The US Dollar has reached an all-time high of 34,000 LBP in the Lebanese black market a few days ago, and this is only the prelude of what’s about to come. Less than two years ago, that amount would’ve fed a family easily for one or two days. Today, you’d be lucky if you can buy bread with it. And with the continuous squabble of the politicians, we have barely scratched the surface of the catastrophes that are yet to strike. But, of course, as with almost everything in Lebanon, everyone is too busy hacking at the leaves instead of remediating the core issues plaguing the community.
A very unpopular opinion is that the politicians in Lebanon are not to blame for the crisis. They are merely a group of opportunistic parasites making the best from an opportunity that is available to them. Would you blame the crows for feasting on corpses they find? You wouldn’t because that is what a crow does.
In any self-respecting country, everyone is under the rule of the law. The law is not perfect, and many people are still treated unfairly because of it while others abuse loopholes in it, yet it remains the ultimate mark of a civilized society. Moreover, societies with more law-abiding citizens are definitely much better off in the long run. However, what’s important about the law is that it gets reviewed and updated systematically and regularly to ensure that it is more just and fair than it was before. Mistakes get made, but ultimately, the law evolves and becomes better over time. Unfortunately, in Lebanon, not only is the law archaic and obsolete in many areas, but it is also selectively applied where it fits an influential person’s agenda.
But aren’t the people electing representatives to fix that problem?
The question I ask you in return, and I know the answer is going to be a resounding no, is the following: “Do you believe that the Lebanese electoral system is of any use?”
Of course, it’s not! The people who designed that electoral system, be it in its new or old forms, are the same parasites who got elected through it. If a system is working for you and helping you line your pockets and those of the people you care about, would you change it just because it was inconveniencing others? Let’s be serious and not deal in ethics, but you wouldn’t. Neither would the politicians. There is no point in going through that joke anymore: democracy and elections will not fix the country, and that’s not because of the politicians, but because of the people as well.
The Lebanese people is a perfect example for the boiling frog experiment: if you put a frog in boiling water, it jumps out immediately, but if you put it in cold or lukewarm water and then turn up the heat, the frog will slowly adapt to the slow change in its environment that it would get boiled without jumping out. Similarly, the Lebanese population has become too acclimated to the political, social, and economic environment in Lebanon that they are virtually being boiled alive and not doing anything to jump out of their situation.
But what’s the solution?
Get out of the boiling pot!
