By now we have all heard the all too predicable criticisms leveled at the  current civil society based reform movement in general and  the #YouStink campaign in specific.

I can’t help but ask myself,  “why are the Lebanese so quick to criticize an organic reform movement but not the politicians and their parties that have gotten us here?”

My initial thoughts:

1- Fear of the unknown. “what will happen if the government resigns?!”…” what will we do without the esteez?”

2- Attachment to what  is familiar: “The evil you know is better than that which you don’t”?…  Most Lebanese have grown up with politics as part of their life and many have inherited it from a generation whose political allegiance was equal to military allegiance. That it as persisted so long is amazing….Leaders are above reproach….and loyal followers have an amazing skill for spinning stories, rewriting  history,, and interpreting global politics in a way that always ends with how amazing wise, courageous, and clairvoyant their leader is.  ( even if he has somehow miraculously  amassed a billion dollar fortune through the salary parliament is paying him)

These two…I  can understand…and politicians are experts at capitalizing on these sometimes natural human behaviours.

The third reason I put forward is however, distinctly Lebanese…..and it is this nation’s Achilles heel:

3-  Schadenfreude. Meaning :” joy at the failure of others”. 

It would seem some Lebanese would rather criticize, defame, and abort reformation, just to see others fail. To say ” pff…nothing came of it”….” ma tili3 min amrun chi”.  They feel better about their apathy..Their lack of effort has been validated….their pessimism justified.

Maybe that’s why they have been so quick to harangue Asaad Thebian over a silly Facebook joke?…or label the demonstrators as young and inexperienced children.. Maybe it’s because their own “long years of experience”  have achieved little and that deep inside they actually  wish they could join these “inexperience children” ( which they can….if they could  just for once, leave their egos aside).

4- The Boss Complex:

This is self evident to anybody in Lebanon.  A person oftentimes will not lend their support to a movement if they are not center stage or getting some credit.   Even if they agree, they would rather attack it rather than support it. Then again, what do you expect  when the notion of public service as a reward in of itself is absent ?

It is  glaringly apparent that so many people creating NGOs do so more  for the prestige  than  results.  The best evidence for that is that despite how small Lebanon is, we still manage to have six NGOs for the same cause! They know that if they consolidated they would be able to achieve more….but you know…...” If I am not boss, I am not joining…I’ll start my own” .

it is also similar with the many different hashtags around the current protests…every five people want to create their own  ” group”.   Come on!…. Together we are unbreakable….alone we are weak. Sleeping one night in Martyr’s square is more valuable than a hundred interviews.

5- We don’t know how to listen

If we did…we wouldn’t have so much duplication of efforts. We’d all realize that we all want pretty much same thing…..and not every thought that crosses one’s mind is novel and requires a new organization, hashtag, or NGO!

 

Now that we are done with the  psychoanalysis, let’s take a look at some of the comments making their way around social media:

Comments like:

” They don’t have a clear agenda”

This is an unfair comment.   They are only about a month old…so no… they don’t  have a perfectly clear road-map for Lebanon…but they are listening, gathering opinions, doing their homework, and asking for your input and support.

On the other hand, for those of you still in love with your feudal lord/political master…. the people in government have had 25 years….10 years  if you only count post Rafic Hariri assassination…and they definitely have no vision,  road map, or plan….unless it is how to divide Lebanon’s resources among themselves.

“They are not a cohesive group”

Really?…Like March 8 and March 14  are? Are they anything but opportunistic alliances born out of political circumstance? ( Basically as far from cohesiveness as you can get!)  On the other hand what do you expect from a month old attempt to organize a grass-roots civil society movement…obviously smooth sailing and no hiccups whatsoever?…stop your hypocrisy please.

” Meenun howdi…Ana mabimshi warahun” ( who are these people?…I won’t follow them)

First of all…reign in your ego. We are all too familiar with the Lebanese boss complex…especially when the organizers are just young , enthusiastic men and women who don’t differ from anyone except in their drive and ability to put their words into actions. But more importantly, they are not asking you to walk behind them…but with them…hand in hand. 

Oh …and they are not speaking in the name of  political families or  civil-war era sectarian/ex-militia parties …because if they did….well obviously…. “baaaaaaa”.

 

” They have hijacked our slogans”

Seems the word  ” reform”  is  trademarked  by one political party. Seriously how trivial can you get??!

 

“Where were they when we were campaigning for reform and being put in the jail?”.

They weren’t born or too young. This is a generation that doesn’t remember the insanity of the civil war…..who did what to who. .Nor does it  try to understand  the  “everyone was right and everyone was wrong” scenario that seems to be the only way to reconcile the twenty competing narratives explaining the collective madness of the previous  generation.  They started a war…they can’t seem to figure out how to govern…they  divide and conquer.  That is how this generation perceives them and quite frankly  has a burning desire to shed all loyalties to the warlords of old.

This generation’s  loyalties lie with Lebanon the nation….  and against those who abuse it and stand in the way of its progress.

“We liberated the south ….what did you do?”

There is no debt here to be paid…what was done was done in service of the nation.  And I categorically refuse the notion that a previous act of valor absolves you from future mistakes….If anything, I would prescribe more humility, less arrogance…and a true understanding of the concept that whoever you are,  you are not infallible…far from it.

 

” These newbies should form a coalition with an existing “reform” political party”

To achieve what exactly…? the agenda of a political party that has strayed as far from its stated  mission as  humanly possible?…or is this so you can hijack the will  of the people and focus solely on the political  aspirations of your leader and his family ?”

 

And finally my favourite: 

” The #YouStink movement is a conspiracy funded by foreign nations”

HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! It s no secret that Arabs are notorious for their abilities to spin conspiracy theory, but this is truly noteworthy. In a feat of imagination worthy of Dan Brown, it turns out that this rag-tag  bunch of university-aged demonstrators are somehow agents of chaos from abroad targeting  each in turn…the Shiites…the Sunnis…and the Christians….not to mention it is has been widely reported that  Asaad Thebian, an organizer,  poses a clear and present danger to God Himself.

Seriously, the only threat #YouStink poses is those making a lucrative living  off the misery of the Lebanese suffering under their leadership…or lack thereof.

Now I don’t blame people for being suspicious, it’s not like they have not been bitten before….but seriously, for once….get off your couch….and participate in the change instead of finding reasons for it to fail.

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In support of: طلعت_ريحتكم   # مستمرون#     #YouStink   طلعت ريحتكم