Marhaba.
I live in Lebanon, Aley district. Israeli airstrike targets are at proximity of my location. Beirut, and particularly Dahieh, is completely visible from my balcony. There are also refugees sheltered in my town.
Other things to know about me: I am a leftist, and a legal and political writer.
P.S. I will answer anything (as it is with AMA posts), not only issues pertaining to the recent events.
I have so many questions I could ask. Here is a selection of them. I know it's a lot, so feel free to not answer any of them.
- What does Lebanon need most right now? (This is an intentionally vague question.)
- How can Lebanese leftists make a difference domestically? Internationally?
- In your eyes, what does global leftism need the most right now? What can global leftists do for each other right now?
- What does leftism in imperial countries need the most right now? What can empire-residing leftists in particular do for the people of exploited states?
- How much of an impact has the 2020 Beirut port explosion had on the country? (The videos that day had a profound effect on me, I think about Lebanon all the time and try to speak up for the Lebanese people whenever it is relevant. Is that weird?)
- What are the chances that the existing government structure remains intact in, let's say, 20-25 years? What do you think and what is the consensus opinion?
- How functional is the national government right now? What areas (responsibilities/programs) and regions are it more and less functional in? How is the government viewed?
- How do Beirut and regions further north view Hezbollah?
- Lebanon is a diverse country. Across the territory, how strong is the desire to remain as a single coherent state in the long-term?
- What do you think will determine Lebanon's fate over the next few decades? How much is under the control of the populace, vs. how much is dependent on externalities?
- What are the prevalence in the country of the various opinions about climate change?
- You've mentioned the prevalence of solar cells. Was this driven out of necessity? If so, what lessons can you share with the rest of us - were there challenges in adoption, was it surprisingly easy to adopt, is this solution sufficient for people's energy needs in Lebanon, what conditions led to people adopting solar cells, who has been left out in this transition, etc.
- What has been the reaction among the people to Nasrallah's assassination?
- Do you feel safe right now? If not, what would help you to feel safer?
I know this is a less serious question, but any tips/recommendations for someone visiting Lebanon? I’ve wanted to go there for the longest time.
if you know Roqayah Chamseddine can you tell her I thought her recent appearance on The East is a Podcast was very good
I discovered The East is a Podcast via their Tankie Therapy series of group therapy sessions where they try to cope with the news of the zionist atrocities, highly recommended
What are left politics Lebanon like at the moment?
More or less inexistent. The Lebanese Communist Party has no more popularity even after it rebranded itself as soccdem in the 70's.
The Progressive Socialist Party adopted sectarian politics after the assassination of its former leader.
There is the Communists Action Organisation in Lebanon which still upholds its socialist character.
After the 17 october 2019 protests, a new grassroot party emerged called "Citizens in a State" whose leader is an approved communist. But the party's constituents are diverse, from liberals to socdems, neoliberals, socialists and so forth. Wasn't very fond of their programme.
I think the main issue of the political left is its failure to attract and mobilize the working class. The only recent example I can recall is the establishment of a labor union by the workers of Spinneys (supermarket chain) after intense legal battles with the help of the communist leader that I mentioned earlier. I highly recommend reading about it: https://www.jadaliyya.com/Details/27198
To give you one of those not pertaining to current events:
How did Lebanese cooking conquer so much of the world? I feel like every other country with a cuisine that is as widely spread and popular is more than ten times the size. I actually just did a search for Stockholm where I live and found 54 different lebanese restaurants. The food is great, but why did Lebanon in particular beat all of its bigger neighbours and become such a giant in food culture?
Lebanese cuisine conquering the world is the only imperialist endeavour I approve 😎
It's very interesting because many of our dishes we share with the neighbouring countries due to cultural and historical ties. One factor could be that the Lebanese among the arab nations were the first to immigrate (circa 1840's) to the west. They were mostly christian minorities who fled and were very successful in establishing themselves abroad. This could also be a case of xenophobia and islamophobia. But I am no expert.
Also, the food tastes even better if you visit the country.
Being the first to emigrate to a large degree is a great explanation. I don't think this one can be blamed on islamophobia because I think the islamophobes just consider Lebanon to be an entirely muslim country already because it's in that part of the world.
It is no surprise that there are more good Lebanese chefs in Lebanon than anywhere else, and I hope I'll be able to visit someday. Stay safe and thank you for answering our questions!
think the islamophobes just consider Lebanon to be an entirely muslim country already because it's in that part of the world.
