Thanks.
Thanks!
Arnold Harris
Mount Horeb WI
Where's part 2?
Get up you slacker!
States don't fail because they're multi-cultural. Our multi-culti state is fairly successful.
During the short time I was in Lebanon, I saw a lot of things that reminded me of Ireland, another mostly-unstable state that, until recently was constantly divided by sectarianism. Ireland became a successful state when it managed to crawl out from under the oppressive thumb of their neighbor, Great Britain. They did this by joining the EU and using their business connections in the United States.
Great Britain never encouraged a strong Ireland. The EU and America did. When Ireland's economy began to thrive, constant sectarian warfare lost its appeal in the North and the South (if you thought the South had nothing to do with the 'troubles' in the North, you'd be wrong)
Lebanon is obviously being manipulated by its neighbors - the source of the problem isn't in Beirut, it's in Damascus and Tehran. Not coincidentally, the source of many of the world's problems is located in the same place.
As for Lebanon: It was a stable, prosperous, free and democratic nation for some time before certain external forces worked to rip them apart. Mary's right.
"Stable, prosperous, free and democratic"? Indeed. Except that ever since Lebanon was carved out of the territory of the expired Ottoman empire after World War I, on land that traditionally had been under control of various governments centered in Damascus, all governments in Beirut had purposely avoided taking a national census. This was done in order to enable the perpetually shrinking christian arab communities to claim parity with the various moslem arab communities relative to power sharing.
I am old enough and have seen enough of the world to know better than to give credence to the conventional wisdoms by which most Americans typically view foreign affairs. And I tag societies for what they are, not what they might become under laboratory petri dish circumstances that none of you shall ever see.
The Ottoman empire, the Austro-Hungarian empire, the Soviet Union, Czechoslovakia, Jugoslavia, Lebanon and now Iraq are failed states. So too is Canada, whose unity depends more on political sleight-of-hand than on the genuine desire of Francophones and Anglophones to create a common society based on a common culture. For that matter, the UNO has been a failed state right from the beginning, and in the fullness of time, the European Union shall fall prey to the differing interests of its constituent nations -- each with its own unique cultural and historical baggage.
As for the United States, it has in fact survived because the white European-Americans whose forefathers put this country together have until now succeded in imposing their culture upon all others who reside in country.
If and when there arises evidence that this European-American culture has failed to deculturize the spanish-speaking millions who continue to flood across our borders, that will mark the beginning of the end for the unity of this country. And it will not be long after that before cracks begin appearing in the map of what for so long has been the United States of America. So take heed in regard to such warning signs.
Arnold Harris
Mount Horeb WI
Arnold Harris
Mount Horeb WI
At one point, some comic came on to discuss news that I had missed: Quebec has apparently been declared a "nation" within Canada, with a fleur d' lis as its symbol. I'm guessing that's related to Arnold's observation.
The comic proceeded to identify other new "nations" within Canada, each with their own distinctive symbols (including a raised middle finger). He kept dividing, and dividing, with lots of jokes that I'm sure made a lot of sense to Canadians, but went over my head. And by the time he was done, he declared that each and every viewer was a nation unto him- or herself. So if Canada's a failed state, they seem to find failure pretty amusing.
You sure attract the freaks in your comments section (note I posted there several times and happily include myself amongst them).
Do you really need comments? Your pieces are so much better than your run-of-the-mill blog post.
Of course we all lose our tempers now and then. Dean freely admits to being imperfect in this regard, which is why regulars to this establishment will generally be cut more slack than people who we don't know very well.
Still: behave like an adult, or go find somewhere else to play. Thanks.