USCFL - To Set the Record Straight

I have now written three pieces on the Middle East on the U.S Committee for a Free Lebanon website. I have read your praises and criticisms. What is frankly frightening is the number of good Lebanese citizens out there who still miss the point.

The point of course is that Lebanon is today occupied by Syria; which very few on the World Wide Web are still afraid to voice. The reason I guess is that if they do it, people would think they'd be betraying their "Arab brethren". On the other hand, every courageous nationalist or friend of Lebanon such as myself who does it, is treated as if he was an Israeli agent, a Zionist conspirator or an American imperialist.

Please allow me to set the record straight:

One: I am not a voice for Israel. I am genuinely passionate about liberating Lebanon from Syrian Occupation and have no agenda other than seeing a free, sovereign and independent Lebanon, friend with all its neighbors including both Israel and Syria.

Two: The reason I often seem to overlook the Palestinian issue as I have always been criticized of is that this website is about freeing Lebanon not Palestine. By the same token, it is high time for the Lebanese to start lobbying for their cause as effectively as the U.S Committee for a Free Lebanon has over the last 5 years. There are plenty of Palestinian websites who do a good job lobbying for Palestine, so be it.

Three: Being a Jew does not automatically make me an enemy of Lebanon but an equal lover of freedom and democracy which I guess is the major characteristic of every Lebanese I have met so far.

Now on a separate but related issue, a number of people reading my candid remarks will ask why should Lebanon take priority over the Palestinian cause which has been at the core of the Arab-Israeli conflict over the last 55 years.

1. Because freeing Lebanon from the Syrian "iron fist" and by the same token their proxies such as Hezbollah and the likes will most probably turn the country into a real democracy. This process will I believe have a significant impact on other nations in the region as they embrace a similar path.

2. Because Lebanon's independence will be real positive for the Palestinians; basically by showing them that if an Arab state can be a successful democracy, and if Lebanese can make a sincere peace with Israel and prosper with their independence, the Palestinians can do it too.

3. Because Lebanese people are smarter than that and deserve better. They have obviously realized a long time ago that fellow Arab dictators are not to be trusted and that the "Arab cause" is just a hoax. If left alone, I truly believe that Lebanon will be the first genuine Arabic speaking democracy and will be a tremendous valuable asset to the Middle East at large.

I have a dream that one day Lebanon will truly assert its position in the Middle East and that the US Committee for a Free Lebanon under the leadership of Mr. Abdelnour will continue spreading the good word around....and why not?

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Article:	To Set the Record Straight
Author:	Klee Gluckman
Date:	January 2002