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From January
1/2006
_________________________________________________________________________________ Dear: Thanks for your message. I really appreciate the effort that you
have made to make your opinion heard. Ya George Chou kostak. Listen to my message again. I am still the same
person with the same convictions I did not declare that I joined any other
group. My loyalty is not to individuals no matter who they are. I base my
affiliations to a well set cause. Meanwhile apparently you are entangled in the
garment of one leader. If you are happy, satisfied and fully convinced, it is
good. But you can not measure others patriotism on your own criteria. Taahbtni
ya George. You want me be to a replicate of your own political affiliations.
Quite frankly these affiliations are not my first choice, but I fully respect
those who do. A third choice (a new Christian political party in Lebanon) is in
the making, I might start coordinating with its leadership in case they satisfy
my convictions once they announce the birth of this party. Many of the new
group's leaders are LF. You might join them too, who knows.
Yours Truly
Elias Bejjani
From: asobayti mtl <asobayti@hotmail.com>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- To: Elias Bejjani. phoenicia@hotmail.com On 8/11/06, Here is some traces of your masters in Tel Aviv...shame on you. -
God bless you dear
Elias Bejjani
EL Hitti" <jadelhitti@hotmail.com--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: asobayti mtl <asobayti@hotmail.com To: Phoenicia@hotmail.com August 8/06 Your testimony in front of the Canadian Foreign Affairs Committee sorry I forget to say mabrouk for you being kicked out of the parliament ...it was really a wonderful news to learn that even the Canadians parties started to know about your true nature ...you are not few Lebanese organizations rather you are few Zionist bunch of losers ...long live Lebanon the homeland of bravery & resistance. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Fri, 11 Aug 2006 00 From: fdoudar@aol.com Subject: General Aoun To: cadmous-owner@yahoogroups.com Dear Mr. Bejjani It was interesting listening to your views on Aoun. Criticism with utmost respect....I share your position that if you live in Canada ( or the US) , then you should refrain from joining a Lebanese ( or any foreign) party, and must maintain allegiance to the home country. It remains to be seen why Aoun changed direction so radically . Have a good weekend ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- S. George Khalaf <slim@phoenicia.org Sent : August 10, 2006 9:19:37 PM To : <phoenicia@hotmail.com> Subject : Thanks again Dear Elias, Yislam timmak! What you had to say reminded me of what the Gospel says about the entombment of Jesus in the words "Wa al lazi shaahada shahida wa kanat shihadatuhu haq, lekay tu2mino. "Thanks, Salim ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Jad EL Hitti" <jadelhitti@hotmail.com To: lccc@10452lccc.com Subject: To Mr. Charles Jalkh Date: Thu, 10 Aug 2006 We are not surprised with what you wrote in your article since you considered the former Syrian puppets - currently usa puppets - in the future someone else puppets - that they are the founders of the Cedars Revolution. If you claim that FPM & GMA were the freedom fighters since 1988 then, who was violation the freedom ? its the future movement & co....your cedars revolution founders!! To: lccc@10452lccc.com Subject: Mr. Bejjani's Speech Date: Thu, 10 Aug 2006 Good day, After 19.35 minutes of talking we didn't know what really happened. Moreover, you are clarifying that FPM Lebanon does not represent you !!!!???? who are you to be represented by 1 million people ? We would like to hear a detailed speech explaining the situation instead of (drabeh 3al 7efir w darbeh 3al mesmar)... At the end, you are talking about democracy and still sending the unsubscribed users emails to visit your site and listen to you speeches...By the way, publishing the articles of ahmad al jarallah on your site is a good sign and indicator !! N.B.I am not an activist in FPM but seeking the logic, I tried to find it in your words, unfortunately I didn't. Jad E. EL Hitti --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Roland Abi Haidar <roland_1973@hotmail.com> Sent : August 10, 2006 To : phoenicia@hotmail.com Subject : Hello Elias Hi Elias, I listened to your speech and comments about your relation with FPM and General Aoun on LCCC, and all I can say is that I feel and think like you do the same... I no longer feel part of what is going on as politics in Lebanon, and Hezbollah and his allies are nothing but enemies of Lebanon to me.... and all what General Aoun did, is considered to be typically politics but far from our belief.. As you said, I hope his right, and we r not , since we only care about Lebanon and especially Christians in Lebanon...God Bless our beloved country..... ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From : Tzipi Sofer Matthias <tzipisofer@hotmail.com> Sent : August 9, 2006 3:26:48 PM To : <phoenicia@hotmail.com> Subject : I am an Israeli Hello, I am an Israeli and an architect...and a mother to two babies ... a person. And as such I wanted to express my deepest feelings regarding the war in Lebanon and Israel. It kills me inside to see the loss of human life. I have to reveal that me myself, I have two sisters that have children and live in the north of Israel. I can only say that I am so sorry for the hurt that your people experience in this time. I know that many Israelis feel the same and wish for peace. As for the military actions, I stand confused because on one hand I am afraid for our life, for the life of my family that is for years exposed to missiles attacks and on the other side I can not accept the death of so many, the destruction... I can only wish and pray not to stand in a point such as this one. I can only wish for this to end. I send something that can not be expressed in words. Only the belly can feel it. Tzipi. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Casey Berlanda" <calypso@junction.net To: clhrf@yahoo.com Subject: Press release of Jyly 28, 2006 E-mail: calypso@junction.net August 8th, 2006 Lebanese - Canadian Coordinating Council Attention : Mr. Elias Bejjani, President Reference: Your Press-Release of July 28, 2006..."Mr. Harper stay the course..." Dear Mr. Bejjani, I had the opportunity to follow the evacuation of Lebanese-Canadians from war-stricken Lebanon on the various TV networks. After listening to the many comments made by evacuees regarding the slow pace of the evacuation, the lack of food, the time taken for the ferry crossing to Cyprus or Turkey, the lack of sleeping accommodations on the ferries, the poor quality of the sandwiches supplied and the one comment by a Lebanese lady "If I had known it would be that bad, I would have stayed in Lebanon!", and comments such as "Mr. Harper will have to pay for this!" I must admit that my original disappointment in this display of thanklessness slowly turned to anger, anger which has not abated to this day. Browsing the web I opened your webpage showing the above mentioned press release. To a certain degree I was pleased to read your comments, with the exception of the second paragraph which seems to put the blame on terrorist organizations for portraying the Lebanese/Canadian community as unappreciative and ungrateful. Your press release would have had far more of an impact had it put the blame where it really belonged - on the evacuees who had nothing good to say about Canada's effort to evacuate them - some from their country of residence to Canada, their country of convenience! I sincerely hope that your organization will issue a press release directed at your fellow Lebanese evacuated from Lebanon at great expense to the Canadian taxpayer to stifle their whining and complaining and show some gratitude to Canada for taking them out of harm's way. My anger will abate when I see such a press release in the near future. Sincerely yours, Casey Berlanda, a proud Canadian ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From : S. George Khalaf <slim@phoenicia.org> Sent : August 7, 2006 To : <phoenicia@hotmail.com> Subject : Thank you Dear Elias, The material you publish is like diamonds in front of Lebanese pigs and I mean those who claim to speak for the Christians of Lebanon but they do not speak but for themselves. Pierr Atallah's address to Geagea and Aoun is unbelievable. How can the people who are supposed to be educated in Lebanon, the Christian community, have no head and no opinion but are lap dogs following like stupid sheep. Reading your articles have helped me displace some of my anger, though I remain very angry for my homeland which has become a travesty in the world and my community completely lost without a leader. I am certain Camel Chamoun and Pierre Jemayel must be turning in the graves with anger. Thank you, Salim ---------------------- Kind regards,Salim* George Khalaf, Byzantine Phoenician Descendent * from Shalim, Phoenician god of dusk, whose place was Urushalim/Jerusalem "A Bequest Unearthed, Phoenicia" ‹ Encyclopedia Phoeniciana http://phoenicia.org-Virtual Center for Phoenician Studies Chapel Hill, NC-USA -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Elias Bejjani-phoenicia@hotmail.com To: From: georges" <nada8@hotmail.com> August 7/06 Dear George: If you want to be respected and taken really serious by others, you have to teach and train yourself how to accept those others' opinions and views, although if you do not agree with them. Instead of vomiting , getting dizzy, and using below the belt uncivilized expressions, it would have been more fruitful and more courageous to defend your own opinions and try to explain them in a democratic way in a bid to convince others not to alienate them. Really I feel sorry for people like you who are fully blind and deaf to any thing and every thing that does not match their own affiliations and opinions. If you are really an FPM member or supporter and can not accept the fact that we are criticizing General Aoun for his new stances on several issues, I strongly believe you should accept the challenge that I am presenting too you now. I challenge you to put in writing (Arabic, English or French) what actually made you so nauseated and dizzy!!. I am genuinely ready to engage with you in a debate addressing the reasons of the so alleged vomiting symptom!!... May may, may be, you have a psychological sickness, like anorexia nervous. Who knows we have to exclude too many factors before we get to politics!! I will be more than willing to adopt your views in case you are able at least to say what they are and put them in writing. Advice: never ever be blind or subservient to any individual or doctrine, keep your mind open and extremely critical. Try to respect those who oppose your political affiliations and opinions much more than those who share them with you. As far as the removal of your email from our list, you can do it yourself by just clicking on the unsubscribe link that comes with each and every yahoo group message we sent. Yours Truly lccc Chairman/Elias Bejjani ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ From: georges" <nada8@hotmail.com> To: Phoenicia-owner@yahoogroups.com Subject: Re: [Phoenicia] LCCC release/New LCCC postings Date: Sun, 6 Aug 2006 20:26:18 -0400 Hi Mr Bejjani, please remove my email from your list because your opinion make me dizzy and I want to vomit. thank you ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Elias Bejjani <clhrf@yahoo.com> To: "Caroline Kanaan" <cskanaan@yahoo.com> August 6/8/06 Dear Caroline I am not sure what impression the release put you under. But be sure we both advocate for unity not only by words but by action. It is true that both of us are Maronites, But we both are Lebanese and love our country. Faith is what motivates us and always has been. BUT unity does not mean keeping a blind eye on evil things or evil people. God told us to witness for the truth to be free. This is exactly what we are doing. God bless you Elias -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Caroline Kanaan" <cskanaan@yahoo.com> Subject: Lebanon releases To: clhrf@yahoo.com August 6/8/06 Dear Elias and Charbel, Do you realize that both of you hold the names of two of Lebanon's favorite Saints? If you want to protect the Christian Lebanese in Lebanon and want them to maintain their influence and positions then please don't forget to pray for them. What is the difference between the Christians in the Middle East and the rest of its peoples? The Holy Spirit lives in them. If you believe that they are the light of the Middle East it is because their light comes from their belief and faith in Jesus Christ.Think about this for a few minutes and I am sure you will agree. Do you want the Lebanese Christians to become stronger and give them the sanity to get through this war, then pray for them and ask God to protect them. Please work to keep the Lebanese United. If you want to talk in the name of Christians, then do not forget their message of Love and Forgiveness. Please work to keep the Lebanese united and do not be another voice who wants to tear them apart. Also, don't forget that all the Christian schools and convents are open sheltering refugees. The priests, nuns, and aid workers, are not differentiating between what religion or sect they are helping... we are all Lebanese and we are all humans. Please support them in Lebanon especially the Red Cross, St. Vincent de Paul, Caritas, Mercy Corps, World Vision.. Thanks and best regards, Caroline From: "Caroline Kanaan" <cskanaan@yahoo.com> Add to Address Book Sun, 6 Aug 2006 Subject: Re: Lebanon releases To: "Elias Bejjani" <clhrf@yahoo.com> Dear Elias, From what I believe, God meant that the truth was Christ and He will set us free. He also told us not to condemn and not to judge. He told us to pray. Personally to me, one of my views is that the Maronites carry Lebanon's message . The Maronites protect Lebanon. Through the Maronites' prayers and through their faith. Through their love and sacrifices. Rarely through their politics. When I think of Lebanon, I think of Wadi Annoubin. The heart of Lebanon. I think of Mt. Lebanon. I pray for the people in the South and I believe that God is with them because they are praying for him to. Evil is everywhere, the only way to fight it is through PRAYER. It is beyond human understanding and it's pointless to fight evil with evil at the end you get more evil. e.g. civil wars. these things can just begin with one "unforgivable" action or word... and to preserve "rights of existence" or "karameh"... 