A Cabinet of Deception

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by Ghassan Karam

It is especially ironic when the government that is expected to guard and protect the interest of the public becomes the most important player in perpetuating deception and false calculus. These last events in Lebanon beg the question: If the government is not to be trusted then why have it?

Think, if you will, of a major corporation that sells rice in 1000 gram containers for 4000LL each. The marketing department of this corporation decides to maintain the size of the container and its 4000LL but instead puts only 900 grams of rice in each box. If the boxes are marked properly then this action will not be illegal although the consumer protection agencies would wage a campaign against the corporation accusing it of the intention to deceive the public by camouflaging the price increase of 10% that the said corporation has stealthily imposed on the unsuspecting public. One can even imagine calls to boycott such products for the lack of transparency.

Imagine the disappointment when those that are promulgating such practices are the governmental agencies whose only purpose is to protect the consumer instead of exploiting her. What makes things even worse is the unbelievable attempt at using wrong calculus in order to rationalize such action. Can they be that dumb? Apparently the current Lebanese ministers can be dumber than dumb and that is a tragedy of unbelievable proportions.

Let us go through a hypothetical example that illustrates the naiveté of this cabinet officials. Let us assume that the Lebanese populace consumes every day I million 1000 gram packages of bread. If each of these packages sells for 1500 LL then the cost for the one million KG of bread would amount to LL 1.5 billion. The government has decided; in its infinite wisdom; nay its obtuse thinking, that it would not allow the bakers to increase their price by 10% or the equivalent of LL150 per 1000 gram package but instead it forced the bakers to reduce the contents per package to 900 grams and maintain the price at LL 1500. The “genius” behind this voodoo calculus should be fired on the spot. Note that the 1 million kg that are to be consumed daily cost under the old system LL 1.5 billion. When the 900 grams per package is adopted then the 1 million kg would sell at LL1.66 billion i.e. an increase of LL160 million. Had the government allowed an increase in the traditional package of 1000 grams to be sold at LL1650 then the total expenditures for the 1 million kg of bread consumed each day would have been LL1.65 billion. So what did the government accomplish by creating this false crisis and then pretending that they have acted in the interest of the consumer when in fact they have attempted to deceive the citizen into thinking that the government was acting in favour of the common good. The government has simply increased the uncertainty and the level of anxiety simply to wind up in doing nothing.

The Lebanese cabinet of Mr. Mikati behaves as if it has found the magic solution for inflation and high prices. When market conditions create the need to double prices then  all what that implies is the need to cut the quantity in half but to keep the price level “frozen”. See how simple it is to deal with inflation, pretend that the price increase did not take place. What is mind boggling about this proposed solution is the fact that the Lebanese cabinet members really believe that they have found a resolution for the problem of increasing prices.

Shame on each and every member of the cabinet for having agreed to play this game of pure deception; shame on all the MPs who have failed to raise their objection but most of all shame on a so called free press whose only role is to act on behalf of the weak, the voiceless and the exploited but obviously has failed miserably in living up to expectations. This is the perfect example of what is meant by the adage that one should be careful not to appoint the fox to guard the hen house. Unfortunately for Lebanon we did just that.

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50 responses to “A Cabinet of Deception”

  1. Patience2 Avatar
    Patience2

    Has it really taken the Lebanese people THIS long to learn this lesson, OR, don’t they really CARE??

    1. no worries prophet,
      dab is still trying to figure out what weighs more , a salafist or a zioniste 🙂

  2. Patience2 Avatar
    Patience2

    Has it really taken the Lebanese people THIS long to learn his lesson, OR, don’t they really CARE??

    1. Patience 2,
                       At times I think that the Lebanese people don’t care, unfortunately.

      1. grpeppermint Avatar
        grpeppermint

        Dear Ghassan,

        I do not think the Lebanese don’t care. To the contrary, they do care and they showed it on several occasions by coming out and protesting. Unfortunately, our economy is in bad shape due to ill planning going back to the 1940s. We have a 1970 economy while living in a very competitive 21st century. What are the goods we generate and export? What are the state’s revenues? We have good laws but are unable to enforce them and that is just the beginning of a long long list.. not to mention electricity etc. How can you competitive??
        The Lebanese deserve better politicians and a better society. They only have to blame themselves for the country’s state of affairs. Instead of being cynical and shrug your shoulder do something about it. Come out and vote but do it rationally.

