LCCC
ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
November 30/09
Bible Reading of the day
Paul's First Letter to the Corinthians 3/16-23: " Don’t you know
that you are a temple of God, and that God’s Spirit lives in you? 3:17 If anyone
destroys the temple of God, God will destroy him; for God’s temple is holy,
which you are. 3:18 Let no one deceive himself. If anyone thinks that he is wise
among you in this world, let him become a fool, that he may become wise. 3:19
For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. For it is written, “He has
taken the wise in their craftiness.”* 3:20 And again, “The Lord knows the
reasoning of the wise, that it is worthless.”* 3:21 Therefore let no one boast
in men. For all things are yours, 3:22 whether Paul, or Apollos, or Cephas, or
the world, or life, or death, or things present, or things to come. All are
yours, 3:23 and you are Christ’s, and Christ is God’s./Naharnet
Free Opinions, Releases, letters & Special
Reports
Not too hot to handle/Al-Ahram Weekly/November 29/09
Football and Hate Wars/Asharq Alawsat/November 29/09
Latest
News Reports From Miscellaneous Sources for November 29/09
U.S.
Welcomes 'Significant' IAEA Iran Resolution/Naharnet
Nasri Khoury: Syria Has Been Oppressed, No Official Request to Amend
Lebanon-Syria Brotherhood Treaty/Naharnet
Jumblat: Dialogue is the Key to a Successful Future/Naharnet
Pharaon: There is Hope in the Government, Youth Should Continue Defending Our
Land/Naharnet
Al-Rahi: Moawad was a
Moderate who Rejected Culture of Violence/Naharnet
Report: Jumblat, Aoun Working on Joint Strategy in Municipal Polls in the
Mountains/Naharnet
History to Repeat Itself in Stances
of Christian Ministers on Cabinet Policy Statement/Naharnet
Report:
Suleiman to Meet Obama Next Month/Naharnet
Gul:
Peace Talks with Israel Are Important because Lebanon's Territories Are Still
Occupied/Naharnet
Man of
Lebanese Origin Opens Fire on 17 Relatives in Florida Killing 4/Naharnet
LF Bloc: Mentioning
Resistance in Ministerial Policy Statement Contradicts with Constitution, Taef
Accord/Naharnet
Aoun
Visits Arslan, Says No 'Hard Feelings' Between Them, But 'Clear Relation'/Naharnet
16 Soldiers Injured in Bus
Accident/Naharnet
New Hizbullah Policy to be
Announced by Nasrallah Monday/Naharnet
Biggest Israeli Army
Budget to Face Threats by Iran, Hizbullah, Hamas/Naharnet
Sami Gemayel Rejects
Abolition of Political Sectarianism/Naharnet
Khalife: 4 Deaths from Swine Flu in Lebanon/Naharnet
Transparency International Releases 2009 Corruption
Index/MEMRI
What Next for Assad's Syria?Khaleej
Times
Bomb and drive-by
shooting target Hezbollah members/Now
Lebanon
Aridi: Ministerial
Statement will be adopted/Now Lebanon
Jumblatt, Aoun unite for municipal
elections/Now Lebanon
Zahra: LF on board for vote of
confidence/Now Lebanon
Abbas in Lebanon next month/Future
News/Now Lebanon
Mneimneh: Cabinet Statement
discussions, the best possible/Future News
History
to Repeat Itself in Stances of Christian Ministers on Cabinet Policy Statement
/Naharnet/In Lebanese politics, history seems to be repeating itself. The
cabinet session on the policy statement next week would most probably be similar
to the August 5, 2008 meeting when four Christian ministers expressed
reservations on the document. During Wednesday's government session, Phalange
and Lebanese Forces ministers as well as Minister Boutros Harb are expected to
express reservations on the resistance clause which states the right of
"Lebanon, its government, its people, its army and its resistance" to liberate
all Lebanese territory.
In 2008, four Christian cabinet ministers -Nassib Lahoud, Elie Marouni, Ibrahim
Najjar and Antoine Karam- registered reservations over the clause because it did
not spell out the need for defensive activities to be practiced "under the state
wing." By now, the stances of the four Christian March 14 ministers are clear.
However, eyes are now turned to Minister Michel Pharaon who had also remarks on
the policy statement document. It is not yet clear whether Pharaon will express
reservations during the cabinet session.
However, the minister told An Nahar daily that he is in continuous contact with
his March 14 allies and will hold consultative meetings with them to coordinate
their stance prior to the cabinet meeting. The newspaper said Pharaon will hold
a meeting with several Christian March 14 ministers at noon Monday.