3anjad maskhara.. not only is it pointless, it's not even true.. Please dig into your Maronite roots and let it revive your spirit. Let it bring your true faith out. Let the Holy Spirit work through you to bring peace and to help alleviate the pain of your fellow Lebanese especially the Christians and not to bring more on to them. Caroline ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Mon, 31 Jul 2006 From: "Refaat Kazoun" <rkazoun@gmail.com To: clhrf@yahoo.com, Phoenicia@hotmail.com, joehittimass@yahoo.com Subject: Response to: Qana II: Will Hezbollah Ever Learn? By: Dr: Joseph Hitti- July 30/2006 CC: "Naji Mounayer" <najigm@shaw.ca>, "Melhem Daher" <mel.daher@shaw.ca> Dear Dr. Hitti Let me start my email by telling you that I am LEBANESE and LEBANESE ONLY. I am committed to no one but Lebanon, I have no political affiliations, and I am not a member of any party or militia. Your website states "The LCCC is an independent Canadian Lebanese non profit group not related to any non Canadian groups or political parties." Would you care to tell us why you have special pages for General Abou Jamra, General Aoun, and FPM Canada? In my opinion having this alone puts a great dent in your credibility. On to your article; Congratulations are now in order. You are now eligible for the "Israel Prize", the highest Israeli civilian prize, and I am sure it will be given to you personally by Mr. Ehud Olmert for your indirect services supporting the Israeli atrocities on our beloved country. I read your article and I honestly have to say it is sickening. Debating the facts of the article is absolutely irrelevant at this time. What is relevant is how a so called Lebanese can shift the blame from Israel when it comes to an inhumane massacre followed by direct shelling to prevent the rescuers. I am going to assume for the sake of argument that as you claim; Hisbullah hold the lion's share of responsibility. Let us also assume that they are at fault of bombing the UN building at Qana in 1996, and why not add the Marwaheen massacre (Civilians in an open pick up truck) to that as well. You sure sound like you are painted orange with your FPM support, and you are more than willing to shift blames left right and centre. Do you think the FPM share some of the blame? Do you remember the elections? Whom did General Aoun win the elections with ? How about post elections political manoeuvres? Whom did General Aoun sign an "UNDERSTANDING" with by which super extra political cover was granted? In addition to the FPM; Who is blocking the removal of Lahoud? Correct; The answer is: Hizbullah and you win a free trip to Qana where you will enjoy three nights and four days of bombardment. You will stay in our 1 star shelter where you will share one small room with 62 other vacationers and if you are lucky, you may not wake up. You will then be carried by four of our representative on a stretcher to enjoy a smaller air-conditioned metal room in our many close hospitals. Before you prepare your answer, please spare me the lecture on how General Aoun stopped a civil war with his Hizbullah accord. Come to think of it, a civil war would have been less costly! Regardless of the above, you seem like 18 days behind the times. Yes, many true patriotic Lebanese blamed Hizbullah for what is happening and for giving Israel the excuse it was WAITING for, but you need to take a step back and look at the bigger picture which you can not see from where you are sitting. It is time for unconditional support for LEBANON. Look at the beautiful picture of Berri and Seniora standing together to present a united Lebanon. Look at how all the flags including the FPM's blended together in Riyadh Al Solh square yesterday during the unfortunate incident at the UN building. Look at how all the politicians who were critical of Hizbullah are lining up behind Lebanon and putting their differences aside. Look at how the Lebanese people forgot all the past and opened their hearts, arms, homes, and schools to the refugees. Look at all of these incidents and there are many more to look at and you will realise the size of the knife you stabbed Lebanon with in the back. Your article is not only unpatriotic; it is a form of treason. It looks like you have been away from Lebanon for too long. Your website reminds me of the 1970's and the idiotic civil war. Wake up and smell the coffee. The civil war is over. We do not say Christians and Muslims any more; it is actually a shame in Lebanon to talk about this. We have all decided that it is the past. Balance your website and get some counselling. I am worried that non-Lebanese readers mistake you for a patriotic Lebanese. As far as the rest of the Lebanese are concerned, I have no worry. They are smart, open minded, and clear on what is going on. I hope that you have the courage to post this response on your website. Forgive me if I sounded angry. I can not get the pictures of the Qana kids off my mind. Refaat Kazoun ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: boody tohme <abdotohme@hotmail.com> Sent : July 29 2006 Subject : vision anew If Israel moves north to create a safe area against rockets, Hezbollah would move north to control the rest of Lebanon, with Syria . Eventually they will spill into the Christian areas. Should the Christians push the Muslims of Tripoli and Akkar north into Syrian coast? A more logical accommodation would be for all the minorities, Jews, Christians, Druze, Shiites and Alawites to push together through Antioch. Using the phosphorous tunnels and bridges they will with Europe. As long as France & Chirac object to NATO in south Lebanon, above scenarios will or will not happen. The map of the Mideast in general and that of the Eastern Mediterranean is being redrawn. Hamas, Hezbollah, Syria, Iran axis of evil has been digging deep in the holy south Lebanon and preying on the Lebanese and exploiting all their interests on and off for 58 years. It is time for Lebanon to flourish again. But the Arab mind has always been inflicting wrongful decisions. Always they put the carriage before the horse. Fake Señiora has been seeking fake cease-fires for long. As he distorted the real image of the Cedar Revolution, stole its spirit, fake its objectives now he is asking for fake cease-fire. For this the Pentagon peace table of Maliki of Iraq, Leader of Lebanon, Abdullah of Jordan, Abbas of Palestinian Authority, and Olmert of Israel... to invite NATO and other multinational forces from France Turkey Norway and Egypt to take over all the Eastern Mediterranean. Lebanese Americans, Lebanese Canadians, Lebanese Australians, Lebanese Europeans, Lebanese Brazilians, Lebanese Argentineans, Lebanese Ecuadorians…..must sign up now in multinational forces to fight the good fight and stand up against Hamas, Hezbollah and Al-Qaeda. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From Elias Bejjani To: AA July 27/06 Dear Alain: I am not really surprised to read the kind of "Okazi" vocabulary you used in the letter. I feel sorry for you and for people like you who are not trained to be tolerant to others views and opinions. You are apparently suffering from a tunnel vision syndrome. Do you think using such an hostile, accusative and below the belt attitude will lead you anywhere? Dear terms like Ignorant, cowered, disgusting;...etc!!! Much Ayieb!!! Ya haram el choum...Rabna yechfiek By the way if you really aim to communicate in a civilized manner I will be more than ready. Provided you use an appropriate language. I am going to post your letter on our two web sites so others in our community can read it and discover how democratic and civilized you are. God bless you habibi Yours truly Elias Bejjani ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: A.A July 27, 2006 4:53:39 AM To : phoenicia@hotmail.com Subject : Disgusting Your article here is disgusting: http://globalpolitician.com/articledes.asp? I'm not arab. I'm not a fanatic. I'm not religious. I'm not anything that you describe in your articles as anti-harper in your stupid article. Like my fellow Ph. D. friends, some arab, some jew, but mostly canadian of various sources, we oppose totally Harper's attitude and Israel's violation of article 33 of the Geneva Human Rights Convention. See the joint article published last week in Le Devoir : http://www.ledevoir.com/2006/07/22/114234.html. It clearly shows that you are nothing but a liar. You are probably too ignorant to know what that Geneva Convention article is about, so let me explain: it is absolutely illegal to punish a civilian population because of the acts of a minority. That is exactly what Israel did, and you are nothing but a coward not to say it outloud. They even admitted that they targed the civilian population ON PURPOSE so that it would make pressure on Hizbollah. How disgusting of you to support such barbaric attitudes. You were probably happy when Hizbollah kicked out Israel out of your country, but now that things have changed, you take the stance of a miserable coward. Shame on you and on the misinformation you publish in your article. Shame on you for not mentioning a thing against Israhell in your article and how they have destroyed your country for so long and how in a week they have destroyed years of rebuilding. You are an insult to your race and to your country and it is unbelievable that people actually publish crap like the article you wrote. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Wed, 26 Jul 2006 07:47:31 -0700 From: "Nanaimo" <nanaimo@academy-island.com Subject: Look at the Thanks for the Help from you fellow Canadian?? To: lccc@10452lccc.com Earl JOHNSON 2502 Glenayr Dr Nanaimo, B.C. V9S 3S1 250-758-4250 vancouverisle2shaw.ca -The Edmonton Journal Whiners: Find your own way out of Beirut: After being rescued from war zone,a little gratitude would be nice Fri 21 Jul 2006 Aw, the boat ride was too long, was it? And you say it was too hot? There was no doctor on board, either? And the departure was delayed. And the port was chaotic. And too little food and water had been laid in. And some of you had to sleep on the floor!? Oh, the indignity of it. To listen to the whining and carping of many of the 261 Canadians rescued from Beirut on the first day of the evacuation from Lebanon, you would think they had just been returned to port from an ocean cruise that went terribly wrong, instead of being saved from a war zone. Tuesday, the Crown Princess, a Princess Cruises ship, suddenly listed to port in heavy seas off the coast of Florida. The promenade deck almost submerged. Stairwells "became waterfalls." The casino and gift shop below decks were flooded. The main dining room had to be turned into a triage ward as more than 200 of the 3,100 passengers on board were injured by the sudden tilt; 94 had to be taken off for hospitals on shore. By contrast, no passengers on the first Canadian rescue ship were injured. The worst that happened was a few threw up. And, yet, the grousing and moaning on the Crown Princess did not equal that of the evacuees from Lebanon when they reached Cyprus early Thursday morning. Some even cursed at the Canadian diplomats who greeted them. One woman from Montreal described the trip as "hell;" not the war, but rather her tax-paid voyage to freedom. After all, it had taken 15 hours instead of seven. Twice their ship, the Blue Dawn, had been stopped by the Israeli navy to ensure it was not hostile. Imagine that. Stopping a ship in a war zone to see whether it is friend or foe. How rude! And the griping doesn't end with those Ottawa has already plucked from the suddenly very hot zone in south Lebanon. Others still awaiting evacuation complain that our embassy in Beirut has not dealt with them fast enough. Their e-mails have gone unanswered, their phone calls meet with a busy signal. If they present themselves in person, there are long lines in the hot sun to meet a Foreign Affairs official face-to-face. There aren't hotel rooms for them all. The waiting rooms are inadequate for the numbers wanting to leave. Embassy staff will not give precise departure times. No kidding. We're not talking about the returns desk at Wal-Mart the day after Christmas. A staff of two dozen, who normally deal with a few thousand inquiries a year are suddenly swamped with 2,000 or 3,000 people demanding to be saved - Now! In a city that no longer has a functioning airport. Where fighter-bombers frequently scream overhead. Air raids do tend to disrupt the flow of things. It's a wonder our government managed, at all, to find seven underused cruise ships it could lease on such short notice. On the first day that any country was able to get its citizens out by boat, we managed to rescue 261. The British got out just 170 of their people. The French, who have a fleet of warships patrolling the Mediterranean, could manage just 180. Thursday, we rescued another 1,375. And thereafter, we should be able to extract 700 to 1,000 swearing, muttering ingrates each day, either to Cyprus or Turkey. But just wait until they get to safe ports and find out they have several-day waits ahead of them until they can be airlifted - again at taxpayers' expense - to Canada. When told she might have to sit put in Cyprus for a few days until a jet ride could be arranged, and that while she waited she would have to find and pay for her own hotel and meals, one of the first evacuees complained that the government had not already taken care of such things. Whatever happened to personal responsibility? To simple gratefulness? I don't expect the rescued Canadians to bow down and kiss the feet of our diplomats when they arrive on safe soil. But why is it too much to expect they might be thankful simply for being extracted from a danger zone, regardless of how uncomfortably? They remind me of the Canadian and British antiwar activists extracted by commandos earlier this year from months of captivity in Iraq, who rather than saying thank you criticized the rescuers for using force to free them. Wouldn't you be grateful to be rescued from Lebanon right now even if you and your family had to ride out in the fish hold of a trawler for a few days? And yes it does matter that many of those complaining are Canadians of convenience. They hold Canadian passports, but have dual citizenship in Lebanon and have not been much interested in Canada for years until their real home country started getting dangerous. There is a simple solution to this carping. The boats have to go back to Beirut for more evacuees. Anyone who profanes a Canadian worker or whines about conditions on the free boat gets put back on board and returned to Lebanon where they can find their own way out. Lorne Gunter Columnist/Editorial Writer, National Post Columnist, Edmonton Journal ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Subject: FW: plight of the "Lebanese" Canadians Date: Wed, 26 Jul 2006 12:19:25 -0500 AMEN- Worth the read Directed solely to those Lebanese who displayed shameful ingratitude through the media towards Canada's evacuation efforts. From: Murray -Sent: Monday, July 24, 2006 1:07 PM Subject: Fw: plight of the Lebanese Canadians.. I just had to write this to get it off my chest. You may or may not agree with my sentiments however they are my opinions. I was watching CBC news coverage this morning of the events concerning the returns of Lebanese-Canadians. You'll note I did not capitalize the word Canadians when referring to these people as it was evident by their comments that they consider themselves to be Lebanese first and Canadians second. The more I watched the angrier I got and I ended up turning off the television. A host of the returnees to Canada were complaining about the Canadian Governments and it's slow response. Some of the returnees commented that Canada should be ashamed of itself for it's slow response in getting them out. One person complained about taking 11 hours to get to Cypruss and also complained about the sandwiches that they were given. I was stunned at the ingratitude of the people being interviewed. Considering the logistics involved in getting thousands of people out of Lebanon I think the Canadian Government and other governments did well. I got to thinking about the situation and came to the conclusion that Canada now seems to be a land of opportunists, not opportunity. The only two people in my family who got a free trip to Europe were my dad and my uncle who were shipped overseas to serve in World War II. No-one asked most of these people to go to Lebanon so a free trip back with minor inconveniences is a good deal. Better than being dead I suppose. Here is the deal. I will arrange to pay for a trip back to war torn Lebanon for any Lebanese-Canadian ingrate who agrees to the following: If you feel ashamed of Canada and it's current evacuation response in the Middle East, you should renounce your Canadian Citizenship, pay back the government of Canada for the free services you received when you came here such as medical, dental, education, job start programs, housing, ESL classes, business venture grants etc. and for those going back to live in Lebanon give up your CPP benefits (a great benefit. Many Canadians are ignorant about the programs your tax dollar is paying for). As I stated earlier Canada seems to be the land of opportunists. I wonder what the percentage would be of these ingrates serving in our Armed Forces? Now, you might view me as a radical and a bigot. That is your opinion. The above is mine. I am one of countless CANADIANS who are just fed up with the ingratitude of some and the milking of our government by others. It's about time that people stood up and said enough is enough. Political correctness is a way to stifle people from speaking how they feel and in some cases speaking what is the truth. Affirmative