The "Other" Perspective: A Primer

Almost a month ago, I got an e-mail from a very close friend in Bierut who asked me to express my thoughts on developments taking place in Lebanon. Since, he was a close friend who I thought might not share my political opinions, I replied as tactfully as possible.

A day passed, then a week, then two... and no response. I felt that somehow I had failed in my polite approach, and that I either said something that was not appropriate, or that my position was so irreconcilable with his that he decided it wasn't worth responding to.

Yesterday, "M" finally sends me a response. I refer to him with a "nom-de-guerre" because he is in a sensitive job in Lebanon that forbids him from expressing his political opinions ("M", I hope I haven't said too much!). Well, it turns out that he took such a long time to respond because he was writing such a long e-mail! (5 pages!!!)

"M"'s perspective on what is happening is insightfull, definitely worth the read, and most importantly, somewhat divergent from what most Lebanese bloggers are posting. Furthermore, despite the fact that I have a personal policy of skewing "current politics," challenging it and advocating for alternative discourse, I have made the decision to post his comments on Lebanese Bloggers.

My reason is simple:

the benefit of posting an articulate expression of thoughts that have been under-represented in the blogosphere outweigh the harms that I percieve may come out of it.

I hope that his comments enlighten you as much as they did me. "M" will be visiting the blog and responding to questions and comments you raise - so don't hesitate and "bring em on"!

P.S. Since his e-mail was so long, i will break it up into the most logically coherent parts that I can, and post them at different times....

I pray I've made the right decision!