        1. grpeppermint
                            It will be difficult to disagree with the short list of what is wrong and Lebanon is not competitive except for one thing; The Lebanese themselves are responsible for where they are. They are the ones that have elected and keep on reelecting the same “lords” of political feudalism and we are the ones that show no outrage whatsoever, at least on a large enough scale as to matter whether it is the absence of the rule of law or whether it is the acceptance of political leadership whose primary interest is allegiance to foreign powers.
                           If civil society matters then how come very few if any have voiced real meaningful support for the Grafiti artists? Why have they accepted living with rationed electricity? When was the last time that someone dared challenge the archaic electoral system? Would responsible citizenship allow a clique of unelected clergymen determine its future?…. It is nice to be hopeful but hope must be based in reality.

        2. 5thDrawer Avatar
          5thDrawer

          I think we export some of the olives … you know, the ones with the garbage plowed into the ground around them ? (Yes … there are pictures of the plastic too …)

    2. no worries prophet,
      dab is still trying to figure out what weighs more , a salafist or a zioniste 🙂

  3. Sebouh80 Avatar

    Anyone who expects governments in Lebanon to guard and protect the interest of the public then this person is either naive or has lack of understanding in the internal corrupt political dynamics of Lebanon.
    The voodoo calculus,  first started with the cabinet of late Premier Rafic Hariri during 2003 when the bakers at that time were complaining that the high running cost is starting to eat their profits and so they demanded an increase in the price of bread. In response, Hariri’s cabinet made a deal with the bakers union to keep the price fixed at 1500 liras and instead urged them to  drop the weight from 1500 to 1250 grams (How ingenious). This gave the false impression that the government is still subsidizing the price of bread and is always willing to help the little guy with whatever available resources.
    Later after 2008, especially at the time when the inflationary pressures were rising in the double digits the cabinet under Fouad Seniora again followed this policy. This time around they kept the price at 1500 liras but lowered the content from 1250 to 1000 grams. Notice this has become a rather sell-fulfilling prophecy every time there is an increase in basic commodity prices.
    Today Najib Mikati is simply following the same policy of deception that started with the previous governments. 

    Mr.Karam, anyone listening to Lebanese deputies in the parliament last week one gets the impression that both of them are correct to some extent in describing our current predicament. The March 8 politicians are correct for blaming the governments from 1992 till 2011 for the ongoing corruption and the destruction of Lebanon’s economy due to the soaring service debt and the national debt which today many reliable sources believe that it has surpassed the 60 billion dollar mark. On the other hand, the March 14 politicians are also correct for accusing this current government of endemic corruption and for the waste of public resources on rogue politicians like Nicholas Fattouch and others. 

    Bottom line, this simply confirms the condemnation of the bourgeois sectarian political system of Lebanon which both March 14 and March 8 are part of it.

    1. Ghassan Karam Avatar
      Ghassan Karam

      Sebouh
                 The fact that a wrong headed action was done before is no justification for doing it again. One hopes that we can learn from our mistakes and adapt to our environment.
                This idea of dealing with inflation by lowering the contents of a particular package makes  no sense.
               

      1. 5thDrawer Avatar
        5thDrawer

        Seems to make sense to some, Ghassan. In England they make little packages of cigarettes – which cost so much simply because of HUGE taxation by governments of all western thinkers … so people think they can afford the 5-pack better than the 25-pack. (Also one can buy skinny cigarettes with ‘big taste’ – Nanotechs by Kent)  Extra packaging adds to the prices, so they actually cost more and there is more tax as a result. This is called ‘progressive thinking’ by various forms of health-nuts, of course … who enjoy the resulting taxes for their own ‘special needs’ and adventures in society.
        Politicians get elected on this stuff …..
        Less bread will be good for fat people … I guess. I’m sure a ‘health minister’ will say so at some point.