action is nothing more than reverse discrimination. As I stated earlier I am fed up with the hyphenation of Canadian citizenship. You are either a Canadian or you are not one. I intend on sending this letter to my M.P. and anyone else I can think of. If you agree with me please pass this on, if not, then press delete. Mike Crawford A CANADIAN from Winnipeg MB ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Paul Fleck" <paul.fleck@hughes.net To: lccc@10452lccc.com Subject: An interesting and provocative letter Date: Sun, 23 Jul 2006 I thought this letter highlights some of the frustrations of people hearing about the complaints regarding Canadian responsiveness to aid those people who traveled to a conflict area. Paul Fleck The following is a note by Mike Crawford of Winnipeg MB. Subject: plight of the Lebanese Canadians. July 21, 2006 Hi Everyone; I just had to write this to get it off my chest. You may or may not agree with my sentiments however they are my opinions. I was watching CBC news coverage this morning of the events concerning the returns of Lebanese-Canadians. You'll note I did not capitalize the word Canadians when referring to these people as it was evident by their comments that they consider themselves to be Lebanese first and Canadians second. The more I watched the madder I got and I ended up turning off the television. A host of the returnees to Canada were complaining about the Canadian Governments and it's slow response. Some of the returnees commented that Canada should be ashamed of itself for it's slow response in getting them out. One person complained about taking 11 hours to get to Cyprus and also complained about the sandwiches that they were given. I was stunned at the ingratitude of the people being interviewed. Considering the logistics involved in getting thousands of people out of Lebanon I think the Canadian Government and other governments did well. I got to thinking about the situation and came to the conclusion that Canada now seems to be a land of opportunists, not opportunity. The only two people in my family who got a free trip to Europe were my dad and my uncle Charlie who were shipped overseas to serve in World War 11. No-one asked most of these people to go to Lebanon so a free trip back with minor inconveniences is a good deal. Better than being dead I suppose. Here is the deal. I will arrange to pay for a trip back to war torn Lebanon for any Lebanese-Canadian ingrate who agrees to the following. If you feel ashamed of Canada and it's response you should renounce your Canadian Citizenship, pay back the government of Canada for the free services you received when you came here such as medical, dental, education, job start programs, housing, ESL classes, business venture grants etc. and for those going back to live in Lebanon give up your CPP benefits ( a great many Canadians are ignorant about the programs your tax dollar is paying for). As I stated earlier Canada seems to be the land of opportunists. I wonder what the percentage would be of these ingrates serving in our Armed Forces? Now, you might view me as a radical and a bigot. That is your opinion. The above is mine. I am one of many CANADIANS who are just fed up with the ingratitude of some and the milking of our government by others. It's about time that people stood up and said enough is enough. Political correctness is a way to stifle people from speaking how they feel and in some cases speaking what is the truth. Affirmative action is nothing more than reverse discrimination. As I stated earlier I am fed up with the hyphenation of Canadian citizenship. You are either a Canadian or you are not one. I intend on sending this letter to my M. P. and anyone else I can think of. If you agree with me please pass this on, if not, then press delete. Mike Crawford A Canadian from Winnipeg Mb. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Canadian Concerned Citizen To: lccc@10452lccc.com Subject: May one day there be only white flowers.. between the border.... Date: Sun, 23 Jul 2006 May one day WHITE FLOWERS.. be in between Lebanon and Israel and nothing else but, an international neutral force, towards peace in the land: My hope for the people of Lebanon....my dream ... when all of this is over and the land is filled with PEACE AND A WARM SUMMER BREEZE. May one day the international buffer zone between Lebanon and Israel be filled with white flowers. ...white flowers from all over the world... this is my hope this is my dream ....for the people of Lebanon.... May these white flowers represent all the pain that - violence - (regardless of the reason or blame) brings to its people of the region. May the white flower... represent the many good forces in the area...and its ability to overcome violence....May it represent all of the good men and women of Lebanon. May the white flowers represent the pain of all of the people, be it Christian, Muslim, Shiite, Jew...and all of the other religions of the world. May the white flower represent, the deaths of all the Lebanese who have suffered and who have died and are still dying as I write this message...may it represent all of the tears of Lebanon. May it represent all those who have lost their limbs to this war, on both sides of the blue line. May it represent all of those in Israel who have lived in fear for their lives. May it represent all the mothers of the region of Israel and Lebanon who have lost their sons, daughters, and children to violence. May it represent the Arab children in Israel who lost their lives. May it represent the Lebanese who lost (and are still loosing) their children. May it represent the fear in Lebanon, the fear in Israel...May it represent all of the tears of Lebanon, and all of the pain. May it represent Hezbollah's leader who lost his son to Israel. May it represent the Israel leaders who have been killed for the cause. May it represent all of the soldiers who lost their lives (and who will still loose their lives as I write this)... May humans in the world see more clearly....may each and every voice in the world speak out against violence and never ever ever be silent to violence regardless of race or religion. And last but, not least may the people of Lebanon, plant on their soil these flowers to show the world that they are capable of forgiveness.... and have great strength.....And just like the South African leader Nelson Mandella, be capable of great pain, and suffering, and still be kind, still be noble, and still be in their hearts and souls - being- Lebanese a sovereign state ...still ...in ALL its glory rebuild itself up again. Courage to the people of Lebanon. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From "Dr Lucien Haddad" algebrix@sympatico.ca To: clhrf@yahoo.com Subject: AN OPEN LETTER TO SHEIKH HASSAN NASRALLAH Date: Sun, 23 Jul 2006 Samahat el-sheikh Nasrallah On Wed 12 2006, some members of the Islamic resistance fighters attacked an Israeli military position killing 2 soldiers and kidnapping two others. On that same day, you announced to the Lebanese nation that within the end of the week there would be no more Lebanese prisoners in the Israeli jails. The Israeli army tried to teach your fighters a lesson but failed to do so in a limited face-to-face combat. Then came the strong support to Israel from many countries in the world. The Israelis thought that there was no reason to negotiate a prisoners' exchange and started the systematic destruction of Lebanon. Two days later, you declared an open war against Israel while no one in the Lebanese government asked you to speak on their behalf. The country plunged in a terrible war and we all have seen the cost. All of us have seen the brutal Israeli retaliation to attacks form the part of your fighters. We are now with 350+ dead, thousands of wounded, more than half million refugees from the south. These homeless refugees are humiliated, they lack of everything, many of them are sick, suffer from the heat of the summer, suffer from starvation, developing germs and extremely unhealthy conditions. You are a Lebanese leader and you have responsibilities towards your community and the Lebanese people. So my question for you is what are you going to do about all that ? 1- You may decide to continue what you are doing now. So the death toll in our people will go from 350 to 1000, then 10,000 or more before any serious measure is taken. The infrastructure of Lebanon will be half then may be completely destroyed. The Israelis may decide to bomb the refugee camps to put more pressure on you and on the Lebanese people. So we will watch more and more children slaughtered and, in exchange, we will accuse the Israeli government of acting like butchers and Nazis. There is nothing else we can do, we have no way of defending ourselves from their air power anyhow. 2- You show leadership and responsibility towards the Lebanese nation and towards History. Learn from and follow the example of one of the greatest Emperor in Japan. On August 15, 1945, Emperor Hiro-Hito announced to the Japanese nation that its enemy developed a new and terrible weapon with the power to destroy many innocent lives, and so he has accepted the enemy's conditions and ordered the stop of all fighting in order to preserve the Japanese Nation. Since your original plan (of liberating our prisoners in Israel) has failed, you call the medias and announce clearly to the Lebanese nation that for the Salvation of Lebanon, for protecting our children from death and destruction coming from the sky, for stopping the terrible hell all our refugees are going through, and since the Israelis have a terrible weapon against us, which consists of systematically bombing civilians, you decided to hand in the two Israeli soldiers to the Lebanese government who will negotiate an immediate internationally guaranteed cease-fire on all fronts. By doing so, you will show to the Lebanese nation that you have the required courage to be a leader. Samahat Sheikh Nasrallah, according to my strong belief and limited knowledge of our GOD Creator and Protector of Human life, I think this is what HE is expecting you to do, and to do it right away wal salam aleikom wa rahmat Allah wa barakatoh. A Christian Lebanese very hurt by the death of so many innocent lives in his country. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: N.S To: Phoenicia-owner@yahoogroups.com Subject: Re: [Phoenicia] Check the LCCC/New postings & an appeal Date: Sun, 23 Jul 2006 After reading these many opinions I've come to the conclusion that the writers are living a delusional world. This war against Hezbollah is pulverizing the economic viability of Lebanon. Who will pay to rebuild it? Saudi Arabia? Thank you very much. An article in July 22 New York Times notes that 130 bombs weighing 5 tons each are being urgently shipped to Israel from the United States. How many times can you blow up Lebanon? We're about to find out. Nobody is criticizing the strategy that is being undertaken by the current Israeli prime minister and his simple minded advisors. If Ariel Sharon was still Prime Minister the strategy to deal with these barbarian Hezbollah militants would be multi-pronged and courageous. It is cowardly to destroy a defenseless country and do nothing to the sponsors of the group that uses Lebanon as their off-site military launching pad. When Hamas or Hezbollah acted up in recent years, Ariel Sharon struck deep into Syria, hitting military installations and the camps of these groups. Striking military targets in Syria are more likely to quite Hezbollah than turning Lebanon into a pile of rubble. If Iran made a proclamation to Sharon that an attack on Syria is an attack on Iran then Sharon would have likely struck Syria to make a point that no one can intimidate his obligation to secure Israel. It's obvious that in Ariel Sharon's six years he understood the complexity of Lebanon's fragile position, in fact he sympathized with it. This current Israeli Prime Minister is simply another politician trying to make a name for himself by taking the easiest course. And believe me, destroying Lebanon is the easiest course. The more pragmatic and difficult and courageous course would be to address the sponsors of Hezbollah, the puppeteers of these Mobsters. This strategy is a disaster for Israel and the only potential ally and democracy in the region, Lebanon. Israel is shooting itself in the foot and desperate Lebanese expatriates are so desperate to rid their motherland of Hezbollah that they are blind to the genocide of their own people and the economic annihilation of their country. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Lorraine St.Cyr" lorrainestcyr@hotmail.com To: lccc@10452lccc.com Subject: Who is responsible for what is happening in Lebanon? Date: Sat, 22 Jul 2006 10:28:24 +0200 Who will be man enough to take the responsibility for what has happened to Lebanon? In the end the fact of the matter is that under the U.N agreement the Hezbollah was supposed to disarm. In the end the political parties such as Nabih Berri, Sheikh Abdel Amir and others will have to acknowledge their mistake, and --- if they are in fact------ connected to the Hezbollah. To put Lebanon in the middle of their religious ideals is bad for Lebanon (obviously) the problem with this situation is that everyone wants to cover his back, and not take responsibility for what is happening in Lebanon to the women and children of Lebanon and the business of Lebanon, and people who have lost their limbs..... They the Shiite, are thinking of themselves... they still want to be leaders in Lebanon, but, have shown they can not be trusted with the leadership roles that they have? If they question the truth of this statement, then, they just have to go to the hospital wards to Lebanon and go see for themselves, and see the blood and tears they are responsible for. It would be a good idea, to wait before making any quick decisions: The prime minister of Lebanon must be careful to not get too close with his the Shiite allies, such as Nabih Berri, Sheikh Abdel Amir, in a show of solidarity, between both groups. In the end - the Shiite, have a too strong link between the ideals of religion, and the way they do business. It would be better for Lebanon, to distance itself from these groups until there is more stability in the region. Why you may ask? (It it because of being anti- Shiite?) No, simply because if Lebanon does not want to find itself in the same place it was two weeks ago (as in before the war) it should wait, and play it more safe, before declaring, its solidarity with anyone, making sure it keeps all of its options open, all of its doors open, and then when all the options come to it, it can pick and choose what is best for the people of Lebanon. In my personal option, it should stay far away from any extreme thinking - or any links to extreme thinking on any sides - it should pick and choose, even in this horrible time. Yes, a hard place to be in - on the fence but, the Lebanese can do it, because they have a gentle and smart nature. Regards, Concerned Canadian for the well being of the people of Lebanon ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Chris Young" <chrisyoung2@rogers.com To: clhrf@yahoo.com Subject: Thanks for you letter Date: Fri, 21 Jul 2006 Many thanks for the open letter to the Prime Minister concerning Canada's reaction to the crisis in Lebanon. I have the greatest sympathy for the Lebanese people and am pleased that Canada is able to assist families that are caught up in the current crisis. I must admit, however, that I was more than a little dismayed at the constant criticism of Canada's efforts by some members of the Lebanese community. I t seems that some of the families had nothing good to say about Canada's efforts on their behalf. Your letter has done much to compensate for the bad impression left by the complainers. It is nice to know that some Lebanese Canadians understand the difficulties involved in arranging large-scale evacuations and are appreciative of this country's efforts. Kindest regards CD Young --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From : ron_winn <ron_winn@lineone.net> Sent : July 21, 2006 8:30:32 AM To : <phoenicia@hotmail.com> Subject : Where are your politicians? So whilst your people are being bombed, in a situation such as when they are instructed to leave their houses by those committing war crimes - which you say is "unfortunate" and call "military confrontations" when they are simply a "duck shot" you thank the Canadians "for the correct, just and prompt positions" which somehow I assume is not calls for an immediate ceasefire. The Canadian government then are supporting, as are you WAR CRIMES. Just another "military confrontation" involving primarily innocent civilians and just another weak country that cannot defend itself and because of that cannot stand up for itself politically. Your "policy" [allowing war crimes to take place in your homeland] is just telling your part of the world that you will be bombed if you are weak and do not have nuclear weapons. Tell me, why do we have politicians? And why can't this "duck shoot" have been prevented at a government level. Politicians seem to have become warlords, and I include Bush&Blair in this description] with no diplomatic ability. There is only one world leader and they are bombing your country, right now. Listen, once there is a cease fire do you then want the survivors of your people to protest in the street against Hezbollah - so that public opinion does what your politicians are incapable of ? It was not until I saw you congratulating the Canadian government in the process of evacuating their own people out of your country which they are morally obliged to do particularly when they support what is happening there that I was motivated to speak out for the people of your country. Do you have any influence in politics? Get it resolved and stop the killing of your people. Get the politicians off their backsides and get them to exercise some diplomacy, if any of them have any. The world requires a statesman not warlords. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ "Eric Pedersen" <pedersee@telusplanet.net> To: clhrf@yahoo.com Subject: From Eric Pedersen Date: Fri, 21 Jul 2006 Dear Madam/Sir How are you doing? OK I hope. First off let me say that I am sorry about what is happening in your previous country of Lebanon and that I hope everyone makes it back to Canada safely. Secondly may I suggest that you get someone on the ground in Lebanon, Cyprus and Turkey and tell your people to stop their complaining because it is starting to make a lot of other Canadians very angry. I also realize that it makes good news and it may only be a small number of people who are complaining and it is those people who the news (CTV/CBC) are singling out to cover. I think you are aware of the problem or you would not have released your joint statement which I read in the National Post newspaper. Many Canadians are now aware that it is not a Canadian right or entitlement for the government to repatriate people back to Canada from another country. People who leave Canada are only entitled to as much assistance as local resources allow. I worked overseas in the oil business for 25 years in 11 different countries including many in the middle east. Believe me I was always aware that I was basically on my own if trouble started so I know some of the uncertainties which the evacuees are feeling. Here in Canada I will not say how people should vote because that is their choice. But may I remind you that it was the Liberal Party who gutted and under funded our Armed Forces for so many years so that now Canada no longer has the sea or air lift capacity to meet the needs of the Armed Forces let alone help with a crisis such as this. This is a true fact and I think your organization should use this as an example why Canada needs a strong well equipped Armed Forces. It really is a shame why Canada did not have its owns ships and planes to help in this crisis rather than having to go out on the open market in the height of the summer tourist season and try to charter them. I also hope that the different poliical factions in Lebanon can somehow come together in the larger national interest and not allow Hezbollah to pursue just their narrow agenda against Israel. Peace will never grow if Hezbollah is allowed to be controlled by Syria or Iran because the interest of these two countries is not in my opinion good for Lebanon. But I am sure I am not telling you something that you do not already know. All the best. Take Care and Good Luck Regards Eric -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Max Benatar" <maxb@idirect.com To: lccc@10452lccc.com Subject: ctv news Date: Thu, 20 Jul 2006 00:47:16 -0400 As a Jewish Canadian, I want to tell you how much I was touched when I heard your interview with CTV tonight. Finally, I heard a voice of reason coming from an Arab and not the garbage I hear from Hezbollah and the Syrian government. I am very sorry about your people in Lebanon. I know they are very kind people as I deal with a few of them in my line of work and I am originally from Morocco. I am proud to say we are fellow Canadians and I commend you on your honesty. Max Benatar ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ From: "Lorraine St.Cyr" lorrainestcyr@hotmail.com To: lccc@10452lccc.com Subject: Courage for the people of Lebanon Date: Wed, 19 Jul 2006 To all My heart goes out to the Lebanese Canadian who wrote with tears - I being Canadian from Montreal feel great sorrow for what is happening in Lebanon. I had met a very nice Lebanese man a few months ago, and this gave me the feeling of wanting to go to Lebanon to visit as a tourist. I was sure that one day, I would go - I feel crushed that a once so prominent place to enjoy and visit would become a war zone as it has become in the recent days. The Lebanese people I have met have all been very kind, decent, gentle and caring people, who deserve to have peace (not that other people don't) they just especially do - having been caught in the middle over and over again. I pray for the strength and courage of all the Lebanese people. May God give you strength in your moment of need, courage in your moment of desperation, and the ability to stand tall and demand peace of every inch of land of Lebanon forever, may no one ever take this away. Ever. May you be strong enough to demand independence. In the end - I really don't care about why Hezbollah is doing what it is doing - I care about, the children who died, I care about the soldiers that have lost an arm or a leg, or have died. I care about the Lebanese who are hungry waiting in the park. I care about the fear in which the Lebanese live right now as I am writing this, I care about the pain, I care about the tears, and I care about the dreams of the Lebanese people have lost. May the Lebanese find the strength, to over come the pain, and still stay positive and resilient. One day may they have their state, and say - We are Lebanese, and we stand for peace because we stand tall. Always. All my love your Canadian friend. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From ." <nena017@hotmail.com> To: Phoenicia-owner@yahoogroups.com Subject: RE: [Phoenicia] New lccc postings Date: Sat, 24 Jun 2006 Hello Elias I do not know you but would like to tell you that I appreciate all those mails of yours very interesting stories though I never check forwards or mails I do not know. This story about the guy who lived in France has touched me so much that I decided to send you this email . I can assure you one thing that so many people are facing this same problem. We hope one day everything changes as we have a beautiful country but nobody would want to suffer by living there miserably ! Thanks a lot again, could you please send me the mail on my other address that I use all the time I know it is an automated mail just in case it is possible because you always have interesting stories : mrritzayounis@hotmail.com -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: karole.dupont@sympatico.ca Sent : May 25, 2006 To : phoenicia@hotmail.com Subject : Does the Hezbollah leadership's vision from:spaces.msn.com/karole0804 Does the Hezbollah leadership's vision of a Global negotiated peace in the Middle East includes the fate of the Jewish Babylonian community? Nasrallah, Hezbollah's General Secretary said the Hezbollah army is necessary till there is a Global peace negotiated in the Middle East I hope his vision of a negotiated GLOBAL PEACE includes the FATE of the BABYLONIAN JEWS . I mean all groups have put their heads in the sand not to discuss it: Jews as well as Muslims. As for Christians, they are so used to the created false non-existence of the Babylonian community because of their leaving Iraq and being legally forcefully departed of their nationality they, the Western Hemisphere Christians, are generally ignorant of the situation. Perhaps it's time for the deniers of the fate of the Babylonian community to know that this community is truly Middle Eastern for it feels for all the parties but cannot sustain the forced lie imposed by all parties. The Jews are Middle Eastern since more than 3000 years... their fate did not start in the Middle East with Hitler and his camps in Poland whether it pleases or not to the Jews of Poland or the Arabs and their fate in the Middle East has been continuous.. non stop... so please tell me where are the Jews of Iraq now called historically the Babylonian Jews? Have the Palestinians been departed of their nationality worldwide? I mean a Palestinian is a Palestinian for Arabs so why do they depart the oldest non-stop Jewish community of its identity.. isn't it precisely because they can claim their Middle Eastern identity non-stop? Is it because the Babylonian Jews did not fall into terrorism that they were not given an observer seat at the UN? Why they still not have a seat at UNESCO? Do they have to form an army like the Hezbollah after all what is the base of the identity of the Hezbollah in Lebanon? Language...religion ... history...and on which Karole du Pont -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From Elias Bejjani/LCCC webmaster To: George Geagea" 17/5/06 Dear George I am not sure which material you are talking about. Not even one issue that you mentioned was in the content of both editorials. Apparently you have read what you wanted to read. You are judging and sentencing both of us on mere intentions' basis. Habibi, read with a non biased vision. I personally focus on issues not on individuals. God bless you Yours Truly Elias Bejjani --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "George Geagea" <gggeagea@yahoo.com> Subject: Re: [Phoenicia] Two new Arabic editorial from myself & Dr. Hitti/On the lccc To: Phoenicia-owner@yahoogroups.com Wed, 17 May 2006 Thank you for your e-mail. I am very concerned about both of your articles. Both of are asking for the same things the Lebanese Forces are asking. Yet you both hate the Lebanese Forces. Why it is easier for your General Aoun to reach a "working agreement" with a terrorist organization (in the eyes of the world community) yet finds it very difficult to build alliance with the Lebanese Forces. Why two highly intellectual persons you and Dr. Hitti, find it so easy to attack and promote hatred among Christians and call for a strong Lebanon. Why don't you reach out to your Lebanese brothers in a spirit of equal instead of superior mentality. I find it very hard to disagree on the major issues you are promoting, but I am at loss as to why you continue to alienate your Christian brothers and sisters. I pray that one day we will be enlightened and start using more reconciliatory tone without abandoning our common principles. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Fro: Elias Bejjani, LCCC webmaster To: M G lebwsi@yahoo.com May 10.5.06 Dear: Mr. MG First of all, if in fact you were genuinely requesting an explanation on a certain issue, like our stance on Israel or any other matters, you would have at least used a normal language, a language that normal people usually use for what is called "human communication means" and not to say a decent one, if the term means any thing to you. Secondly, if really you belief in what you are alleging to defend and advocate for, you would had at least the courage to say who you are and mention your name... I will here leave the rest of the assumption for you to figure out!! Apparently you suffer a tunnel vision type of political, national, sectarian and fundamentalism syndrome. Dear, people who fall in this in category, are completely fixed and tied to a one vision and doctrine. Usually it is a waste of time to engage with them in any kind of debate. As I can sense from your letter, you have already decided who is right and who is wrong, and who is guilty and who is innocent. Here I wonder why even you bothered to ask. My advice is: Look thoroughly again in the South Lebanon Issue and try to understand what actually happened during the last 30 years? Who is fighting who? Who betrayed who? Who Is defending a Lebanese cause and who is defending a non Lebanese cause? Ask yourself why Israel left in May 2000 and what kind of deal its back than government forged with Israel, Syria, Iran and Hizbollah? Ask Sheik Sbhi Toufaily he will give you all the answers. (Read his statements that were issued few day after what you term as liberation. http://www.10452lccc.com/eliasarabic/shaba.new.elias.arabic.htm http://www.10452lccc.com/interviews/subhi.tfaieli19.4.06.htm Ask yourself who is now patrolling Israeli' borders with Lebanon and why and for what? As far as Shaba farms, the big lie, I advice you to read my study on this matter on this link http://www.10452lccc.com/eliasarabic/shaba.new.elias.arabic.htm Dear: I am sure that you will not bother yourself to search for the truth, because as I said in the beginning your tunnel vision limitation is hindering any logic, neutrality, or reasoning. Thanks dear for your message, but we are who are and we strongly believe in our cause and in the way we handle our site and the material posted on it. وبما أنك أتيت على ذكر قول للإمام علي فأنا بدوري سأرد عليك بقول له أيضاً وهو: "لا تكن ممن ينهي ولا ينتهي، ويأمر بما لا يأتي، ويصف العبرة ولا يعتبر. فهو على الناس طاعن ولنفسه مداهن. وفهمك كفاية. You have quoted a saying for Emamoum Ali I will also respond with one of parables: "Do not advice while you do not take advices. Do not give orders that can not be implemented. Do not preach ideals when you are ignoring them and acting in a clear Hippocratic manner" I hope the message is now clear Yours Truly Elias Bejjani LCCC webmaster --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: M G lebwsi@yahoo.com Subject: Your website To: lccc@10452lccc.com Wed 10.5.06 Hello, I visit your website sometimes, but till now I did not see any section regarding Israel massacres, or Lebanese detainees in Israel, or their occupation of shebaa farms, or the continuous invades of Israel airplanes to our sky THE SOUTH IS NOT AMONG YOUR CONCERNS? THE PEOPLE WHO DIED TO LIBERATED WAS JUST HARTAKET W KEZEBET EL MOKAWAMEH?! NO WONDER ISRAEL STAYED 25 YEARS HERE. AND BY THE WAY, ÇáÞæá ÇáãÃËæÑ ÇáÐí ÊÐßÑå åæ Þæá ááÅãÇã Úáí (Úáíå ÇáÓáÇã) æ ÇáÕÍíÍ åæ " ÑÍã Çááå ÇãÑÁ ÚÑÝ ÍÏå ÝæÞÝ ÚäÏå" æáíÓ "ÊÈÇžž" ÝÇáæÞæÝ ÚäÏ ÇáÍÏæÏ æÅÍÊÑÇã ÍÑíÇÊ æÍÞæÞ ÇáÎÑíä ÃãÑ ãÔßæÑ æãØáæÈ æáÇ íÞÇá áå ÊÈÇõ I hope you dare and mention the massacres of Israel on your portal, and maybe a report about the mines that Israel did implement in south Lebanon and still did not give all the maps. you say 10452, do you have a map for that? do you know the concerns of people in south and what they did suffer? actually all Lebanese did suffer from Israel, but in the south it was much more. so for the sake of truth, maybe you should mention Israel! instead of doing an interview with that racist moron of cedars guardians. He want peace with Israel that mother fucker! hizballah is a terrorist group? I wish him a jalta like the one who took maalmo Sharon. Thank you for your time. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ From Elias Bejjani April 16/2006 To: "alia m" <sweetalyoush@hotmail.com Dear: I am sorry that you understood my message this way. First I have mentioned the "missing" all those who are still missing, as well as the detainees in Syria and the exiled in Israel. And yes I did not mention what you stated as the detainees in Israel because no body is left there. They all were releases and those few who are still there, are prisoners for crimes they have committed mostly against their own people in South Lebanon. AND yes I am Christian, but Lebanese and a very proud one. I hope that our people, all of them including perhaps me and you will be able one day to get out of their narrow perspectives, stereotyping thinking and most importantly out of the rejection of the other mentality, so they can clearly see reality as it should be seen. One more thing: Just remember that when any person gives himself the liberty and legitimacy to kill others for the mere pleasure of killing or for religious justifications, he ought to expect the same fate. God bless you Elias Bejjani ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ From: "alia m" <sweetalyoush@hotmail.com To: Phoenicia-owner@yahoogroups.com Subject: RE: [Phoenicia] Happy Eastern from Elias Bejjani/New LCCC Postings Date: Sun, 16 Apr 2006 Well I would have appreciated if you mentioned the detainees in Israel and the "mafoudine" which my uncle is one of them since 22 years and they are not families exiled in Israel , they went their themselves...no need to tell u why . I would appreciate it if you delete me of your contact list. I wish no longer to read any postings of yours. You just proved that you and your people can never see with two eyes. I am sorry to tell you that you are only Christian and not Lebanese ..your are not different from Lebanese Forces, but at least they are frank and say what they think loudly. Enjoy/Best Regards Alyoush -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Ibrahim Atallah" <ifatallah@hotmail.com> To: cadmous-owner@yahoogroups.com Subject: RE: New Arabic Editorials from Elias Bejjani Date: Tue, 07 Mar 2006 Dear Mr. Elias Bejjani, Your editorial is great!!! I believe it should not only reach the large public, but also and mainly our decision-makers in general, and our Christian leaders(?) in particular, including Patriarch Sfeir! Do you have a 'mechanism' (their e-mail addresses) by which you can send them your selected editorials? and/or a 'liaison' person who could do it? Keep up the good work, and God bless you! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tue, 28 Feb 2006 From: "A Georges" <1georges@gmail.com> To: lccc@10452lccc.com Subject: Freedom at a cross road Freedom at a cross road In General Michel Aoun Word "Any existence deprived of freedom is a form of death" We will not stand by and watch our country destroy itself under mediocre leadership that drifts from one crisis to the next, eroding our national will and purpose. Our people deserve better from those to whom they entrust our country's highest offices, and we stand united in our resolve to do something about it. We need a rebirth of the Lebanese tradition of leadership at every level of government and in private life as well. I do not believe that the "temporary majority" desires the presidency, what they desire is the fruits of the presidency and the indefinite expansion of their power and doctrines. Where is the freedom in Lebanon? Maybe the freedom had turn to a game of word Freedom is not the imbalance, freedom is not the one view and one idea, for liberalism is not so much a party creed or set of fixed platform promises as it is an attitude of mind and heart, a faith in man's ability through the experiences of his reason and judgment to increase for himself and his fellow men the amount of justice and freedom and brotherhood which all human life deserves. What we need in the Lebanon is not division; what we need in Lebanon is not hatred; what we need in Lebanon is not violence and lawlessness, but is love and wisdom, and compassion toward one another. Let us dedicate ourselves to what the Greeks wrote so many years ago: "to tame the savageness of man and make gentle the life of this world." Let us dedicate ourselves to that, and say a prayer for our country and for our people. Lets be Lebanese and only Lebanese lets be proud of who we are … Lebanese first and Lebanese Second and Lebanese Third. And what General Aoun said couple days ago on NBN TV lets be "Lebanese first and last" its time to stand up together Christian and Muslim under one roof the roof of Lebanon. Their lies, deceit and hypocrisy will not funnel our intelligence we love you General Aoun. And lets me close by saying as long as we have people like General Aoun the fight must go on the cause of civil liberty must not be surrendered at the end of one, or even one hundred defeats. A Georges Windsor Canada -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "S Lawand" <lawand@ns.sympatico.ca> To: <info@tayyar.org> Subject: RE: Elias Bejani's article titled: "Our Family's suffering in Israel, till when??" Date: Sun, 19 Feb 2006 18:10:25 -0400 This is in response to Elias Bejani’s article titled: “Our Family’s suffering in Israel, till when??” & dated Sun Feb 19th. First let me apologize to the readers for not being able to respond in Arabic as the only Arabic that I see where I live is on the internet and unfortunately I do not have the Office Arabic software. After reading Mr. Bejani’s article I couldn’t feel but to be unsettled, it wasn’t enough that he solely blamed the Liberators, Arab nationalist and the passing by but he also went on to demand the amnesty for ALL Lebanese living in Israel with no distinction between collaborator or not. So, unless I totally misunderstood what Mr. Bejani meant in his article, I think he owes an apology to all the people that suffered under the Lahed regime either inside the Lebanese occupied land or outside it. I do not want to remind Mr. Bejani of Sabra & Shatila as one of many examples of the atrocities they have committed. In addition to this playing the blaming games against the Arab Nationals is not an accurate one as everyone on the stage back then were guilty and you cannot pick and choose whoever you think is guilty and whoever you think wasn’t. The 1991 amnesty accord was a necessity to get Lebanon out of the civil war point it was in, if there was a time for an amnesty it should have been back then not right now. I do not disagree with Mr. Bejani that any trial of these people would be a trial for all the Militia leaders in Lebanon, as all of them were guilty in that bloody war. The only difference is that their biggest leaders’ right now has acknowledged that Israel is our enemy while the South Lebanese Army members and supporters have not as of yet (I stand corrected). When and if they do there will be another discussion about their status. I welcome back all the families and individuals that did not participate or collaborate with the enemy; as for the ones that has I say to them: Justice must be served. The beautiful thing about President Aoun’s supporters and movement is that they are from all religions and regions, those that are with the Arabic identity of Lebanon and those that are with other identities like Phoenician maybe or something; but in the end Lebanon always comes first for them: Sovereign, Free & Independent. And anyone that works against that country does not deserve an amnesty or even a welcome back. Thank you, Simon Lawand -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Thu, 09 Feb 2006 From: "ALBERT SARA" <salber@idm.net.lb Subject: Re: [Phoenicia] New Postings on LCCC To: Phoenicia-owner@yahoogroups.com Dear Elias, I appreciate the attention you granted to my letter of Monday. However, when I wrote it, I had not yet in hands the complete Arabic text of that agreement (hidden under the hypocrite word "tafahom") concluded between Aoun and Hezbollah. But, when I got it, and red it as a lawyer, I found that it was a trap in which Aoun was caught. The translation into English by Joseph Hitty is honest. But, when you isolate the paragraph. 10 and you read it thoroughly, (all the other mentions are of no importance, as practically agreed upon by anybody), you realize that Hezbollah is given the total liberty to behaving as he is doing now. Moreover, it is stipulated that Hezb will keep its weapons until he has liberated Lebanese prisoners in Israel, and even, as long as it considers that Israel is threatening Lebanon, we shall rely upon sits weapons... In order to fully understand that text confuse and sophisticated, I translated it to French (this took me more than one hour !)I used sometime that method when an Arabic text was too obscure. I am sending you herewith my French translation. If you show it to one French speaking friend, perhaps you would better realize the maneuver : Aoun's people is presented a four- page text. He reads many things on which everybody is agreed. After 3 pages, when tired by reading useless and universal clauses, he arrives to the Article 10... Tell me, my dear, how many readers would be ready to decipher to true meaning of that confuse and complicated text ? Document de l’entente « tafahom » entre le Hezbollah et le Courant Patriotique Libre. 10. - La protection du Liban Et la sauvegarde de son indépendance et de sa souveraineté. La protection du Liban et la sauvegarde de son indépendance et de sa souveraineté sont une responsabilité et un devoir national général garanti par les traités internationaux et la Charte de Droits de l’Homme, spécialement pour faire face à toute menace ou danger pouvant les atteindre de quelque côté que ce soit. Il s’ensuit que le port des armes n’est pas un but en soi, mais un moyen honorable et sacré que doit exercer tout groupe occupant un territoire, exactement comme il en est des procédés de la résistance politique. Et dans ce domaine, l’armement de Hezbollah doit se présenter dans un apparentement total tombant entre deux bornes (ou tranchants) : la première borne est l’appui sur les justifications qui ont réuni l’unanimité nationale, et qui constituent les centres de la force pour le Liban et les Libanais pour conserver leurs armes ; l’autre borne consiste à définir les circonstances objectives qui pourraient conduire à la négation des raisons de porter les armes. Attendu qu’Israël occupe les fermes de Chebaa, qu’il tient en prison les résistants libanais, et qu’il menace le Liban, il incombe donc aux libanais de faire face à leurs responsabilités et de participer aux charges de protéger le Liban et de sauvegarder son entité et sa sécurité et de défendre son indépendance et sa souveraineté par les actes suivants : Libérer les fermes de Chebaa de l’occupation israélienne. Libérer les prisonniers des prisons israéliennes. Défendre le Liban contre le danger israélien en pratiquant un dialogue national aboutissant à la constitution d’une défense nationale sur laquelle les libanais se mettront d’accord, et dans laquelle ils fusionneront, en supportant respectivement ses charges et en bénéficiant de ses résultats. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "ALBERT SARA" <salber@idm.net.lb> Subject: Re: [Phoenicia] CLHRF A/E Release addressing the savage Sunday riot To: Phoenicia-owner@yahoogroups.com Tue, 07 Feb 2006 19:18:08 +0200 My dear Elias, Yesterday, we attended, on the TV, the press conference where general Aoun et Hassan Nasrallah appeared together. Today, I have read carefully the text of the "Tafahom" between them, giving all my attention to the last paragraph. N° 10 entitled "Protection of Lebanon". Probably, you are supposed to have already noticed that this expression was used equally by both of them. However, before the "Tafahom", the general was keeping the possibility to plea that his understanding is that this expression ("protecting Lebanon") does not mean that the Hezb is entitled to keep its arms. But to-day, it is sure that the General understands "Protecting Lebanon" exactly in the same way as Nasrallah and, consequently, that he is agreeing upon the keeping of Hezb armaments, even after our recovering of Chebaa. This is a pity, a great pity, as he is giving to the Hezb a very big argument for keeping its armament, and to behavior with the same insolence as previously. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Prefect and the Barbershop Mask Lebanon Conspiracy and Reality! By: Nicolas Hanhan January 16/2006 In 1998 after Lebanese army commander General Email Lahoud was allotted as the Lebanese President, a Lebanese citizen called a local channel to thank the Syrian president “Hafez Assad” for choosing General Lahoud. "We thank president Assad for appointing our president" the call was not for gratefulness but as a signal for opposing a veracity that was accepted by various Lebanese political figures. For years Syria has dominated the political scene in Lebanon with no or little opposition from recognized politicians. Prime Minister Rafic Harriri apposed the selection, he was quoted that he is ready to pay half of his wealth in order to prevent Lahoud selection. President Herawi on his way back after meeting with president Assad called from the boarder consoling various Lebanese politicians for their new president before the parliament met to declare the elections in a play that various politicians including the Harrir’s movement agreed to be involved in. The insult to the Lebanese continued during the last 15 years where Mr. Abdelhalim Khadam who was the responsible figure of all Lebanese questions governed Lebanon till the late 90’s. In his hand was the Lebanese file, for years he was known by the prefect (Al-Walee). The one in charge had his way of insulting the Lebanese politicians that nearly everyone liked! One insult after another until the extension of president Lahoud term and the assassination of Prime Minister Harriri, The mask of brotherhood and coordination covered all insult. Recently in several interviews Khadam assured that president Basshar Assad had threatened Harrri. Assad told Harriri "…We will jam any one that appose us…” this statement contradicts Dr. Assad speech to the parliament stating that Syria did not think for one moment that Harrri will be faded away from this world. Khadam accused president Lahoud & his security regime of spurring on Harrir murder, as if the Syrian regime needed a spur in order to commit this terrorist act. Did they need a spur to assassinate the Druze leader Kamal Jumblate in the 70’s or President Mawaad and others on the Independence Day in 1989? The Druze leader walid Jumblate accused Assad Regime of all the murders that took place after lahoud renewal. "My enemy is full of hatred and dupe,” he whispered. Is the divergence in occasion that lead him to forgive the murder in the past or the dissimilarity of a murder covered by the mask of Arabism who sat in 1977 with his victim for seven hours before giving the terrorism order to fade him from this world and another murder in 2004 who was uncovered by confronting his opponent for 15 minutes, not even giving him a chance to clarify his position before giving his order of terror, A sharp murderer in 1977 and a Dupe one in 2004! Gamil Elsayed a pro-Syrian figure told Alhayat newspaper that the terrorist who plotted harriri’s crime is either Einstein or a dupe, if convicted Mr. Jamil would turn to be one of the dupes who plotted ex-prime minister Rafic Harriri on Feb 14 2005. Another mask that uncovers the conspiracy against Lebanon is the Syrian witness "Hussam Hussam" first known as the "masked witness" who used to work as a barbershop in Lebanon during the last decade covering his real identity, which is working with the Syrian intelligence service that is a spy! Hussam came by his own will to international investigators giving important information about the terrorist act, to flee later to Syria withdrawing his testimony and turning to a daily superstar on the Syrian national TV. The barbershop witness could be an attempt to make the international investigation distrustful. Several attempts were made, lately another witness by the name Gargoura is accused of misleading the investigation. It is significant to spot that the Syrian regime was not hurt by the murder of ex-prime minister Harriri but by the international investigation! Mr. Khadam is said to be credible witness to the investigation but it seems that Mr. Khadam has a hidden agenda other than the truth! Planning to overthrow the Assad regime, he is to form a government in exile; will he