Thursday, September 07, 2006

Lebanon in shambles

Lebanon's Debt-to-GDP ratio has now officially topped 200 percent!

The debt at the beginning of 2006 was $38.6 billion. Today, it is projected to be around $41 billion.

Lebanese officials estimate that Lebanon's GDP shrunk by around 8 percent to $18 billion.

For their part, certain Business groups have estimated that the war cost Lebanon $7 to $8 billion in direct and indirect losses.

The Stockholm conference pledged approximately $2 billion.

9 comments:

Mr. Smarterthanyou said...

Maybe if the world wasn't so quick to bail Lebanon out, more Lebanese would be willing to risk something to get rid of HB. Maybe more would be willing to stop the idiotic mantra of "It's all Israel's fault".

Lirun said...

luckily for us though we have a better understanding of the world and the region and so we know that such mantra has only limited appeal..

the world has moved on from that and now we are focussing on rebuilding.. at least most of us are..

Mr. Smarterthanyou said...

llirun, this is what makes the left so wrong, so damaging, and so foolish.

Why focus on rebuilding when it will happen again? You say you have a better understanding of the world? Kinda snotty, and real silly sounding too. Are you on the leftist "peace" front incapable of learning from history? If you have such great understanding, you wouldn't have lived under near war conditions for almost 60 years. If you liberal jews are so smart, why did you not end this once and for all?

Mark my words, Lebanon will not go far enough to solve the problem. HB will provoke Israel again, Israel will respond, and more Lebanese and Israelis will die.

And leftists will keep saying the same nieve, silly, wishful things.

Lirun said...

who's leftist.. and who's liberal..

you have no idea what my political affiliations are..

dude.. you're having a whole conversation with yourself.. i'm just trying to let you know..

take care

Mr. Smarterthanyou said...

lirun, you are a bleeding heart liberal by US standards. You liberals think you are so sophisticated and complex, but you can be read as easy as a children's book. People who foolishly pretend that peace is possible by wishing for it, who have sympathy for the enemy, who post the drivel that you have on your website, are invariably liberal. Don't confuse the issue by getting your panties in a twist over the label. Adress the issues that I pointed out. ANYONE with a healthy brain can see there is no peace in Lebanon, only a ceasefire.

Lirun said...

mr whatever.. i dont live by US standards.. it may surprise you to know that we dont all benchmark ourselves to the US.. but its true.. its interesting that you mix my opinions with assumptions as to my emotions.. but consistent with your manner..

you may be unfamiliar with blog etiquette but i dont in fact owe you an answer.. i am not obliged to follow your train of thought or engage in any specific debate with you.. its my choice..

your insults reflect only on you.. so dont be too concerned about my undergarments.. they are perfectly in tact..

i will say that i am flattered by your comparison to children's books.. if our world was run by children im sure it would be a much better place.. i note from your profile that you take an interest in guns.. we probably dont need a genius to figure out that you and i admire different things.. what do americans call you guys "rednecks"? whatever.. you are rights labels are meaningless.. while you can theorise about my world.. i live in it and love it.. at the same time i acknowledge that others arent having as much fun as i am and i seek to change that.. with respect to enemies i dont know what you're talking about.. no one decides for me who i hate.. i decide for myself and right about now im not hating anyone.. so again.. your comment isnt making sense in my world..

anyway.. we have done something clever today.. by partly removing the blockade we have shown lebanon that what HA couldnt do with 6 weeks of fighting.. seniora did in a few weeks of talking.. we have helped moderate lebanon win.. we have in effect collaborated..

hoping the ends reinforce the means - hope is relevant

lirun
telaviv
www.emspeace.blogspot.com

Papa Ray said...

It appears that the problems between countries since the "good war" are caused by there not being a "winner" nor a "loser".

Conflicts and battles don't ever solve anything, it takes a descructive, kill them until they surrender, then imprison them until they submit to subjugation and cry for mercy type war to settle anything.

We seem to have grown past that point in mankinds development.

Now we just keep fighting little skirmishes and keep dying without any resoulution to anything.

Seems kind of stupid and futile to me.

Papa Ray
West Texas
USA

Lirun said...

i would delete the words "seems" and "to me"

Mr. Smarterthanyou said...

The issue reminds me of a Star Trek show. Two civilizations, tired of the brutality of their long war, decide to have a computer program "simulate" the war. The computer selects people on both sides that must be euthanized in a humane manner, as if they were killed in an attack. Result: long, long war, casualties and brutality kept to manageable levels.

Kirk destroyed the computer, and faced with all out war, both sides sued for peace.