      2. 5thDrawer Avatar
        5thDrawer

        Seems to make sense to some, Ghassan. In England they make little packages of cigarettes – which cost so much simply because of HUGE taxation by governments of all western thinkers … so people think they can afford the 5-pack better than the 25-pack. (Also one can buy skinny cigarettes with ‘big taste’ – Nanotechs by Kent)  Extra packaging adds to the prices, so they actually cost more and there is more tax as a result. This is called ‘progressive thinking’ by various forms of health-nuts, of course … who enjoy the resulting taxes for their own ‘special needs’ and adventures in society.
        Politicians get elected on this stuff …..
        Less bread will be good for fat people … I guess. I’m sure a ‘health minister’ will say so at some point.

    2. 5thDrawer Avatar
      5thDrawer

      If there was any openness anywhere in the government, you would know the debt and the deficit. (cost of servicing debt)

  4. Sebouh80 Avatar

    Anyone who expects governments in Lebanon to guard and protect the interest of the public then this person is either naive or has lack of understanding in the internal corrupt political dynamics of Lebanon.
    The voodoo calculus,  first started with the cabinet of late Premier Rafic Hariri during 2003 when the bakers at that time were complaining that the high running cost is starting to eat their profits and so they demanded an increase in the price of bread. In response, Hariri’s cabinet made a deal with the bakers union to keep the price fixed at 1500 liras and instead urged them to  drop the weight from 1500 to 1250 grams (How ingenious). This gave the false impression that the government is still subsidizing the price of bread and is always willing to help the little guy with whatever available resources.
    Later after 2008, especially at the time when the inflationary pressures were rising in the double digits the cabinet under Fouad Seniora again followed this policy. This time around they kept the price at 1500 liras but lowered the content from 1250 to 1000 grams. Notice this has become a rather sell-fulfilling prophecy every time there is an increase in basic commodity prices.
    Today Najib Mikati is simply following the same policy of deception that started with the previous governments. 

    Mr.Karam, anyone listening to Lebanese deputies in the parliament last week one gets the impression that both of them are correct to some extent in describing our current predicament. The March 8 politicians are correct for blaming the governments from 1992 till 2011 for the ongoing corruption and the destruction of Lebanon’s economy due to the soaring service debt and the national debt which today many reliable sources believe that it has surpassed the 60 billion dollar mark. On the other hand, the March 14 politicians are also correct for accusing this current government of endemic corruption and for the waste of public resources on rogue politicians like Nicholas Fattouch and others. 

    Bottom line, this simply confirms the condemnation of the bourgeois sectarian political system of Lebanon which both March 14 and March 8 are part of it.

    1. Sebouh
                 The fact that a wrong headed action was done before is no justification for doing it again. One hopes that we can learn from our mistakes and adapt to our environment.
                This idea of dealing with inflation by lowering the contents of a particular package makes  no sense.
               

      1. 5thDrawer Avatar
        5thDrawer

        Seems to make sense to some, Ghassan. In England they make little packages of cigarettes – which cost so much simply because of HUGE taxation by governments of all western thinkers … so people think they can afford the 5-pack better than the 25-pack. (Also one can buy skinny cigarettes with ‘big taste’ – Nanotechs by Kent)  Extra packaging adds to the prices, so they actually cost more and there is more tax as a result. This is called ‘progressive thinking’ by various forms of health-nuts, of course … who enjoy the resulting taxes for their own ‘special needs’ and adventures in society.
        Politicians get elected on this stuff …..
        Less bread will be good for fat people … I guess. I’m sure a ‘health minister’ will say so at some point.

    2. 5thDrawer Avatar
      5thDrawer

      If there was any openness anywhere in the government, you would know the debt and the deficit. (cost of servicing debt)

  5. 5thDrawer Avatar
    5thDrawer

    Gee Ghassan … I hate to ask … really … but is this some kind of ‘Sharia Calculus’ in the land that invented numbers? 😉

    1. Ghassan Karam Avatar
      Ghassan Karam

       5thdrawer,
                      Actually the current interpretation of “reba” has resulted in all kinds of twists and turns to conform to sharia in the 21st century. All that additional and may I say inefficient work can be avoided if “reba” is interpreted to mean usuary instead of interest.