use Lebanon as his road to Damascus? The prefect pointed out that the statement that killed Rafic Hariri is: “Lebanon cannot be governed against Syria nor governed from Syria”. It is time that the Lebanese start turning this principle originally taken by Prime Minister General Aoun in 1988 into reality. Most political followers considered the late confessions by khadam, as an earthquake that shall throw out the Syrian regime but for most Lebanese Al-Awalee did not confess a secret! The metaphor is presently uncovering the barbershop mask by a Syrian who governed Lebanon in the name national Arabism and brotherhood for decades. The Syrian withdrawal Last April proofed once more that every occupation must come to end even if it is a wearing a veil ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ From: sparta" <sparta13@ix.netcom.com To: "Elias Bejjani" <lccc@10452lccc.com> Subject: Fw: Ltr submitted to NYT regarding the trial of Turkish author for insulting "Turkishness." Date: Fri, 30 Dec 2005 17:04:50 -0500 I'm sending this to you just for your information. Just so you see what we Orthodox Christians are facing with regard to the Turkish genocide in Asia Minor that the Turks refuse to acknowledge and from the pro-Turkish West that keep ignoring that genocide. Now Turkey wants to join the EU - and probably will not have to face a veto on the genocide of 3.5 million Christians at their hands by the West. Furthermore, what is it about European Union that the West doesn't seem to understand? If Turkey is allowed to become an EU member, they should change the name to "The European-Anatolian Union." Only by writing letters and hoping that they will be published will we ever achieve justice. As ever,Stella Subject: Fw: Ltr submitted to NYT regarding the trial of Turkish author for insulting "Turkishness." For your information, I sent this to my representative here in Pennsylvania, Todd Platts. The rest is self explanatory. I hope you all will contact your representatives as well over this issue. Stella Dear Todd, Following are excerpts from the book written by the Turkish author who is presently on trial for insulting Turkey's "Turkishness," with regard to the violence against the Kurds and of the Armenian genocide at the turn of the beginning of the last century that the author exposes. Please read this carefully, Todd. I want to make sure you know just with whom we are dealing regarding the Christian genocide in Asia Minor by the Turks. This is part of a tragic history. However, my biggest concern is that whenever there is talk about the Armenian genocide, and with which I am in total sympathy, totally ignored by most media and Congress is the fact that the Greeks and the Assyrians were brutally and systematically slaughtered as were the Armenians. My letter that I am submitting to the NYT follows. After my letter to the NYT, you can read a few excerpts from the Turkish author for which he is being tried. My best to you, your family and your staff for the coming New Year, 2006. Your constituent, Stella (Jatras) Link to the NYT article to which I responded: http://www.nytimes.com/2005/12/30/international/europe/30turkey.html My letter to the NYT follows: ******************************* The New York Times Letter to the Editor(s) 30 December 2005 Concerning the 30 December trial of the Turkish author, Orhan Pamuk, the article lists the violence against the Kurds and the genocide against Armenians, but where are the genocides of Pontic Greeks (Hellenes) and the Assyrians written? On the Washington steps of Congress in 1997, I attended the 75th anniversary of the "Destruction of the City of Smyrna," (9 September 1922) which honored the memory of the Christian martyrs who were murdered by Turkish persecutions from 1894-1923. Of the 3.5 Christians murdered, 1.8 were Armenians and 1.7 were Greek Orthodox Christians. I was later to learn that over 750,000 Assyrians were also martyred. It does a disservice to those Pontic Greeks and Assyrian Christians who were also martyred by Turkish troops but are never included whenever the question of the Armenian genocide comes up. Turkey not only does not admit to committing this historic and well documented genocide, it even refuses to admit it ever happened. This is wrong. Stella L. Jatras Camp Hill, PA Here, I am adding my "Hellenic Genocide: Was it a "Catastrophe," or a "Devastation?" to see the horrors that Christians suffered under the hands of our Turkish friends. http://www.FreeRepublic.com/forum/a3b162588463a.htm Excerpts: Chapter Nineteen, Page 170 Istanbul: Memories and the City, By Orhan Pamuk Author of My Name is Red, and Snow “Like most Istanbul Turks, I had little interest in Byzantium as a child. I associated the word with spooky, bearded, black-robed Greek Orthodox priests, with the aqueducts that still ran through the city, with Hagia Sophia and the re-brick walls of the old churches. To me, these were remnants of an age so distant that there was little need to know about it. Even the Ottomans who conquered Byzantium seemed very far away. People like me were, after all, the first generation of the “new civilization” that had replaced them. But as strange as Reşat Ekrem Koçu had made the Ottomans sound, at least they had names we could recognize. As for the Byzantines, they had vanished into thin air soon after the conquest, or so I’d been led to believe. No one had told me that it was their grandchildren’s grandchildren who now ran the shoe stores, patisseries, and haberdashery shops of Beyoğlu.” —Orhan Pamuk, Turkish author Chapter Nineteen, Page 172 Istanbul: Memories and the City, By Orhan Pamuk Author of My Name is Red, and Snow “The Cold War had just begun, and Turkey, a member of NATO, did not wish to remind the world about the conquest. It was, however, three years later that the Turkish state deliberately provoked what you might call “conquest fever” by allowing mobs to rampage through the city, plundering the property of Greeks and other minorities. A number of churches were destroyed during the riots and a number of priests were murdered, so there are many echoes of the cruelties western historians describe in accounts of the “fall” of Constantinople.” —Orhan Pamuk, Turkish author Chapter Nineteen, Page 173 Istanbul: Memories and the City, By Orhan Pamuk Author of My Name is Red, and Snow “The bands of rioters were most violent and caused greatest terror in neighborhoods like Ortaköy, Balikih, Samatya, and Fener, where the concentration of Greeks was greatest; not only did they sack and burn little Greek groceries and diary shops, they broke into houses to rape Greek and Armenian women. So it is not unreasonable to say that the rioters were as merciless as the soldiers who sacked the city after it fell to Mehmet the Conqueror. It later emerged that the organizers of this riot—whose terror raged for two days and made the city more hellish than the worst orientalist nightmares—had the state’s support and had pillaged the city with its blessing.” —Orhan Pamuk, Turkish author Chapter Nineteen, Page 189 Istanbul: Memories and the City, By Orhan Pamuk Author of My Name is Red, and Snow “For centuries, ruling Ottoman pashas had eyed all other rich persons—most of whom were themselves powerful pashas—as threats and would seize any excuse to kill them and confiscate their property. As for the Jews, those who were in a position to loan money to the state during the last centuries of the empire—they share with the Greeks and Armenians who gained prominence as businessmen and artisans the bitter memory of the punitive Wealth Tax imposed on them during the Second World War, paving the way for the seizure of their land and factories, and of the riots of September 5 and 6, 1955, during which so many of their shops were pillaged and burned.” Orhan Pamuk, Turkish author ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Joseph Howley" <joseph@estasi.co.nz> To: "'Elias Bejjani'" <elias_bejjani@yahoo.ca> Subject: Jibran Tueni the Baptist of Freedom Assassinated by Herods of Damascus! Date: Sat, 24 Dec 2005 14:39:00 +1300 Assassination of Jibran Tueni the Baptist of Freedom A voice shouting in AN NAHAR, roaring in the parliament and crying out loud in the downtown Freedom square: “Prepare the way for the coming of freedom, clear the road for it. The valleys will be filled, and the mountains and hills made level. The curves will be straightened and the rough behaviors will be made smooth”. He was beheaded by Herods of Damascus because he lived for a great cause, because he fought peacefully for the freedom of his country. He was baptizing fellow countrymen by the grace of liberty until such time when he concluded and fulfilled his mission by getting baptized in his own blood. He wrote in ink and signed in his own precious blood. A flag of freedom has been shot down; the word of independence has been silenced. Only today, because his spirit is in all Lebanese and his word can only get stronger throughout all fellow countrymen. He was a courageous man, a man with a strong will and good deed, a man of wisdom and knowledge, a man of dignity and sincerity, a man with a vision and decision. We must not cry for him because today is his birth, he moved from life to eternity! Today he becomes integral part of the Lebanese’s history, he is the corner stone of the house of peace and freedom, Today he joins his colleagues in his stand in the downtown freedom square where he will stand for ever. We will deeply miss you “Jibran Toueni” Question: An act of friendship or else? If we asked Solenge Gemayal who assassinated her husband, our former president Bashir Gemayal, and our president Rene Mouwad, Jimblat, our prime minister Rafik Hariri, our MP Gebran Toueni, El Moufti, Dany Chamooun, Samir Kasir, George Hawi, the mass graves found in Anjar and Yarze and many more yet to be revealed etc…. and the assassination attempt of our minister Elias Murr, MP Marwan Hmadeh, May Chidyak and many more… What would their answer be? If the president of Syria Mr. Bashar Al Assad is assassinated by a Lebanese, may God forbid a thousand times, what would the Syrian views of Lebanese government be. Would it be considered an act of friendship or else? He who kills Lebanese cannot be a friend of Lebanon, and can only be something else! Question 1: What is the difference between Israelis and Syrians towards Lebanon? If it is proven that they both killed Lebanese Question 2: Why is one considered an enemy and the other a friend? The Answer is because an Arab is killing an Arab. That cannot be considered an enemy! Kind regards, Joseph Howley Lebanese Society of Auckland ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Goodbye Dear Gebran By: A Thankful Lebanese December 16/2005 December 12, 2005. On this day we say farewell to a great Lebanese leader and thus declare that we, and the Lebanese Nation, are eternally grateful to you, Mr.Gebran Tueni, for showing us what true Lebanese citizenship is. We are indeed indebted to you for sharing your heroism and the epitaph of martyrdom with previous Lebanese heroes who paid the ultimate price for a free and sovereign Lebanon. Our prayers, thoughts, and heartfelt condolences are with the Tueni family. God is merciful and may His love comfort you. May He give you all fountains of strength and embrace you with support of Gebran's new residence of heavenly peace and his heavenly mission. Your beloved Gebran is beloved by all who love Lebanon. Your beloved is our beloved because he spoke with love from the mind and soul of his Lebanese fiber. Lebanon and we will dearly miss him. Those who were fortunate enough to have met him, or only knew him through his words, will remember the universal tears that brought us together. Those tears will eternally remind us to keep his Lebanese torch alive and to follow in his footsteps. We are indebted to you Gebran because you showed us how to live your solemn oath in loving Lebanon. We are deeply indebted to you because, by your example, you taught us how to be the perfect Lebanese role model of a writer, journalist, orator, champion, politician, law-maker, an advocate of freedom, patriotism, peace and truth. Most of all, you showed us how to love Lebanon, the Lebanese way. Your soul is immersed in the character of the Lebanese Cedar. Your urgently-needed heavenly mission will light more candles for us to light the darkened road to a free, sovereign and peaceful Lebanon. Your words shall inspire the hearts and the minds of many Lebanese generations to come and in your heavenly peace residence, you will eternally be watching over your beloved Lebanon. Your earthly absence threatens no more the existence of evil's sword on Lebanese soil but God is the final judge. He is watching with love and mercy. God is Love and His Love is all goodness that shall overtake all current and future evils. His Love shall conquer all evil doers for those who live by the sword shall perish by the sword. We look up to heaven, and with more tears for our heroes' goodbyes, we see more Lebanese inhabitants, more Lebanese martyrs, more Lebanese heroes, more Lebanese Saints, and more candles for our dearest Lebanon. As we look up to heaven, we remain steadfast to eternally honor our heroes' bloodshed watering the holy Lebanese Cedar Trees. Heaven exists to give us hope and to enlighten the soul. Heaven exists for us to look up and to remember God's unconditional love on the cross, the resurrection, the gift of faith and the spirit of hope in Christmas. Much like Christianity is a blessing to humanity, your soul is a blessing to Lebanon and to its identity. Your crusade and earthly accomplishments are not only needed for your heavenly mission but to also remind us how to remain resolute on the course of righteousness you designed for our dear Lebanon. As we look up to heaven, we bid you goodbye, our dearest friend and compatriot. We pledge to uphold your oath in making our beloved Lebanon a Lebanon for those who truly love it. Your vision will forever be the foundation of Lebanese Lebanon. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ From: Najla Misk-Malhamé najlamisk@hotmail.com To: The LCCC web site December 13/2005 Mes amis du Liban et d'ailleurs Même si cet article n'est pas publié faute d'espace je vous transmets cet appel. Toutes mes Condoléances pour la perte de notre héros-martyr Libanais Gebran Tuéni. Ce texte ci dessous est un appel de la libanaise que je suis à mes concitoyens. Crédo des Libanaises et Libanais C'est un cri de douleur à mes compatriotes libanaises et libanais. C'est une prière, celle d'un combat à adopter pour toi,Gebran, notre Amour meurtri. C'est un Devoir de citoyennes et de citoyens auprès de toi et de tous les martyrs du printemps de Beyrouth. Aujourdh'ui 12-12-2005 je propose à tous les femmes du Liban , mères, veuves ou orphelines par osmose de porter un deuil de 40 jours. Aujourdh'ui 12-12-2005 je propose à tous nos hommes de porter haut le flambeau et de porter une cravate noire ou d'apposer un brassard de deuil 40 jours durant. Aujourdh'ui 12-12-2005 je propose à tous les journalistes, écrivains, romanciers , peintres , sculpteurs, musiciens d'exprimer notre révolte et de démentir par nos écrits et nos oeuvres la machiavélique tentative de nous museler . Aujourdh'ui 12-12-2005 Ceux qui prétendait "Nous avons brisé le stylo de Gebran Tueini, fermé sa bouche pour toujours et transformé An Nahar en une nuit très sombre", ne pourront pas assécher nos plumes ni déssécher nos pinceaux car nous diront tous en coeur et d'une seule voix : Gebran, nous ne t'oublierons pas et ta flamme restera vibrante en chacun de nousAujourdh'ui Gebran et tous les jours , pour toi et pour tes amis disparus, nous répéterons après toi comme tu le scandais si bien "Nous jurons par le Dieu tout-puissant, musulmans et chrétiens, de rester unis jusqu'à la fin des temps en défense du Liban bien-aimé." En mémoire de Gaby Gebran Tuéni Najla Misk-Malhamé ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ George Bejjani <griegs_bejjani@hotmail.com Sent : November 29, 2005 To : phoenicia@hotmail.com Subject : RE: FW: Re: From Elias Accuse them he did not but that was not the point with which I took issue, I was only making the point that our holy men should not be included in the same line as their men of faith when discussing religion and state i.e. "the enslavement of religion". The whole article spoke of saving our people from the enslavement of religion or educating our people about the enslavement religion is and this is fine for the Dr to discuss, after all we live in highly secular societies outside Lebanon and love our countries, however throughout the article there was no clear line demarcating the sheiks who support the war on Israel/Infidels for any frivolous reason available and our priests who do not. By stating that there exists "the enslavement of religion" and then qualifying the "Islamic ideologue" as one of those who enslaves, one naturally ponders who is inferred here on the Christian side. As both were mentioned as perpetrators and only one discussed in detail and explained, no clear line could be discerned by the reader. Yes their must exist a full separation of Church of State and yes the patriarchal order of society is a burden that the people in their entirety do not want or need, but a very clear majority still need and want religion and yet can excel in life and be exceptional people, (GEN. Aoun just discussed the valuable divine message of religion at the National Press Club)On the flipside one cannot be an Islamist and still excel and advance in society because they wish to revert to a dark age caliphate. Hence the 'shackles' of Christianity must be discussed separate to the 'shackles' of fundamentalist Islam. George Bejjani ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: George Bejjani" <griegs_bejjani@hotmail.com To: cadmous-owner@yahoogroups.com Subject: RE: English editorial by Dr. Joseph Hitti Date: Mon, 28 Nov 2005 Reading the latest posting I wondered how you could host such a bigoted article on a website whose main audience are believing and practicing Christians like myself. Yes Hizbollah are fanatics who serve the enemies of Lebanon, with that part I agree, but our priests never preach death as they do and neither does our church leadership wish harm to anyone. If it weren't for the church sponsored Schools and Universities the likes of Dr. Joseph Hitti would never have reached academia in Lebanon or once they emigrated. Free speech is fine but that does not mean to feed me the fish with its bones-cater to your audience, don't host articles that take us somewhere we don't want to go. Otherwise fine work uncle Elias, we love reading your insightful articles. George Bejjani -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Hijacking the Cedars’ March to freedom Anwar Wazen - Brussels Oct 31/ 2005 A fallacy has been promoted by Druze chieftain Walid Jumblatt, the Hariri family, their TV station and their other media outlets pretending that the crowds of Lebanese that flocked to Liberty square on march the 14th did so because they wanted to know the truth “Al Hakika” about the crime perpetrated against ex- prime minister Rafik Hariri. There is no doubt that the anger that motivated one and a half million Lebanese to gather in downtown Beirut was something more than the shocking crime. You didn’t need to be a Lebanese genius to guess who the suspects were in instigating, planning and executing this heinous crime. Judge D.Mehlis and his professional team confirmed what we suspected then. Syria’s baathist Regime and its thugs most probably had a hand in the murder of two Presidents of Lebanon, the Mufti and other religious dignitaries, Kamal Jumblatt who opposed the presence of the Syrian army way back in 1976, the outspoken journalists, polticians and other dissidents in Lebanon and Syria . The same Regime most probably burned off Rafik Hariri and 21of his comerades, bodyguards and other innocent pedestrians in a terrorist crime reminiscent of the “Godfather” movie . Rafik Hariri was no Saint, even though he was anointed as such by family and friends. The Cedars’ marchers had a message to convey to Hizbolla, the Amal movement and other pro Syrian mercenaries who flexed their muscles a week earlier in a demonstration they dubbed “loyalty and solidarity with Syria”. Few days after the murder of Hariri the father, Hariri the son was given the political mantel to “carry on his father’s project ” Saad Hariri is a newcomer to Lebanon’s political arena. He needed a political mentor, Walid Jumblatt obliged W. Jumblatt is an ex “warlord” who never denied that he collaborated and profiteered for years from the same Syrian mafia that probably assassinated his father Kamal in 1977, and ruled Lebanon in the most brutal and oppressive manner for 29 years. Walid Jumblatt regretted in his eulogy to Syria’s mafia Don Ghazi Kanaan the” death of a man who did a lot of good for Lebanon” as usual Mr Jumblatt infatuated us and he was short of wiping one or two tears from his eyes whilst praising his old friend during that infamous press conference. Upon the demise of his father the young Saad Hariri a novice to Lebanese politics landed in Beirut in his father’s private plane and entered the political arena from the “big gate”. I meant Saudi money gate. He controls today the so called majority of the parliament . He nominated the prime minister of Lebanon who incidentally was employed by his late father and he appointed other ministers and MPs . When he travels he is received by Head of States, foreign ministers and good old Kofi Annan. He declared the other day from Jeddah , Saudi Arabia, that Hizbolla is his first and foremost strategic ally. It was Hizbolla the Iranian sponsored party of Allah that organised the March 8th demonstration to show loyalty and solidarity to Syria’s baathist Regime, the Regime that is unofficially still accused to be behind the liquidation of Rafik Hariri . Understanding this logic really beats me especially when we hear that Saad Hariri has committed to the international community the implementation of UNSCR 1559 sponsored by the US and Mr Chirac and in which there is a clause asking to disarm all militias in Lebanon . Hizbolla refuses to disarm and has always rejected UNSCR1559. Is it double talk from Saad Hariri or political duplicity, time will tell . “carry on Rafik Hariri’s project” Does Saad Hariri mean the project to defeat all the other Sunni voices in Lebanon by the power of the Greenback? Is he going to carry on the project of corruption, graft and bankrupting the State? Will the free voices that were forced into exile during Syria’s years of hegemony over Lebanon be allowed to come back and contribute in rebuilding a new Lebanon based on respect for human right , freedom of _expression, the right to a free education, healthcare and social welfare? or will they find themselves again in a jungle where they will be harassed by a neo- Syrian order. Will they be discriminated against and deprived of their basic rights? These are questions that we are not asking for the sake of embarrassing prime minister Siniora, we know that he is trying his best in walking the tightrope and we must admit that he has been thus far succeeding in his balancing act. We would like to hear from him on the case of our comerades in the Lebanese Kurdish Democratic Party . We hear that the Hariri clan is still pursuing a discriminatory policy vis à vis these brave fellows. Their Leader Abdulkarim Meho cannot return back to Lebanon due to a pending court order which completely ignores his right to free _expression.The case was doctored against him by the Syrian appointees in the Lebanese courts when Lebanon was under Syrian occupation . Mr Meho was one of the effective loud voices advocating from exile for Lebanon to be free from Syrian hegemony. What about the three members of the “The Guardians of the Cedars” party who were packed and put in prison ( and they still are) after they made a press conference in which they declared that Lebanon should withdraw from the Arab League . Is this the type of Democracy and Freedom that we were promised by George W . Bush ? At this critical juncture of our History, Lebanon needs Statesmen and politicians that should be accountable for recklessness , blunders, corruption and greed, nepotism and injustice. My humble advice to Mr Saad Hariri is to be vigilant in his promising political career and to avoid the pitfalls that his late father did not avoid willingly or could not avoid for a reason or another. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Date: Fri, 02 Sep 2005 From: fdoudar@aol.com Subject: Re: [cadmous] New English editorial from Elias Bejjani/on the lccc To: cadmous-owner@yahoogroups.com Dear Mr. Bijani, One statement in your editorial that attracted my attention was: "sickening concepts in regards to the Arabic-Israeli conflict, the so called resistance against Israel" For years the LF and many other Lebanese right groups advocated similar " sickening concepts" to deal with the Syrian occupation of Lebanon . Why wouldn't the same concepts be valid when it comes to Israel's occupation of Lebanon? Would Israel have withdrawn from the Gaza strip if it wasn't for the costly occupation in terms of resources and human lives ? I absolutely refuse to believe that they would have left just for the sake of peace with the Palestinians . If Palestinians were benign when it came to the settlements and the occupation of Gaza , would Israel even consider leaving ? I don't think so. Same applies to the occupation of Southern Lebanon and the circumstances under which they left . Surely at the time Barak was more moderate and had different priorities . But if it wasn't for the internal pressure within Israel where people were fed up with the cost of occupying Lebanon ( again in terms of lives and other resources) , the Israelis would not have gone. Don't get me wrong, I wholeheartedly denounce any violence no matter where it comes from , and advocate for a peaceful , and non violent form of struggle. But when dealing with a state like Israel ( and Syria for that matter) , seams like this is the only language they speak , and understand. Best --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Tony Abbas <with1559@yahoo.com> Sent : June 7, 2005 3:16:47 PM To : phoenicia@hotmail.com Elias: Your points are well taken about the elections in the South not being perfect. But bear in mind it has been only 1 month since Syria pulled out officially and it takes time to perfect the electoral process. Recall that America has been a democracy for well over 200 years, and in the year 2000 you remember what happened in Florida and how Bush stole the elections away from Gore. So we must qualify our concerns with some hope and praise. I think what has people mostly upset is how Hizballah performed. Whether we like it or not, this organization has popular support and following in Lebanon. It must be disarmed soon, I am with you on that. But the West is funny and hypocritical when it comes to democracy. America preaches democracy for others, but when others follow the democratic process and elect people that do not see eye to eye with the western interests, then the US cries foul. Islamic organizations have a popular power base; Hizballah in Lebanon, Hamas in West Bank/Gaza, Islamic Brotherhood in Egypt. The US should accept that fact and move on and establish a dialogue with these popular movements. It should ask itself the question, and many people in the offices of power in Washington have begun to ask this, "what is it that we do to the Muslim world that makes them hate us so much".?(i.e. support for Israel) America can't have its cake and eat it too. If it wants democracy in the ME, then it has to face up to the fact that whomever the people elect may not necessarily have George Washington and Thomas Jefferson as their role models. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Form: "C Sawaya" <csawaya@cox.net> To: Phoenicia-owner@yahoogroups.com Subject: RE: [Phoenicia] Alf Mabrouk Date: Sun, 6 Mar 2005 22:42:20 -0800 This is all true, that our patriots in Lebanon stood fast and courageous, but the reality is that the USA stand tall in freedom, self determination and self esteem and free speech; on the other hand our so called European friends such as France did not, did not take a firm stand like the USA, because Jacque Chirac is a flip flop like some of our American leaders. Thanks to president Bush who has a backbone or rather some fat balls to stand tall to all aggressions in the Middle East and in the USA specifically the leftist anti American and Liberal Democrats who sides with the Uninformed European who forgot that the USA saved them from speaking German bologna "heil Hitler",and are enjoying all what Democracy provides to them. But never the less the truth will always prevails and THE USA WILL rejoice and FREEDOM AND LIBERTY AND SELF DETERMINATION. Long Live The USA and what it is trying to accomplish in The World. May GOD always help and protect the USA. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sat, 26 Feb 2005 From: "Anwar Wazen" <anwarwazen@yahoo.com> Beirut to Damascus road : crossing time two hours The road is clear , no roadblocks and no check points all the way from Beirut to Damascus. Expected trip time is two hours . No need for a stop over in the Bekaa valley. The writing is on the wall . This is your last opportunity, so grab it while you can Bashar. If your eyesight still blurs go and get it fixed in Geneva . They have good ophtalmologists there , and while you’re at it you may want to consult with your investment advisor . The billions your family and entourage stole from Lebanon must have fared quite well all these years. Time is running out and you know it , but with the murder of prime minister Hariri it looks like someone else is incharge in Damascus . Your hard headed and brutal Intelligence lieutenants are reluctant to let go of the Lebanese golden goose. They are willing to murder whoever stands in their way . They want to drag their feet , use delaying tactics and other tricks from their morbid book . They might even consider revisiting your late father’s “Hama rules” , scourge the living and the dead if forced to leave Lebanon . They have already started their evil scheme by hiring mercenaries inside Lebanon and Syria . All they would achieve is ignite a fire here or there . Hizbolla’s leaders insinuated the other day that they are determined to stand aside in any internal armed conflict that you might engineer inside Lebanon . The people of Lebanon were magnificent in their unity and solidarity after the murder of prime minister Hariri . Bottom line :Anyone betting on a renewed civil war in Lebanon is going to lose the bet. It won’t work this time around . Besides, we learned yesterday that Mr Sharon accepted Zain el Abidin’s invitation to sip arabian coffee in the latter’s palace in Tunis. It looks like similar invitations from other Arab head of states are in the making . Wheras globalisation fever, democracy and the spirit of freedoms are all catching in the Greater Middle East , Syria’s Leaders prefer to trample with brutality their neighbours and keep their own people living in the dark ages. Even the Sphynx of Egypt started to lose patience with you Bashar , just pack and leave Lebanon with some dignity. Your late father did overstay the invitation if an invitation there ever was. Syria's time is out in Lebanon. Redeploying your troops here and there is a “déjà vu” ploy . In recent weeks the Lebanese opposition offered you , in the name of the “special and sisterly” relations what they called a “face saving” way out . Let’s be candid , henceforth there will be nothing called ”sisterly” ,“brotherly” or “special relations”. No more one way street and no more nonsense . Just pack and leave quietly . Lebanon and Syria will be normalising their relationship as two distinct sovereign nations . The Lebanese are Lebanese and the Syrians are Syrians . Let’s stop this one Nation in two countries “bulleye”. Both countries will be maintaining a buisenesslike and a mutually beneficial relationship like Saudi Arabia and Bahrain , Tunisia and Morocco , the UAE and Oman , Syria and Jordan , Belgium and Luxembourg . These and many more countries share common borders , common language , common traditions , they are all sovereign, independent and they share diplomatic representation . We want Syria to stop