"We have our full trust in the prime minister and we trust the government …
However, it's a pity that arguments took place on things that should have been
clearer in the policy statement," Pharaon said in response to a question,
refusing to reveal whether he would reject or express reservations on the
ministerial statement.
The Phalange representative in the government Minister Salim al-Sayegh told
Future News on Sunday that the government is unified on all clauses except for
clause number 6 which deals with the resistance and arms. Harb, in his turn,
told An Nahar that he would have the same stance that he expressed during the
meetings of the committee tasked with drafting the policy statement. He
reiterated that his criticism of the resistance clause is mainly due to
describing Hizbullah as an entity separate from the state and the Lebanese
people.
Minister Ghazi Aridi, however, told An Nahar that he expected a calm session on
Wednesday. "We have to go out of the stage of tension and enter the stage of
common work in the coalition government," he said. The newspaper also quoted
Hizbullah leadership sources as saying that "the difficult stage has passed …
and the statement would be adopted by the majority of the ministers." As for
Minister Hassan Mneimneh, he told al-Mustaqbal newspaper that "discussions on
the policy statement were the best that could have been achieved."
An Nahar said the parliamentary session for a vote of confidence will most
probably be set for Dec. 7 or 8. Beirut, 29 Nov 09, 08:36
Gul: Peace Talks with Israel Are Important because Lebanon's Territories Are
Still Occupied
Naharnet/Turkish President Abdullah Gul has said that Lebanon is "one of the
major sources of tension in the region" and encouraged peace talks between
Lebanon and Israel.
In remarks to al-Jazeera satellite TV network on Saturday, Gul said: "Peace
talks between Lebanon and Israel are very important because Lebanon's
territories are still occupied."
The Turkish president also welcomed the formation of the Lebanese national unity
cabinet "after agreement was reached among all sides."Asked about Hizbullah
leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, who had said that he welcomed Sunni Turkey if it
remained on its stances rather than supporting Shiite Iran if it changed its
positions, Gul told al-Jazeera: "We are glad to hear stances that laud the role
of Turkey."Gul said Turkey does not compete with any country in the region. He
reminded that his country has a contingent in UNIFIL and thus "has
responsibilities in the country." Beirut, 29 Nov 09, 10:05
Zahra: LF on board for vote of confidence
Now Lebanon/November 29, 2009 /Lebanese Forces bloc MP Antoine Zahra told Al-Hayat
newspaper on Sunday that the LF will give its vote of confidence despite still
having reservations with the Ministerial Statement’s sixth article, which is
related to the Resistance. Zahra described his party’s outlook on the
Ministerial Statement and the government as “positive,” adding that the LF’s
position will not create any problems with its allies.
Jumblatt, Aoun unite for municipal elections
November 29, 2009 /Now Lebanon/Ad-Diyar newspaper reported on Sunday that
Progressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid Jumblatt and Free Patriotic Movement
leader MP Michel Aoun are combining their efforts to prepare for municipal
elections in the Mountain. The leaders’ joint committees will focus particularly
on Deir al-Amar, where there is popular support for National Liberal Party
leader Dory Chamoun and Lebanese Forces bloc MP George Adwan. The daily added
that the two leaders believe their cooperative agreement will prevent the
Lebanese Forces from expanding any further into the Mountain. The municipal
elections are set to happen in May, 2010. -NOW Lebanon
Aridi: Ministerial Statement will be adopted
Now Lebanon/November 29, 2009 /In an interview with An-Nahar newspaper published
on Sunday, Public Works and Transportation Minister Ghazi Aridi said the
Ministerial Statement will be adopted. The statement was finalized on Thursday,
and the minister said he expects calm discussions - ahead of the drafting and
vote of confidence - to follow. Aridi called on all parties to give up tensions
and cooperate within the national-unity cabinet, warning, “Either we benefit
from the favorable political condition or we all lose.” -NOW Lebanon
Bomb and drive-by shooting target Hezbollah members
Now Lebanon/November 29, 2009
An-Nahar newspaper reported on Sunday two separate incidents that happened
Saturday morning in Dawhit Aramoun in Dahiyeh which targeted Hezbollah members.
