ON LEADERS AND SANE LEADERSHIP ......

Striking a fair balance between genuine national security and expansionism, hegemony, neocolonialism and supremacy, as well as respecting the rights and dignities of others, ought to be carefully thought and considered by any person claiming to be a leader of any state or entity.

Clearly times of terror and chaos are a clear danger to democracies, and to regional and international stability, but leaders all through times had the strong tendencies to go overboard in their determination to enforce their own dreams and visions of hegemony and grandiose schemes . Even if often camouflaged under big words of protecting national security and/or the prosperity of their people.

Always at whatever the cost to others and even their own people . Resulting more often than not , in curtailing and terminating freedoms and instituting semi and quasi fascist regimes in their own sides. When leaders lose their heads, and start envisioning bigger than realistic dreams, ordinary people, as well as intelligentsia and the media, must keep their clear minds and their commonsense , must be able to perceive and express what is ridiculous, dangerous or even comical in a situation or character.

All have a clear duty , to make sure others see and feel the truth of the matter , to clarify the discrepancies between appearances and realities, between the evil that's meant, and what is nicely and eloquently expressed.

Leaders who engage in evil, generally to promote their fortunes or powers at the expense of others, or to prove their superiority and vain, only do so because they want to and because they can, and not as it's always claimed that they were pushed or cornered, or even in defense of their countries and people.

To use recent America as an example of leadership gone astray, leadership that only very few likewise adventurer leaders around the world have welcomed. "The end of history" never came nor materialized as the world order of Mr. Bush the father hardly lasted a half decade. The promised democracy of Mr Bush the son and his brilliant VP Cheney and their advisers, their attempts to end tyranny throughout the world ended with disastrous results for the U.S and the world, from Libya to Iraq and Syria all the way to Afghanistan, and the drive is still on .

I'm going to repeat the words of Jonathan Freedland, from a recent article of his, "Until a year ago, the US was setting a lead of a very different sort, America's first black president seemed about to make way for the first woman president, (both fairly smart and cultured ), italics mine. Once again the US was offering an example to the world, affording a glimpse of what 21st century democracy might look like, instead, Trump has provided a glimpse into gloomier future, one of lies, ethnic divisions, authoritarianism, and the ever looming prospect of war. It's fair to say that most within and outside the US are counting the days, like a prisoner scratching marks onto the wall".

Waiting for Trump to be gone, so that the world might feel steadier and safer again. Recently the favorability rating of the US had fallen by a third, only Russia's top leadership , Israeli neocons and neocolonialists and lately possibly Saudi Arabia ruling King and son, still look approvingly to Mr. Trump and his oligarchic leadership . 

In fact , practically all aggressive and brutal leaders share one thing, they all claim to know what they know or think they know, and they all seal themselves off against any evidence or opinions that might or could change or challenge their basic obstinacy and beliefs . I for one , strongly believe, that ruling in general should not be a single job for any one person anymore in our times , it has to become a collective democratic sharing office .

My as always many thanks for your time ...                         

SAVE LEBANON FROM ITS OWN POLITICIANS .....

This article was written couple weeks ago, while on a private visit to Lebanon, since, some major political/ economical events took place, and are still taking Lebanese and regional  political classes by surprise and puzzlement, fearing a grave war or at least some devastating economical repercussions to the Saudi threats. But Lebanon was always unkind to its own fate , and its politicians classically and more so presently were always and continue to be as careless and selfish, with various loyalties to variable foreign powers, rather than Lebanese interests .

While Lebanon may avoid a crash, or keep on creeping toward an uncertain future, an opaque one at best, politicians and policy makers, war lords and militia leaders, will continue their policies of temporary measures, and personal excessive spending and dept refinancing. Accompanied of course with and equally excessive rate of corruption all through the government hierarchy from the very top to the bottom .

All still hoping and betting on a surely fading Arab and international interest in financing some of Lebanon's needs or even just coming to its rescue when in deep crisis. Lebanon indeed appears to be headed toward some social and existential extreme difficulty, but the most inflicting to its survival would be an economic and monetary collapse and bankruptcy. Maybe that's exactly what some internal and external powers want and look for, for a permanent change of the country's geography and mapping.The past history of attracting quick financial aid and ample capital, whether Arab or international  to address various crisis, is surely coming to an end .

