@Rafidi
Everyone knows how Islamists treated minorities in the aftermath of the revolution in Iran. They put their closest allies, the ones who helped depose of the Shah, to death. No one trusts you and no one will hand you total control in Lebanon without a fight.
I have met Christians from all over the middle east. Only Lebanese Christians dare practice their identity freely in public. Won't give that up so easily.
Let me indulge you a bit and entertain you.
The subject I was talking about had nothing to do with the Islamist scarecrow taking over or any boogeyman. It has to do with a new regime where people's votes count, and the people have the power to change both the sectarian warlord and the Islamist and throw him out of power. This democratic power does not presently exist in Lebanon and it is the reason why the people are helpless in the face of corrupt warlords, who have sucked the treasury dry and squandered people's deposits in the central bank through the chief accountant of the corrupt ruling class, Mr Salemeh.
As an Israehelli supporter yourself, your problem isn't with Islamists in principle. Your problem is with anyone who dare challenge Israehelli terrorism and occupation. The resistance against Israehell in Lebanon, in the South, did not start with Shia Islamist Hezballah. It started with secular or atheist communists in the South and from all over Lebanon who joined the fight against Israehelli terror and occupation. In the latter part, the resistance took an Islamist outlook because its major backer was an Islamic regime. Had the atheistic and secular liberation fighters remained and grew to become what Hezballah is today, you will still find ways to demonize them and defame them. Nothing shocking here. And you will still find sellouts and rogues at the highest level who are willing tools to blackmail them.
If I am to rant further, the Hezballah phenomenon in Lebanon is an existential reality. In other words it relates directly to the existence of Lebanon, its regime and how power was shared in a racist, apartheid and unfair fashion. Power was one sided until Taef and whatever befell the South was not regarded as of any importance at national or state level. MaMarginalisatio.From marginalization grew a reality that if the state does not care about us, we can care for ourselves and act in ways better than the state itself. Thus, I can never imagine Hezballah handing over its weapons to an army that is by system always headed by a commander from one sect or under a president who is commander in chief of the armed forces and who must always come from one sect. Hezballah is never going to hand over its weapons to such a system or such a commander in chief or to such a regime of corrupt warlords divided along sectarian lines. It isnt going to happen in my estimation. If it happens, it would be like one major sect surrendering to another and accepting defeat. Thus it will never happen. For such to ever happen, the rotten apartheid regime has to change. The people must be the ones to decise if we would make peace with Israehell. No single leader in Lebanon can make such a decision and remain free. Someone will always milk such decision by a single individual. It is only the people who can collectively decide in a referendum. Give power to the people and let people have the power and right to determine what and who they want and be able to change what's not in their interest. We dont have such in Lebanon. People should be able to elect and change their leaders. MPs must have term limits and the people must elect the president and major public servants. This is the reason after months of protests, the same man who resigned is returning as PM and supported by the same parties. They are not accountable to the people and they do as they please whether for the right or wrong reasons.
And this has nothing to do with diminishing the role of Christians or their place in power. Power can still be shared in a rational and fair way, whereby both Christians and Muslims remain equally represented. For example, people can vote for a Christian president and a Muslim vice for a single six years term. And if the same pair want another six years and be reelected, we can have the Muslim VP become president and the Christian president become VP. A person can serve a single term of 6 years as president or VP. And likewise if it were the opposite and the president was Muslim. The place of Christians as people and as Lebanese and the place of Muslims as people and as Lebanese will always remain in Lebanon. But the problem here is the place of the many sectarian warlords, with each acting as an unelected but influential head of state. This has to stop if we are going to have a country. The power of the unelected heads of state must be curtailed and the power given to the citizen. A country of sects led by warlords will always have us remain in conflicts and confusion. The fight has never been between people of different religions. It has always been between parties who use religion and sectarianism to incite people and take advantage of the system for their own selfish interests. In the end, they all have one religion: power and money. They use power to divide and milk the people and the least of their worries or concern is faith. Power can be shared and alternated in a fair and reasonable way and in a better and democratic system and the people should hold the power and decision to impose change. This will never mean relegating any religion or sect out of the system.