The first incident happened when unknown suspects threw a bomb at a house owned
by Ali Hassan Houmani. The second incident was a drive-by shooting. Car
passengers opened fire on the Power House sports club, owned by Mohammad Walid
Samir Assaf, with machine guns - according to the paper.No injuries were
reported, but there was some property damage. -NOW Lebanon
Report: Suleiman to Meet Obama Next Month
Naharnet/President Michel Suleiman is expected to visit Washington next month
for talks with U.S. President Barack Obama and other top officials, pan-Arab
daily al-Hayat reported on Sunday. The newspaper quoted diplomatic sources as
saying that Suleiman will arrive in Washington on December 10 for a four-day
visit. The Lebanese president had met Obama in September on the sidelines of the
U.N. General Assembly meetings in New York. Al-Hayat said that Suleiman asked
for an official meeting with Obama and the White House set the date for
December. Preparations are underway for an official and media delegation to
accompany Suleiman to the U.S., according to the daily. Beirut, 29 Nov 09, 08:02
LF Bloc: Mentioning Resistance in Ministerial Policy Statement Contradicts with
Constitution, Taef Accord
Naharnet/Lebanese Forces parliamentary bloc on Saturday stressed that "the
mentioning of the resistance in the sixth article of the ministerial Policy
Statement contradicts with the statement itself in the first place, and with the
Constitution and Taef Accord, as well as with Resolution 1701 and other
international resolutions." After its meeting in Maarab under LF leader Samir
Geagea, the bloc asked the government to "amend that article or terminate it in
preservation of its credibility, solemnity, and constitutionality.""It
contradicts the charter of coexistence in addition to being unconstitutional and
illegal, therefore it is invalid," added the bloc's statement. LF bloc said that
the Taef Accord did not include any hint about the resistance, but rather "it
urged respecting international resolutions, extending authority of the State on
all territories, and disarming Lebanese and non-Lebanese militias without
exceptions.""The mentioning of the word 'Resistance' in the sixth article is a
bypassing of the national dialogue table and predetermination of its
resolutions," added the LF bloc statement. The bloc also condemned "the attacks
on constitutional institutions in general, and the Constitutional Council in
particular." It added that "the party that demanded all over the past four years
for the existence of a Constitutional Council to look in parliamentary election
challenges -- and upon the council's fulfilling of its duties and issuing
verdicts regarding the filed challenges unanimously -- that very party started
bombarding the council with all kinds of accusations." Beirut, 28 Nov 09, 17:23
Man of Lebanese Origin Opens Fire on 17 Relatives in Florida Killing 4
Naharnet/Authorities in Florida were searching Saturday for a man police said
opened fire on his family after Thanksgiving dinner and killed four people,
including his pregnant sister and a 6-year-old cousin who was sleeping in her
bed. There had been "ongoing resentment" in the family, but investigators
weren't sure what specifically prompted the shooting, officials said. Police
were looking for Paul Michael Merhige, 35. Authorities in Michigan, including
the Birmingham Police Department, were alerted of the search because Merhige had
sought help from a Detroit-area physician in the past year, Jupiter Police Sgt.
Scott Pascarella said. He did not know why Merhige had contacted a physician
there. Merhige is also accused of gunning down his pregnant sister's twin and
his 79-year-old aunt. "What led to this incident, we're not quite sure,"
Pascarella said. "It did not appear there was any altercation prior to this
shooting." Pascarella said Merhige left briefly before returning to the home
where 17 relatives had gathered in Jupiter, a small beach town about 90 miles
north of Miami. The town is known as a home to celebrities including Michael
Jordan and Burt Reynolds. Pascarella said police first received a 911 call from
a neighbor, then another from someone inside the home. The residence, in a
well-kept new subdivision with brick-paved driveways, is owned by local TV
video-journalist Jim Sitton and his wife. The home was surrounded Friday by
yellow crime scene tape and police crime unit vans. Sitton's daughter Makayla
had gone to bed before the rampage, police said. "God packed a lot of sweetness
into that little body," Sitton said. "She's just our life. I don't know how we
are ever going to recover."
Sitton told local media that his daughter was supposed to perform in a holiday
production of "The Nutcracker." The Florida Classical Ballet Theatre had two
shows Friday.
"Makayla was part of our family, and as one of the youngest dancers, she was to
be one of Mother Ginger's Children," artistic director Colleen Smith said. "She
was a beautiful, dear girl. She was a beam." The other victims were Merhige's
twin sisters, Carla Merhige and Lisa Knight, and an aunt, Raymonde Joseph.
Merhige's brother-in-law Patrick Knight was in critical but stable condition at
a local hospital. Another man, Clifford Gebara, 52, was grazed by a bullet.