      1. 5thDrawer Avatar
        5thDrawer

        Hmmm … yes Ghassan I see … try to explain standard interest and time-payments to a hospital.  🙁

  6. 5thDrawer Avatar
    5thDrawer

    Gee Ghassan … I hate to ask … really … but is this some kind of ‘Sharia Calculus’ in the land that invented numbers? 😉

    1. Ghassan Karam Avatar
      Ghassan Karam

       5thdrawer,
                      Actually the current interpretation of “reba” has resulted in all kinds of twists and turns to conform to sharia in the 21st century. All that additional and may I say inefficient work can be avoided if “reba” is interpreted to mean usuary instead of interest.

      1. 5thDrawer Avatar
        5thDrawer

        Hmmm … yes Ghassan I see … try to explain standard interest and time-payments to a hospital.  🙁

  7. 5thDrawer Avatar
    5thDrawer

    Gee Gassan … I hate to ask … really … but is this some kind of ‘Sharia Calculus’ in the land that invented numbers? 😉

    1.  5thdrawer,
                      Actually the current interpretation of “reba” has resulted in all kinds of twists and turns to conform to sharia in the 21st century. All that additional and may I say inefficient work can be avoided if “reba” is interpreted to mean usuary instead of interest.

      1. 5thDrawer Avatar
        5thDrawer

        Hmmm … yes Ghassan I see … try to explain standard interest and time-payments to a hospital.  🙁

  8. libnan1 Avatar

     Sebouh80, M8 has only been in power for less than a year and no new debt was issued except for bonds to refinance old debt. The father, son and followers government are to blame for the destruction of the Lebanese economy. I hope the Lebanese people don’t make another mistake and bring them back to power. We are done with FARTEEN.

  9. libnan1 Avatar

     Sebouh80, M8 has only been in power for less than a year and no new debt was issued except for bonds to refinance old debt. The father, son and followers government are to blame for the destruction of the Lebanese economy. I hope the Lebanese people don’t make another mistake and bring them back to power. We are done with FARTEEN.

    1. 5thDrawer Avatar
      5thDrawer

      Oh libnan1 … the ships aren’t going to do it … you know we need to collect all the after-lunch farteens of the cabinet to power that electric plant for a while longer … assuming you bring back that pole for distribution. 😉

  10. Hannibal Avatar

    Now I understand why I’m losing weight…

  11. Hannibal Avatar

    Now I understand why I’m losing weight…

  12. Now I understand why I’m losing weight…

  13. Prophettttt Avatar
    Prophettttt

    Ghassan,
    As young kids, we used to get tricked by older kids and adults with the question of which was heavier ,a Kg of metal or a kg of sponges. This tricky  question was meant to test our intelligence.Your hypothetical example brought back all of those memories . Although it is laughable, but Lebanese official and leaders have maintained their old  pattern of insulting the intelligence of Lebanese  people ,whether when warlords told us what was right and what was wrong,or whether when they told us why we should kill each other.Now, with nice Italian suites and fancy nick ties, they  are reinventing new weight  unites by telling us that a kilogram is not always 1000 grams, but rather 900 grams.
    Excuse my cynicism, the question that I can’t get an answer to ,is that why are Lebanese people keep cheering those leaders,and why aren’t they outraged,and whether we are as stupid as these leaders and officials think?What makes them so confident in our stupidity or our submission?
    I ‘m convinced that the term deception applied to every thing in Lebanon to the extend that the existence of the state of Lebanon is a deception.  My entire perception of this country is becoming foggy to the point of feeling numb toward everything that goes on .The more I  read , the more I examine,and the more I observe, the less I learn and understand.Every Logic  has been twisted by Lebanese,nothing looks encouraging. I’m not even sure I’m making sense here;my fear is that I’m really infected by all of the above.lol

