The "L" Project
Globalization at its core is at odds with nations and national belonging. The economy has largely globalized, but individuals are still very much attached to their nations, creating thus a real tension between the business world and the social world. Many projects across the world, driven by strong nations in Europe, America, Asia have been trying to instill a true global mindset in people minds, with very mitigated success. Every time things go bad, people fall back to their national heritage and blame globalization for their demise. Globalization at the personal level is failing everywhere in the world, but there is a small country at the bottom of the Mediterranean Sea that has succeeded in globalizing each of its citizens. For long time people didn’t know whether it was a deliberate project or a confluence of different conditions, because the founders of what has become The Lebanese Globalization Project (TLGP) are long dead now, and no written traces have been found on this project. Today, 75 years after the independence of Lebanon from the French, the results are blatant, convincing, and confirming the clear vision the Lebanese leaders had in 1943 on where the world is going and how to best prepare its citizens to become the poster children and emissaries of globalization. So, now we know that it is not by sheer luck that Lebanon and Lebanese people across the world are who they are today. It was a deliberate choice based on a strong vision and a flawlessly executed plan. It is what people are calling nowadays: The Lebanese Globalization Project (TLGP).
As we reverse engineer 75 years of the independent republic of Lebanon, we are overwhelmed by the precise implementation of TLGP by every ruler, politician, and people of influence, religious or otherwise.
A good plan, designed to achieve a certain result, always start by framing the problem(s) standing in the way of the project success. When it comes to globalization, the problem was, very early on, identified by the great leaders of Lebanon. As mentioned at the beginning of this article, the problem is the deep bond and attachment of individuals to their nation, its history, its natural beauties, its traditions, its culture, its institutions, and its contribution to humanity. The best way to see and fully grasp the prowess of TLGP is to follow one of its most successful products, Fadi, from his birth to what he has become today.
Fadi was born in 1969 in Congo, because his parents had their business there. His father left Lebanon in 1936, when he was 15 years old, seeking to get out of the farming life he was destined to, had he stayed in Lebanon. He met Fadi’s mother in Congo, where she was born and raised, as her father had a similar journey in his life. The latter left Lebanon escaping his life as a bandit attacking caravans with his tribe.
So Fadi’s native country was not Lebanon. For 3 years he grew up in this country, thinking that it was his homeland. He spoke French, not Lebanese. What’s more normal for a Lebanese. It is all part of the TLGP. It does start at birth. And here lies part of its success.
At 3 years old, Fadi was sent to Lebanon to follow the outstanding education of the Lebanese schools and also to be with his siblings who already followed the same path. At school in Lebanon, Fadi learnt to read and write in 3 languages, Arabic, French, English and all the fundamentals of math, physics, chemistry and science. He was equipped to continue his higher studies, anywhere in the world. What Fadi didn’t learn is anything related to the culture (philosophy, literature, music, …), or recent history (since the independence in 1943) of his country. Fadi didn’t realize that these were missing from his education, until much later when, in other parts of the world, he met people with a different education. Of course, reading and writing and all the science he acquired were important, but to develop a real attachment to your nation, you need to spend as much time, if not more, on its history, culture, and its current contribution to humanity. Fadi blamed his country’s education system for its shortcomings … but Fadi was wrong, so wrong… He will only discover how wrong he was much later in his life. Before we get there, let us dive a bit deeper in Fadi’s life between 3 and 18 years.
We can distinguish two parts: 3 to 10, Fadi’s waking up to life in Lebanon, and 10 to 18, Fadi in full immersion in the TLGP. It is to be noted, that Fadi was very lucky, at his unbeknownst, as 1975 to 1983 were some of the most glorious years for TLGP and he was there witnessing and living them first hand. Another year was also a symbol of excellence in implementing TLGP, 1989.
Outside of school, 3 to 10 years can be summarized in two sentences. Your father is working hard abroad to ensure a good living for you and your siblings. One day you will also immigrate to do the same. Fadi grew up on the idea that the best outcome of his studies and young life would be to go abroad to make a decent living. This implied in his mind that he surely wouldn’t have any brilliant future in Lebanon. With this idea deeply anchored through endless repetitions, Fadi reached the age where things take a real meaning, 10 years.