Carla Merhige was a real estate agent in Miami. "She was a wonderful agent,"
said Joanna Sherman, a manager at Coldwell Banker Residential real estate. "She
was very active in the community and in charities. She was just a genuine,
beautiful individual. She always had a smile for everybody." Neighbors in the
Palm Beach County community were shocked as police processed the home. "Our kids
walk the streets by themselves," said Nicole Kemp, 67, who did not know any of
the victims. "I thought it was the safest place to live. I guess it doesn't
matter, if there's a maniac here."(AP) Beirut, 28 Nov 09, 21:46
Aoun Visits Arslan, Says No 'Hard Feelings' Between Them, But 'Clear Relation'
Naharnet/Free Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun visited his ally MP Talal
Arslan at his house in Khaldeh on the occasion of Eid al-Adha.
After the meeting, Aoun said that his visit came in the frame of extending
greetings to an essential partner in the Change and Reform parliamentary bloc,
stressing that no hard feelings exist between them, but "a clear relation." On
his part, Arslan stressed that "the opposition's coalition is strategic", adding
that "FPM is a cornerstone for the return of the displaced to Mount Lebanon."
Beirut, 28 Nov 09, 16:02
U.S. Welcomes 'Significant' IAEA Iran Resolution
Naharnet/U.S. and international patience over Iran's nuclear program is
"limited," the White House said Friday, hours after the International Atomic
Energy Agency censured Tehran.
"Our patience and that of the international community is limited, and time is
running out," White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said in a stern warning to
Tehran. "If Iran refuses to meet its obligations, then it will be responsible
for its own growing isolation and the consequences."
Washington welcomed the U.N. atomic watchdog's adoption of a resolution
censuring Iran over its nuclear program and demanding it halt construction at a
newly-revealed enrichment plant.
With 25 nations of the IAEA's 35-member board of governors approving the
resolution, the first of its kind against Iran since February 2006, Gibbs said
the outcome "shows the urgent need for Iran to address the growing international
deficit of confidence in its intentions."
The "overwhelming" vote "underscores broad consensus in calling upon Iran to
live up to its international obligations and offer transparency in its nuclear
program," he added.
The resolution "sends a strong signal of serious international concern about
Iran's continued non-compliance to its obligations both to the IAEA and to the
UN Security Council," a senior State Department official said earlier. The
official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the vote was the outcome of
"intensive American diplomatic efforts," including "a lot of very high-level
work over recent weeks." China and Russia joined forces with Britain, France,
Germany and the United States to approve the resolution at the IAEA's board of
governors meeting in Vienna. Only Venezuela, Malaysia and Cuba voted against the
motion. Western powers have long suspected Iran is seeking to develop an atomic
bomb under the cover of its civilian nuclear energy program, but have struggled
to secure diplomatic support from China and Russia for sanctions or additional
pressure on Tehran.
Efforts to negotiate a halt to Iran's nuclear enrichment, coordinated through
the so-called P5+1 consisting of the five permanent members of the U.N. Security
Council -- the United States, Russia, China, France and Britain -- plus Germany
have floundered.
But Gibbs noted that Washington has "strongly supported" an IAEA-brokered deal
under which Russia would lead a consortium that would enrich uranium for Iran to
use in a medical research reactor. The U.S. official insisted the proposal "is
still on the table, but time is running short." Tehran's envoy Ali Asghar
Soltanieh had earlier said the Islamic republic would also consider "other
options" to get fuel. "The United States has recognized Iran's right to peaceful
nuclear energy and remains willing to engage Iran to work toward a diplomatic
solution to the concerns about its nuclear program, if -- and only if -- Iran
chooses such a course," Gibbs stressed.
Friday's vote came after the revelation in September that Iran, far from halting
enrichment, had secretly been constructing a new uranium enrichment facility
near the holy city of Qom.
The State Department official said the censure was "significant because it
underscores the unity of purpose" among the P5+1 group, recalling that U.S.
President Barack Obama had held talks in recent weeks with his Russian
counterpart Dmitry Medvedev and Chinese President Hu Jintao.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton also placed more than a dozen telephone calls
in the last couple of days, according to the official. The IAEA resolution calls
on Iran to "suspend immediately" construction at the Qom site and to explain the
plant's purpose and the chronology of its construction. It pressed Tehran to
confirm it "has not taken a decision to construct, or authorize construction of,
any other nuclear facility which has as yet not been declared to the
agency."(AFP) Beirut, 27 Nov 09, 19:50
Rock and roll rocks on
Sarah Lynch , November 29, 2009
Now Lebanon/Lebanese rock band The Kordz performed last week at a bar in
Gemmayzeh.
