Wednesday, March 09, 2011

There is a chance....

Lloyd: Hit me with it! Just give it to me straight! I came a long way just to see you, Mary. The least you can do is level with me. What are my chances? Mary: Not good. Lloyd: You mean, not good like one out of a hundred? Mary: I'd say more like one out of a million. [pauseLloyd: So you're telling me there's a chance... *YEAH!* 
That's of course from the Farrelly brothers' classic "Dumb and Dumber" (1994) which most of the participants in the Anti-sectarianism movement have never heard of because they were either too young and too unborn when this film came out. That's a good thing they have going for them. In a political era dominated by Dumb and Dumber discourse, youth naivety and enthusiasm not only have a chance but would be a great upgrade over the existing decayed state.

Mistakes abound and the potential for failure and a devastating long lasting trauma for a whole new generation of anti-sectarian rebels exists. That said, I fully endorse the movement and think they truly have a chance for the following reasons:

It's the only march in March that marches. While March 8's and March 14's crowds stand still, the Anti-sectarian movement actually moves. Not only does it move beyond the one plot of stolen land in Beirut... it actually sacrilegiously goes to other towns.

They don't listen. With no podiums or speeches to tell the crowds what can and cannot be done, imagination dictates the course.

They're not on TV. Sectarian TV stations are ignoring them which for one means they feel threatened by the images, or at least by the taboo words being chanted. More importantly, it means rebels won't waste time watching themselves on TV and worrying about how they look and which camera angle would make them look bloated.

They're not on TV. That means they have to actively look for the news rather than passively being fed the news inter-venously. Nothing against hospital bed ridden masses, I do feel bad for them but they are missing out on a lot.

They are copycats. Lebanese originality has led to huge debt, huger ego, part time electricity, a freelancing work force, and full time war. Being second best to the Egyptians isn't exactly something to be ashamed of.

The regime is already down. Thankfully, sectarian forces already doomed the regime and most probably the whole experiment called Lebanon. It is just a matter of time, but it would be nice to see the last nail in the coffin coming from the anti-sectarian crowd for the sake of what's next.


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