Relying on temporary tactics, like the appreciation of the Euro bonds market, or a surge in the gold prices, have been so far helpful and favorable to the Lebanese currency stability and the central bank. But the strategic economic challenges are as grave and persistent, and more so with a looming Saudi and Arab monetary boycott .

Yet the political elite and the power princes , do not seem willing to actually reform the system or their visions of the country, though it is serving their own interests in clear and obvious ways, they are all satisfied buying time, through little temporary economical tactical gimmicks, and profiting and making use of some regional crisis, like the Syrian refugee exodus, or an eventual Syrian reconstruction opportunity, or playing some divides like the Saudi/Iranian/Israeli/American differences of political views and interests .

While Lebanon may avoid a total crash as a result of this reliance on temporary measures, and by eventually exploring and sharing some of its natural gases and oil reserves in the Mediterranean sea, equitably over all its citizenry. One thing remains a constant, the country's policy makers and war lords are morally and intellectually bankrupt, no sincere interest what so ever in any social development, nor saving the economic system, or getting out of a feudal religious sectarian mentality and application.

All my thanks as always for your continuing persistence in reading the blog .                                            

BADLY WRONG BACK THEN ...TERRIBLY WRONG TODAY ...

Yesterday the 2 of Oct. 2017, coincided with the Balfour declaration's centenary , when colonial Britain offered Palestine to a third foreign party, in order to attract Jewish people from across the world, and probably get rid of some of its own Jews in Britain, They were invited to create a "Jewish home-land" on Palestinian lands. applying the saying ;"He who doesn't own, gave to who is unwarranted."

Hannah Arendt, in her famous book ,"Eichmann in Jerusalem", tackled the hardly ever mentioned problem, of Jewish leadership collaboration in facilitating the prosecuting and bringing many Jews to death camps, the fact that she being one of very few who recognized and criticized the Jewish leadership and counsels, was shocking to many Jewish thinkers and observers, as she wrote ; "Wherever Jews lived, there were recognized Jewish leaders, and this leadership, almost without exception, cooperated in one way or another, for one reason or another, with the Nazis."

She couldn't accept this behavior or hush it in the name of  the greater tragedy and misfortune of the general Jewish community at the hands of the Nazi regime. Insisting on the darkness of such behavior of the Jewish own leadership, she says ;" To a Jew , this role of the Jewish leaders in the destruction of their own people is undoubtedly the darkest chapter of the whole dark story."

Arendt's remarks about the Jewish leaders councils, managed only to raise the most furious reactions among Jewish intelligentsia and media commentators, "Self hating Jewess" the NewYorker magazine's  headlines screamed, in yet another commentary " In place of the Jew as virtuous martyr, she gives us, the Jew as accomplice in evil." And in another "In place of the confrontation between  guilt and innocence, she gives us the collaboration of criminal and victim." She was often accused of being malicious, impertinent and frivolous .Though most of the book later, was subsided , forgotten and forgiven .

Many books or publications, in our times, criticizing any aspect of Israeli, Zionist, or even Jewish political or criminal acts, had the same harsh fate and criticism and absolute condemnation. Today Israeli behavior toward the whole issue of occupation, the treatment of the under occupation , apartheid, the hegemony  and the theft of land and wealth, and the legal status of Israel, the messing up of all their neighbors in the occupied territories or neighboring sovereign countries, follows the same pattern, of harsh shutting up anyone who dare mention the truth under any form, being a Jew or not , they are all muted, insulted , hushed and punished . And brought to silence under different forms and headings .

If we are to argue and combat evil, we ought to do it wherever it occurs, and whenever we find it, and see it. We cannot allow ourselves to be selective in choosing only certain aspects of evil behavior or only condemn specific acts of terrorism, and overlook other acts of equal terrorism . A crazy religious fanatic animal, driving his truck through innocent bikers, or strollers, is as bad and condemnable , as the alt-right zealot who drove his car into a peaceful marching crowd in Charlottesville , and equally as bad as a soldier shooting an unarmed kid at a military checkpoint in occupied Palestine, as well as delaying an ambulance deliberately for hours with dying injured people on board .

The political philosopher Hanna Arendt was one of few courageous pioneer thinkers, to critique this behavior in her book "Eichmann in Jerusalem" and even she,  paid a price for her critique and opinions . The world has to come to its senses , especially the Western world , they have to help  save Israel from itself , as all fanatics .

As always , all my thanks for your time .