for good interfering in our internal affairs . Throughout our history we never interfered with Syria’s internal or external affairs . Is it too much asking for mutual respect , genuine cooperation and diplomatic representation ? we are two neighbours and we share common traditions , the same language and similar heritage , and we want our children to enjoy a constructive and beneficial relationship . We will no longer tolerate arm twisting , bullying or trespassing . No need to wreck our house any further because if you do the free world will not stand by watching. If you elect to proceed with your plan to burn the field before you depart then it is fair to expect us at the tarmac of whichever airport you elect to disembark in . We’re going to be there welcoming you with no flowers or red carpet . We’re serious . You may want to entertain the friendly overtures and invitations for a direct dialogue from some Lebanese opposition leaders. As far as we’re concerned ,and for the time being , there’s nothing left to talk about . Just pack your bags and leave Lebanon . If you still think for a moment that the international community has been complacent , then all you have to do is remember Milosovitch who is withering slowly in his cell . You may not enjoy growing green onions like Saddam is doing in the little backyard of his prison cell . Saddam is waiting for the verdict . Time is out please, the game is over . One more thing , on your way out please don’t forget your stooges behind . Take them with you . Sorry for having addressed you a bit harshly, after all we’re neighbours , you have to understand though that we’re exhausted , we feel angry and cheated , and yes , we’re determined to liberate our beloved country. Anwar Wazen , Brussels aewazen@msn.com 26th Feb 2005 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Mon, 21 Feb 2005 08:08:31 -0800 (PST) From: "Anwar Wazen" <anwarwazen@yahoo.com> Subject: For publication in the free opinion section To: clhrf@yahoo.com Lebanon : Help thyself God will help When the Lebanese government stormed the oppisition’s TV station MTV on the 2nd of September of the year 2002 Lahoud was President , Hariri was prime minister and Walid Jumblatt had a couple of ministers in the Lebanese Government . This is what I wrote on September the 5th , 2002: I call upon all my Lebanese compatriots, Muslims, Christians, all of us, let’s raise up and turn the empty table upside down. We have all been cheated in a big way .We have been taken for an ugly ride. I call upon all of us to raise up and shout out the truth to the whole world who forgot that we even exist. For them, things have been quiet in Lebanon, so what if there is a kidnapping, an assassination here, or an arrest imprisonment and a torture there. Business as usual. No sweat. It happens everywhere right ? look at what is happening in Tibet, look at what happened to the Kurds look at Taiwan, we call it REAL POLITIKS, no dear it is wrong. Lebanon and Syria are after all two brotherly countries. Let them sort out their problems. Who cares No dear we have to care. You didn’t care before about a lot of injustices, human rights abuses and dictatorships; the free world was punished bitterly with 9/11. You better care this time around. When people come to a stage where they have nothing more but their chains to lose , then you better care . When the litter hits the fan you will definitely get your share. So, I urge you: Do care. To my fellow compatriots I say: no other alternative is left: Help thyself, God will help. I have no doubt that Hizballah’s leaders are endowed with some wisdom, clear vision and national allegiance ( ! ! !). I call upon them to disarm their troops and deliver their arsenal of weapons - every single gun in their possession must be delivered to the Lebanese Army who should have the sole privilege of carrying guns on Lebanon’s soil - I call upon Hassan Nasrallah to prove to the world that the Lebanese are peace loving people. No, I am not dreaming, I want to make myself believe that my call would be heeded before it is too late. I call upon our brave and oppressed Lebanese Army, all its soldiers, Lieutenants,Colonels and Generals, when the time comes, to utterly refuse to fire one single shot on the peaceful crowds and demonstrators marching for justice ,freedom and dignity all over Lebanon. Do not even shoot in the air. To the Syrian occupier, its soldiers, security apparatus and its appointees I tell them: Leave the House before it is too late. The wrath of the crowd, people’s will is beyond what you can handle or endure. Dear compatriots we all took this dreadful trip. It lasted for too long. Let’s work it out ,all of us, let’s salvage this beautiful but drowning ship. There is no other way but one way. Raise up and turn the table upside down. What have we got left to loose except our chains ? Let’s all take this bitter pledge and march peacefully on the road to freedom. Let’s show the world and prove to our children that we deserve the Land of the Cedars. Lahoud is still president and the Syrian mafia is running amok with Lebanon . God bless the soul of Mr Hariri, and God save Walid Jumblatt from any harm. Long live the Land of heroes , Long live Lebanon. Anwar Wazen , February the 21st /2003 aewazen@msn.com ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From : Bruce Balfour <cedarsoflebanon2002@yahoo.com> Sent : January 16, 2005 REDEMPTION OF THE LAND BY PLANTING TREES ON MOUNT HERMON In those challenging days of old, when the slopes of Mount Hermon were heavily forested with the biblical Cedars of Lebanon and other trees of importance, "Yahshua" made His way up the slopes with Peter, James and John to a divine meeting on the summit with Elijah and Moses. As you recall a voice was heard out of a cloud: "This is my beloved Son, hear him" (Mark 9:7). On these same slopes of the Mount of Transfiguration a planting/redemption is being birthed to restore the biblical cedars and other appropriate species back in the soil. This planting will be the first time in history that such a biblical reforestation project will be undertaken on Mount Hermon. The Cedar of Lebanon is described by the Creator, in Ezekiel 31, as the most beautiful tree planted in the Garden of Eden. Yahweh chose it to build His temple here in Jerusalem (ref 1Kings and 2 Chron), which has such deep meaning to the lover and student of "the Word". Solomon's house took twice as long to build, and was called "The house of the forest of Lebanon". It was probably the most awesome wood house ever constructed in the history of the world. The Cedar is spoken of 72 times in the bible and rich meaning is attached to it, including comparing the Almighty to "The Great Cedar" under whose shadow all great nations dwell. In Psalm 92 it says: "The righteous one grows like a cedar in Lebanon for those who are planted in the house of Yahweh". In Isaiah 61 Yahweh says that it is "His planting." Now the time has come to begin to redeem the land which the creator chose to be His forever alongside of our brother Yehuda. If the Almighty is drawing you in your spirit to be a part of this redemption please email me at: cedarsoflebanon2002@yahoo.com The first planting is planned for Tu 'Bishvat (the "new year of the tree") 2006, late January, in cooperation with the "Jewish National Fund". ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ From: "Robert Jason" <raejason@vaxxine.com> To: "Bejjani,Elias(Cdn Lebanese)" <clhrf@yahoo.com> Subject: My letter in Winnipeg Sun (Sunday, January 9, 2005) Date: Sun, 9 Jan 2005 Sunday, January 9, 2005 Have we gone mad? As a man happily married to the same wonderful woman for 44 years and blessed with happy children and grandchildren, I passionately believe in the institution of marriage of one man and one woman to the exclusion of all others. The time-tested ancient traditional family unit -- revered in all cultures throughout history and sanctified by all major religions -- has been the bedrock foundation of civilization since time immemorial. The family consisting of man and woman and children provided stability and order to civilized society, it furnished the perfect milieu for the raising and nurture of children, and was the ideal vehicle for the perpetuation of the human race. So, why are we tinkering around in Canada with such a basic, crucial and foundational institution that created our beloved country and made it great? Have we gone mad? Utterly insane? In a civilized society such as ours, we must have an honest debate on such a monumental societal transformation. The first rule in any debate is to define the terms of the debate. What exactly do activists mean by "human rights" for homosexuals? "Gays" already enjoy civil rights and privileges equal to any citizens, in fact they are accorded special rights in many cases in Canada. Where did the "gays" get the notion that they somehow had the "human right" to same-sex "marriage"? The time-honoured institution of marriage has always been between a man and a woman and, like any other honourable institution, has some basic rules for admittance. You must be of opposite genders -- male or female. Only one man and one woman need apply, not more than one. No polygamy or polyandry, in other words. You must be of certain age. No blood relatives allowed -- no incestuous relationship, in other words. Only human beings are allowed (of opposite genders): you cannot marry your beloved canary. Perfectly sensible rules of a respected institution that has survived for millennia under these rules. If "gays" wish to get married they can legally do so in Canada by playing by the rules: a "gay" man is always free to marry a woman and a "gay" woman (lesbian) is perfectly free to marry a man. Robert A. Jason, MA Fonthill, Ont. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Robert Jason" <raejason@vaxxine.com> To: "Bejjani,Elias(Cdn Lebanese)" <clhrf@yahoo.com> Subject: ATTN: MR. BEJJANI - THANK YOU FOR DEFENCE OF THE FAMILY - HERE IS My letter (or article) Date: Sat, 8 Jan 2005 22:41:38 -0500 Subject: My letter (or article) published, thankfully, in some Niagara papers ''A FUNDAMENTAL HUMAN RIGHT" OF "GAYS" TO "MARRY"? - YOU GOTTA BE KIDDING!!! Robert A. Jason Published in Welland Tribune, & Pelham News, January 5, 2005 I ran into an old friend the other day in Fenwick. He asked me rather poignantly, "Robert, I miss reading your letters in the newspapers. I agree with your views 100% and I miss your letters. What happened?" I told my friend, " John, I'm now mighty busy as editor of my own worldwide daily e-mail service. We tackle social/moral issues that are much repressed in the politically-correct Canada" - except in such exceptionally brave & balanced publications as the Tribune & Pelham News etc. However, looking at the virtually pleading face of my friend (he does not have e-mail - RJ), I resolved to leave aside my e-mail work for a while and once again plunge into letter-writing. So, here is one for you, John (and many others with your healthy beliefs!) As a man happily married to the same wonderful woman for 44 years and blessed with happy children & grandchildren, I passionately believe in the institution of marriage of one man and one woman to the exclusion of all others. The time-tested ancient traditional family unit - revered in all cultures throughout history and sanctified by all major religions - has been the bedrock foundation of civilization since time immemorial. The family consisting of man and woman and children provided stability and order to civilized society, it furnished the perfect milieu for the raising and nurture of children, and was the ideal vehicle for the perpetuation of the human race. So, why are we tinkering around in Canada with such a basic, crucial and foundational institution that created our beloved country and made it great? Have we gone mad? Utterly insane? It appears that some self-centred, narcissistic "gay" activists and their "out-of-touch" elitist allies wish to upend the social order. They want to indulge in social engineering by appealing to such dishonest, undefined, nice-sounding terms as "human rights", "equality", "tolerance" "diversity" and the like in order to confuse the Canadian people and make it easier to ram through their homosexual agenda. In a civilized society such as ours, we must have an honest debate on such a monumental societal transformation. The first rule in any debate is to define the terms of the debate. What exactly do the activists mean by "human rights" for homosexuals? The "gays" already enjoy equal civil rights and privileges of any Canadian citizens, in fact they are accorded special rights in many cases in Canada. Where did the "gays" get the notion that they somehow had the "human right" to same-sex "marriage"? The time-honoured institution of marriage has always been between a man and a woman. The age-old institution of marriage, like any other honourable institution, has some basic rules for admittance: You must be of opposite genders - male or female. Only one man and one woman need apply, not more than one. No polygamy or polyandry, in other words. You must be of certain age: older men or women are not allowed to marry children. No blood relatives allowed - no incestuous relationship, in other words. Only human beings are allowed (of opposite genders): you cannot marry your beloved canary. Perfectly sensible rules of a respected institution that has survived for millenia under these rules. If "gays" wish to get married they can legally do so in Canada by playing by the rules: a "gay" man is always free to marry a woman and a "gay" woman (lesbian) is perfectly free to marry a man. The "gay" activist would retort: "But we cannot marry the opposite sex because we are "born that way", we are born with a "gay gene". We can rightfully reply: "What proof do you have you were born that way? Please furnish us with any credible scientific documentation that you were born with immutable characteristics like the heterosexuals." I have been debating this matter for over a decade now and the "gays" still have not provided me with any shred of proof. Their act is all smoke and mirrors based on false assumptions and premises. Thus, it is dishonest and disingenuous of "gays" to compare themselves to women & racial minorities like blacks or Asians. Women were born that way. Blacks & Asians & other races were born that way. There is no evidence that homosexuals were born that way. If we take blood samples or DNA from "gays", would that show us the "gay" characteristics of the person who claims to be "gay"? Of course not. All heterosexuals (including "gays") were born with male or female genitalia indicating that nature had designated us for the opposite sex. This is all commonsense and easily observable by any sane person. So, once again I challenge the "gay" advocates to come clean with your documentation to prove your "gay gene." If not, then forever hold your peace. Sincerely, Robert A. Jason, M.A P.O.Box 549 Fonthill ON L0S 1E0 Canada ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Dominic Tse Personal" <dominic_tse@sympatico.ca To: "Elias Bejjani" <clhrf@yahoo.com> Subject: Re: Release from 10 Canadian Lebanese Community groups/For publication Date: Sat, 8 Jan 2005 23:25:32 -0500 Hi, Elias Bejjani This is Pastor Dominic Tse, from the Toronto Chinese Christian Community, who participated in the Ottawa Rally in Aug. 2003. We look forward to network with you in this fight. Dominic ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: VanderMeyden" <pvmeyden@sympatico.ca> To: "Elias Bejjani" clhrf@yahoo.com Subject: Re: Release from 10 Canadian Lebanese Community groups/For publication Date: Sat, 8 Jan 2005 23:08:36 -0500 Friends, Thank you for the encouragement. May many other religious communities follow the example you have set.People of all religious communities and even those who claim to profess non-religion must wake up to realize that the redefinition of marriage will be destructive to the good order of Canadian society and therefore is detrimental to all Canadian citizens.How true it is: if we do not now use our freedom of speech and freedom of religion we will loose both. P.V. |
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