Christian immigrants from Lebanon would've had an easier time integrating into islamophobic societies though, and would act as the bridge between cultures.
Pagers exploded.
Walkie-talkies exploded.
Are people living in fear their lightswitch is about to blow up, or their showerhead, or something? Is there a climate of fear about hidden bombs in everyday objects?
Oh that was a common concern. Especially directly after the incident, there was a lot of fear mongering being perpetuated. Some claimed that the batteries of phones and laptops were also rigged or, worse, lithium batteries connected to solar panels were going to explode (FYI, the majority of households use solar energy and virtually every roof has at least one station).
Also, you reminded me of this
I'll have to try that. I've only really had savory yogurt as part of indian dishes.
Cool thread.
What would you cook if you had a bunch of friends coming for dinner?
Also, please link some good new Lebanese music.
Depends on the occasion. Safest option would be chicken Kabsa.
As for music I'd recommend from the new alternative/indie scene Mashrou' Leila, Rudy Ayoub, Mayssa Jallad (1, 2, 3).
How does opinion in the country split, from your perspective? What groups would you say different people with different views on the situation belong to?
Let me start by what isn't a split.
Contrary to the west, there isn't the typical left-right split. Frankly, the two competing, mainstream currents are both right-wing to different degrees (yes, Hezbollah isn't keen on leftism and had fought with the communists during the civil war; but of course, obligatory critical support yada yada).
Equally the split, unlike what bigoted orientalist journalists and correspondents claim, is not of a sectarian/religious nature and never has been. Although parties employ sectarian discourse the reality is each religion and sect has two parties or more who contradict each other and are allied with parties from different sects.
In reality, opinion is split regarding foreign policy and allegiance. Some parties are affiliated with Saudi Arabia (and by extension the US) while others are funded by Syria, and Iran. This has been the case since the establishment of the state. Historically it was the British and French. Then it was the Americans and Egyptians (Soviets by extension) which led to the events of 1958, a mini civil war of sorts. The 1975 civil war was mainly caused by disagreement regarding support for the Palestinian cause.
To clarify, this is the mainstream political narrative. But there is a class narrative which has always been overshadowed.
Thank you, this gives a materialist perspective on the common “religiously split nation” image held up in the west
So the Lebanon subreddit on
is almost entirely Hasbara astroturfing, yea? All they seem to do is talk shit about Hezb (in english most of the time lol, totally not sus at all)Hasbara and liberal, disconnected expats. They never reflected the political culture and now more than ever. And they always spoke in English. Lebanese have a severe case of westoxication.
Exactly what I thought lol thanks for confirming.
Stay safe out there, comrade.
is this an alt account or did someone send you to this site? either way, how did you find hexbear?
This is an alt account. I come from another instance. Your recent integration into the fediverse is a blessing :)
I wish I had a more salient question. All I knew of Lebanon before recent events was a song I stumbled upon called Lebanon by Ondara. Is there anything you're hoping we'd ask?
What does the billions and billions of dollars from America to Israel turn into on the ground? Combatants in vibranium armor armed with hospital seeking missiles?
What is the most influential way you've found to write about leftism and convincing people to give a shit about victims of the genocidal entity?
The genocidal entity is not a controversial matter here of course so there is no need for convincing. As for leftism, I think I had a bit of luck with the legal pieces I wrote concerning labor law and unions for an online magazine. I expected the publisher to censor the shit out of it since I quoted Lenin and Stalin but surprisingly it was praised.
The contention towards leftism (soccdem excluded) comes from the decades of indoctrination and anticommunist repression, so a good marxist has to intelligently discuss and write about those matters, aggressive attitude towards our fellow proletarians leads to nowhere. Reading Freire's pedagogy was very helpful in this respect. I'm also writing my own book on related matters so I hope this could contribute to anything fruitful.
What do you believe is the most effective way for Westerners to be in solidarity the people of Lebanon and the resistance? Examples: educating their peers to support Lebanon and against Zionists, contributing money to specific organizations or fundraisers, making direct ties with front groups, engaging in direct action against equipment intended for Zionists, BDS, etc.
Please stay safe and as healthy as you can.
Ideally overthrowing the bourgeoisie in the West ;)
Any contribution for the anticolonial cause, be it material or immaterial, is cherished. I am afraid I cannot as of now recommend any organisation to donate to for aiding refugees (maybe the red cross and red cresent??) but I will look into it. And thank you for your wishes.
We're trying ha ha but I think it will be some time!
Thank you for the information and your participation here
stay safe conrad