Michael Young of Beirut’s Daily Star offers a helpful guide to the Lebanese crisis at Reason.com, “Can Anyone Fix Lebanon?: International aid can’t change the climate around Beirut.”
Young doesn’t discuss the occasion for the current crisis, which is very important to keep in mind. Hezbollah is demanding the overthrow of the government and a new government that would give their party a veto power over the national government — despite lacking the votes in parliament — in order to veto a criminal investigation into the murder of Rafik Hariri. Why? Because they fear that the evidence will point where everyone thinks it points: Damascus, one of their sponsors. That’s the foundation for Hezbollah’s threatening campaign for a new “national unity” government, i.e., one in which they could veto proceedings against the killers of the country’s former prime minister.
It appears that resources and energy are being wasted in attempt to bring liberal democracy to Lebanon. If the masses are not in favor of liberty, the rule of law, and pursuit happiness, how can any effort to advocate such have a chance of succeeding?
In my opinion, the Lebanese, if they are serious about liberty, need to have their own Boston Tea Party to start off the their campaign for liberal democracy. And it must not have any interference from the international community, no matter how ugly it gets. Its like growing pains, you have to have some in order to grow. This may seem harsh, but liberty is not a give me, you must get it and defend it.
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