    1. Ghassan Karam Avatar
      Ghassan Karam

      prophettttt
                     You are making perfect sense. The daily events and actions by Lebanese politicians are so frustratingat times that it is enough to drive one to drink or whatever 🙂  I sure am glad that you reminded me of the question about whether a KG of metal is heavier than a KG of feather LOL. Take care

      1. 5thDrawer Avatar
        5thDrawer

        Wish to join the ‘Scotch Club’ Ghassan? 😉  We have the noses if you have the time. 🙂

  14. Prophettttt Avatar
    Prophettttt

    Ghassan,
    As young kids, we used to get tricked by older kids and adults with the question of which was heavier ,a Kg of metal or a kg of sponges. This tricky  question was meant to test our intelligence.Your hypothetical example brought back all of those memories . Although it is laughable, but Lebanese official and leaders have maintained their old  pattern of insulting the intelligence of Lebanese  people ,whether when warlords told us what was right and what was wrong,or whether when they told us why we should kill each other.Now, with nice Italian suites and fancy nick ties, they  are reinventing new weight  unites by telling us that a kilogram is not always 1000 grams, but rather 900 grams.
    Excuse my cynicism, the question that I can’t get an answer to ,is that why are Lebanese people keep cheering those leaders,and why aren’t they outraged,and whether we are as stupid as these leaders and officials think?What makes them so confident in our stupidity or our submission?
    I ‘m convinced that the term deception applied to every thing in Lebanon to the extend that the existence of the state of Lebanon is a deception.  My entire perception of this country is becoming foggy to the point of feeling numb toward everything that goes on .The more I  read , the more I examine,and the more I observe, the less I learn and understand.Every Logic  has been twisted by Lebanese,nothing looks encouraging. I’m not even sure I’m making sense here;my fear is that I’m really infected by all of the above.lol

    1. Ghassan Karam Avatar
      Ghassan Karam

      prophettttt
                     You are making perfect sense. The daily events and actions by Lebanese politicians are so frustratingat times that it is enough to drive one to drink or whatever 🙂  I sure am glad that you reminded me of the question about whether a KG of metal is heavier than a KG of feather LOL. Take care

      1. 5thDrawer Avatar
        5thDrawer

        Wish to join the ‘Scotch Club’ Ghassan? 😉  We have the noses if you have the time. 🙂

  15. Prophettttt Avatar
    Prophettttt

    Ghassan,
    As young kids, we used to get tricked by older kids and adults with the question of which was heavier ,a Kg of metal or a kg of sponges. This tricky  question was meant to test our intelligence.Your hypothetical example brought back all of those memories . Although it is laughable, but Lebanese official and leaders have maintained their old  pattern of insulting the intelligence of Lebanese  people ,whether when warlords told us what was right and what was wrong,or whether when they told us why we should kill each other.Now, with nice Italian suites and fancy nick ties, they  are reinventing new weight  unites by telling us that a kilogram is not always 1000 grams, but rather 900 grams.
    Excuse my cynicism, the question that I can’t get an answer to ,is that why are Lebanese people keep cheering those leaders,and why aren’t they outraged,and whether we are as stupid as these leaders and officials they think?What makes them so confident in our stupidity or our submission?
    I ‘m convinced that the term deception applied to every thing in Lebanon to the extend that the existence of the state of Lebanon is a deception.  My entire perception of this country is becoming foggy to the point of feeling numb toward everything that goes on .The more I  read , the more I examine,and the more I observe, the less I learn and understand.Every Logic  has been twisted by Lebanese,nothing looks encouraging. I’m not even sure I’m making sense here;my fear is that I’m really infected by all of the above.lol

    1. prophettttt
                     You are making perfect sense. The daily events and actions by Lebanese politicians are so frustratingat times that it is enough to drive one to drink or whatever 🙂  I sure am glad that you reminded me of the question about whether a KG of metal is heavier than a KG of feather LOL. Take care

      1. 5thDrawer Avatar
        5thDrawer

        Wish to join the ‘Scotch Club’ Ghassan? 😉  We have the noses if you have the time. 🙂

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