1975 is the year where the TLGP project finally bore its first immense result. A 15-year war started in Lebanon, first between Palestinians and Lebanese, and then, as it should, it evolved into a full-on war involving everyone who has weapons and can aspire for some power in this banana republic. Without going into details on the war, the simple consequence was, no more doubt for Fadi that he needs to leave his country whenever he can, and then of course he can come back later when things get better. The little Fadi knew nothing about TLGP and its long-term vision and power, even though he was fully living it, every day of his young life!!!
During these years of war, Fadi discovered his country music and songs. Beautiful songs talking about an idea of Lebanon in complete opposition to what he was seeing and living every day. Nothing is by mistake, it is all part of TLGP. Build an imaginary country in every individual’s head, entirely different from reality, so everyone can carry this virtual country in their heads and hearts wherever they go in the world, live on its beauty and every time they try to come back to the homeland they are struck by the contrast. The direct consequence of this shock is straightforward: any intention to stay in the country is immediately washed away and off they go, leaving their country again, in complete respect of TLGP.
TLGP works on many levels to make sure the preparation is complete and the motivation to become a global citizen is infallible. The most impactful mean to seed the grain of exploring other countries, are the government institutions and the public service offices. They have been designed and organized for only one purpose, to disgust the average citizen from anything that involves a parliament member, a minister, a police or army officer, or any public servant, supposedly paid to serve the public. Lebanese people and Fadi complained a lot about how bad all these elected or appointed people are, with their favoritism, their corruption, their nepotism, but had they known that all this is part of a bigger, much more strategic project, TLGP, then maybe they would have seen and appreciated all this in a complete different way. They would have had only admiration towards the visionary founders of the republic of Lebanon and their honorable heirs throughout the 75 years since the French gave us our independence. The cherry on the cake is when the elected people, the government and all its staff make it abundantly clear to all citizens of Lebanon that to get the best services there is only one currency that works and works well: money!!! So, to be respected and well treated in your country, you need money, lots of money, and to make lots of money, everybody knows that the best way, if you are not part of the corrupted and the heirs of the republic, is to immigrate and start your real-life experience as a citizen of this world, as a global individual.
So Fadi left his country to Europe, and from there life took him to many countries and many cities, he learnt the way of the world, he assimilated many different cultures, he discovered many traditions, he admired the depth of knowledge the citizens of other countries have on their nation, he, most of all, was extremely proud to obtain, after a while, the citizenship of another country, a real country, where everyone has equal rights in front of the republic. Fadi had to learn the national anthem of that country and as he was doing this, he realized that he didn’t know the Lebanese anthem. So, he learned it and repeated its words over and over again. What a difference ten years abroad make! He couldn’t avoid laughing as he sang the Lebanese anthem. From his 30’s, Fadi was trying to really understand what the anthem says, and this is what made him laugh, cynically of course. The anthem is part of TLGP. It is the way to inform the people who try to understand, that there is no point of understanding. The leaders of the country are the ones who live the opposite of the national anthem, and this is that, there is nothing nobody can do about it. Simply put, the message to Fadi and his likes is: “there is no nation, find your place in the world, you are the product of TLGP, you are a global citizen”.
Fadi loved his country Lebanon, and he wanted to come back and make a difference. He read in the history books of Europe, Asia, Americas that when the people want to change things, they can by their collective will. So, why not in Lebanon?
Why not? Well because in Lebanon remained the Lebanese people who are not fit for TLGP. Not only that, even the ones who are part of TLGP, most of them when they come back to Lebanon for good or for a while, they catch a virus at the Beirut airport on their way in. It is a very potent virus, the TTJ* (regression, show off, ignorance) virus, that affects the brain in a very predictable way. It takes away discipline, respect, honesty, kindness, humility, knowledge, and sometimes it does also affect intelligence. The people who are resident of Lebanon, are all hosts of this virus, and they have been carrying it for as long as anybody remembers. By design, a Lebanese person, is created with a bigger ego that most other populations in the world. During their childhood, this ego is nourished with relentless family encouragements, as every family in Lebanon considers itself and its members as being the best in something. The strongest, the most intelligent, the most travelled, the most cultivated, the most loved, the most creative, … and it is obvious for every family that these features are genetic and inherited through the family DNA. So, no matter what, every member will inherit these qualities and be the best in something. When this already oversized ego is affected by TTJ the effects are immense or disastrous, depending how and who looks at it. In addition to the things listed above that are erased from the individual memory, the ego grows exponentially big and fast. So much so, that the bearer of the ego is astonished by how beautiful, handsome, intelligent, wise, and irresistible he/she has become.