After receiving good marks in school, Ali Farroukh, 16, received a brand new
guitar. He put it to use three months ago when he and his friends started a rock
band called Corrupt Civilization. But it wasn’t without opposition from his
family first. “My family thought it was some kind of Satanism, some kind of
cult,” Farroukh said.
Beliefs like this are prevalent in Lebanese culture beyond just Farroukh’s home.
For over a decade, attempts have been made by political and religious leaders
alike to restrict the prevalence of rock music in Lebanon for fear that it leads
to all kinds of societal ills, from delinquency to devil worship. But that
hasn’t stopped the Lebanese from listening to and producing their own rock
music.
The latest, large-scale Satan scare began just two weeks ago when the General
Secretariat of Catholic Schools in Lebanon sent a letter to parents of Catholic
school students throughout the country in the days before the first-ever Beirut
Rock Festival. The letter warned of “a dangerous event in town” that would
include risk of Ecstasy distribution, Satan worshipping and the “spread of dark
thoughts.”
Organizer of the festival Jyad Murr said on Tuesday that he would file legal
action against the General Secretariat of Catholic Schools’ Father Marwan Tabet
and Pere Abdo Bou Kasem if they do not take responsibility for presenting what
he says is false information. “It is unacceptable to spread fear in kids and
everybody for something that does not exist,” Murr told NOW. “It is pure lies.”
Murr is not alone in his outrage over the letter; his Facebook group called “NO
ban for Rock Concerts in Lebanon” now has over 2,800 members.
After repeated requests, Father Tabet did not return NOW’s calls.
But the dispute regarding this year’s festival isn’t the first case of rock
enthusiasts and religious or political leaders failing to agree. The struggle
dates back to 1997, when teenage metal fan Michel Jammal committed suicide.
Following the incident, the government started a massive crackdown on rock
music. A second wave of rock opposition surfaced in 2003 after a group of people
were arrested for allegedly belonging to a devil worshipping cult and having
sexual intercourse with a dead body.
Despite the struggles
The opposition to the rock festival was fierce, but the fact that it occurred at
all is just one sign that rock and roll is increasingly prevalent in Lebanese
culture. Have a look at the dishes Cheese Mixalica and Red Hot Chilli Burgers;
more than just creative plays on the names of rock bands, they are menu items
available at The Doors, a pub and lounge in Hamra that opened four months ago.
The lounge, which exudes a vibrant 1960s-style with a solid, modern twist, was
conceived by managing partner Mohamed Daher out of a personal affinity for rock
and roll and an era he loves. “Lebanon in the 60s was booming,” Daher, 27, said.
“It was an icon of the east.”
With an evening’s typical soundtrack including music from Guns n’ Roses, Led
Zeppelin and The Doors themselves, Daher said the only opposition he ever gets
to the rock and roll theme of his pub comes from customers looking to boogey to
hip hop instead—a genre he recently incorporated into Friday and Saturday night
mixes. “I think if there was real harm in rock and roll, you would hear more
about it,” he told NOW.
But perhaps the reason Daher hasn’t received more grave opposition is because
he’s only producing a social environment and creatively-named cuisine — which
includes Alan’s Psychedelic Breakfast (actually an English breakfast) — rather
than rock music itself. The case was quite different for drummer Moe Hamzeh, who
was forced to answer to the authorities because of his popular band The Kordz,
founded at AUB in the 1990s.
During the Satan scare of 2003, a policeman showed up at Hamzeh’s home with a
letter from the Anti-Terrorism and Important Crime Department calling Hamzeh and
his band mates in for questioning. The interrogation that followed, according to
Hamzeh, went like this:
Interrogator: Do you play Metallica? Hamzeh: No.
Interrogator: Do you play “Hotel California”?
Hamzeh: Yes.
Interrogator: This song talks about Satan…Do you play “California Dreaming”?
Hamzeh: Yes.
Interrogator: I’m just asking because I like that song.
The interrogating officers ended up attending one of The Kordz’s concerts later
that week. According to Hamzeh, after a few drinks the officers left the
concert, but not without telling Hamzeh that he did a great job and has a good
voice. Like most rock fans and performers in Lebanon, Hamzeh argues that rock
and roll has nothing to do with Satan, but is instead about humanity. “Music is
my way of rebelling, but it doesn’t mean I am an extremist on the other side,”
he said. “I believe in humanity itself, rather than in a label of religion.”
For Farroukh, who eventually convinced his parents that rock music is not a form
of devil worship, the beauty is in the lyrics. “It’s not always about love and
being depressed,” he said. “They talk about a lot of subjects. There’s a story
behind every song.” He ended the interview with “Rock on.”