The Vortex of Confusion
By: General Michel Aoun
It is natural for all who are interested in Lebanese affairs, whether they are Lebanese or not, to wonder about the reasons for the complexity of the Lebanese crisis, and why it seems bigger than the small nation itself. At a time when there seems to be a broad consensus among the Lebanese people on the necessity of a Syrian withdrawal, that will does not materialize at the leadership level. On the contrary, we see some of the leadership going the opposite way, withdrawing from the battle, and running away from its responsibilities in this difficult period of Lebanon’s history.

If covering up the military withdrawal with a smoke screen is inevitable, political retreats too get covered up with shameful positions in the media, in total contrast with the basic truths of the Lebanese crisis and with the values that are the foundation of human society.

It is true that these vulgar maneuvers are always seen for what they are by public opinion and hardly affect it since the majority does not even pay any attention to them. However, at the same time, these maneuvers are very negative and the majority of people miss the opportunity to form a global positive public opinion on any matter at hand, and instead they are sidetracked into an endless vortex of confusion.

No one is asked to be a hero or a martyr, but one is expected to be a peaceful protester against the occupation that controls the destiny of the Lebanese as a society and as individuals, and so to be a pioneer for the people to follow. Coping with the impact of the present situation won’t happen by the “push and pull of the Sheiks and Beyks”, but by remaining steadfast in principled positions that do not change with the supply and demand in the “market of opportunism”.

What ails our body politic today is not fear from the political terrorism that killed the best of our patriotic leadership. Terrorism is not the main cause for the opportunism and defeatism that are practiced by our politicians. The disease lies in the fact that we have inherited the mindset of our predecessors and ancestors who acquired their titles and positions from the occupiers, and our politicians continue to boast these titles that are more a sign of their treason than of their nobility.

Those who are decked out in the latest fashions, own the most luxurious cars, and set up their homes with the most modern utilities, live in a long gone past that has given them their present positions. They have no need to think of the future beyond what it has to offer to their present. At every step of the way, they invent a new slogan to hide under and justify their treason. The last thing on their minds is to care about a single concern of their constituents. They are derelict in shouldering their responsibilities, and must have a foreign master to pledge their allegiance to and take orders from, in exchange for this master’s protection.

Their discourse is from the past where their future is.  That is why they go back to it to revitalize and revive it by inciting its contradictions through which they secure their continuity. Today, they are absolutely clueless to understand the meaning of events and their evolution, stuck as they are in the mud in which they were brought up and in which they will one day drown.
Only the pioneers who think of the future and who rebel against anachronistic fanaticism and traditional opportunism are capable of imagining the shape of tomorrow. They will contribute to building a human society that is founded on universal human values and they will not exploit God and desecrate His Name as our politicians do today in their evil disputes.
Until then, we continue to work for the future and ask those who strayed to exit the vortex of confusion.