Every Lebanese man and woman are beautiful or has something very attractive.
Every Lebanese man and woman are intelligent or know something that no one else does.
Every Lebanese man and woman can attract any other man or woman in the world with their charm, and of course, not anyone in the world can make love like a Lebanese man or woman. They are irresistible. They are born with the art of seduction, love making, and their natural beauty only adds to these birth advantages.
TTJ, can be transmitted to other populations, but it requires a long and a dense exposure to it. I have seen foreigners who spent a lot of time with Lebanese people being affected, but the symptoms are less pronounced, due to the unreceptive nature of their DNA and their normally sized original ego.
Back to Fadi, as he decided to come back to Lebanon to make a difference …
He didn’t recognize his own country, no trees, just buildings, no green just concrete. All trees are cut down, there are useless, they don’t bring money and in addition they make Lebanon beautiful, this might endanger TLGP.
Not a single place he knew as a kid was still there. Once the shock has passed, the disappointment lingered. A deep and irreversible disappointment. And no one seems to care. How would they, when the symbol of the Lebanese flag, the Lebanese Cedar, has practically disappeared from Lebanon. Only 300 trees left, in a town they called the Cedar, since it is the only place that still have these trees. Most people lament the fate of the cedars trees, unknowing that it is also part of TLGP. No anthem, no flag, no nation. Go somewhere else and find your happiness, you are a global citizen of this world. There, somewhere in this vast world, you will find respected anthems, flags that mean something, and nation that are loved by its citizens.
Go! “Wlak” Go! Don’t hesitate! You are Lebanese, you are courageous! Don’t you remember your ancestors the Phoenicians? They went far, they sailed the world. You are one of them. A fearless traveler, a relentless discoverer, a shrewd business man, a skilled negotiator, you are a gift to this world. Go! The world is waiting and there is no place for you in your country. Go! Are you still here? Didn’t you hear the sound of success, the calling of glory, the voice of wealth calling you from all over the world? Go! Go! And don’t look back… and more importantly don’t come back! Become a global citizen of the world!
What a vision and how well it has been executed by our wise, inspiring and genius leaders.
Fadi didn’t catch the TTJ virus, pure luck or maybe when you develop a real knowledge, with a real intelligence and a real humility, you become completely immune to TTJ. No one will ever know, but this is my humble guess.
At any rate, back to the country, happy to meet again his family and friends and exchange with them his ideas about how things can change and become better. He tried, he really tried very hard, but very quickly he realized that he cannot fight against the mighty TLGP and the powerful TTJ virus. They are both superbly designed, nearing perfection. He also realized that he is a son of TLGP, and even if the TTJ virus didn’t get to him at the airport, if he stays long enough exposed to it he will probably catch it, like the other foreigners do. So, he decided to abandon the plan of making a difference. It can’t be done. He will come to Lebanon as a tourist every now and then, for a week or two, enjoy what this country has to offer, and after a while when everyone he cares about is no longer in Lebanon, he will cross it from his holiday destinations. There are so many amazing places in the world, and he is, after all, a world citizen, he is the outcome of the widely successful TLGP.
When USA, Europe, China are struggling to agree on how to marry economic globalization with the social and individual ones, Lebanon, this small and insignificant country, carried by the vision of its founders and their heirs has shown the way. We are the leader in nothing, but we are the leader in globalizing our citizens, simply by disgusting them from their own nation, and stripping them from any feeling of belonging, leaving them with no choice but to become global.
I bow, from far, in admiration to TLGP and whoever contributed to its design and success. They made history! It was never done before. They programmed and executed relentlessly the destruction of their country. And from the ashes and the rubbles, emerged, like the Phoenix, all the Fadi's and Fadia’s of the world.