Monday, February 11, 2013
More Interesting Facts about Lebanon
In this post, we mention more interesting facts about Lebanon.
1- According to Sc Imago Journal and country rank, Lebanon is ranked as the 68th nation in terms of the number of publications in the year 2011 with 1,446 publications in all subjects. Although, the number one is the US with 519,573 publications but the comparison here is invalid due to different factors (population size, educational standards, wealth, etc...). One good relative measure would be Switzerland whose population is as twice as it is in Lebanon with 33,272 publications and ranked at the 18th position. Moreover there are only 12 higher educational institutions in Switzerland compared to 32 in Lebanon.
2- A Gallup poll made in 2009 about the importance of religion in the daily life of people, 89.5% of people in Lebanon answered positively compared to 65% in USA, 40.5% in Germany, 29.5% in France and 26.5% in UK. Needless to say that all Arab countries scored in the 90's with 100% in Bangladesh.
3- Lebanon is ranked as the 128th nation in terms of corruption along with Togo with a score of 30/100 where 0 is perceived as highly corrupt. The corruption perception index ranks countries based the level of corruption in their public sector.
4- In the global competitiveness report 2012-2013 published by the World Economic Forum, Lebanon is ranked as the 127th from 144 for infrastructure global competitiveness with a score of 2.5/7 where infrastructure is defined as a basic requirement in that report.
Sunday, January 13, 2013
Lebanon and Facebook
According to Facebook demographics, there are 1,594,040 Lebanese Facebook users. It actually calculates the number of accounts that are being signed up from Lebanon through the IP addresses of the users' machines. The interesting part is that it measures the rate of penetration from Lebanon as 38.64%. Now Facebook demographics mentions that in the US, there are 167,431, 700 American Facebook users which measures the rate of penetration as 53.97%. (rate of penetration is percentage of the population using Facebook)
According to accurate studies, there are around 3,100,000 Lebanese inhabitants. (Many sources mention that there are around 4 million but those sources are not deducting the immigrants registered on the electoral lists). If interested I can refer you to many sources about the actual number of Lebanese residents. The number of users is measured to be 38.64% where mathematically speaking, it has to be around 50%. Facebook demographics uses the fact that the population size is around 4,100,000 getting their info probably from CIA World Fact book and for this reason, they give Lebanon a rank of 72 which is actually not true. According to the mentioned facts, Lebanon will be in the highly active nations in Facebook use.
Why did I mention the US numbers? Because as I am writing this, the population in the US is estimated to be around 311,000,000 which actually gives an accurate measure of rate of penetration and tells us that Lebanon is close to the US (US is ranked number 1).
What is the problem? Why do I care that we are ranked at 72. Is it because I am proud of people posting their pictures, their daily activities? No. Facebook uses these figures to estimate the impact factor of media on a given population. Thus big businesses in Lebanon will pay pennies to get their ads on Facebook at the time that they can reach very high number of users.
Do I want Facebook to make more money from Lebanese businesses?
Well no but I am happy I figured that out.
According to accurate studies, there are around 3,100,000 Lebanese inhabitants. (Many sources mention that there are around 4 million but those sources are not deducting the immigrants registered on the electoral lists). If interested I can refer you to many sources about the actual number of Lebanese residents. The number of users is measured to be 38.64% where mathematically speaking, it has to be around 50%. Facebook demographics uses the fact that the population size is around 4,100,000 getting their info probably from CIA World Fact book and for this reason, they give Lebanon a rank of 72 which is actually not true. According to the mentioned facts, Lebanon will be in the highly active nations in Facebook use.
Why did I mention the US numbers? Because as I am writing this, the population in the US is estimated to be around 311,000,000 which actually gives an accurate measure of rate of penetration and tells us that Lebanon is close to the US (US is ranked number 1).
What is the problem? Why do I care that we are ranked at 72. Is it because I am proud of people posting their pictures, their daily activities? No. Facebook uses these figures to estimate the impact factor of media on a given population. Thus big businesses in Lebanon will pay pennies to get their ads on Facebook at the time that they can reach very high number of users.
Do I want Facebook to make more money from Lebanese businesses?
Well no but I am happy I figured that out.
Thursday, December 13, 2012
Fake Liberalism
According to Wikipedia, liberalism (from the Latin liberalis) is a political philosophy or worldview founded on the ideas of liberty and equality. "Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but generally they support ideas such as free and fair elections, civil rights, freedom of the press, freedom of religion, free trade, and a right to life, liberty, and property."
As one can tell, the concept of liberalism is an evolutionary concept that requires certain maturity level and a clear understanding of what is going on around. Every single word in the definition mentioned has different interpretations and has led to the development of the rule of law worldwide and specifically in the civilized world.
However, this word is repeated by many people in our society and mentioned under the political view of so many facebook users without really giving this word a good clear thought. Yes, the concept of liberalism versus conservatism can be place or time dependent This means, one could be conservative in the US and liberal in Lebanon but this only happens if some views have developed further in one place and still at late stages in another. This also means that one can have a positive opinion about something till a certain limit and a negative opinion about the same thing if that thing reached the limit that one has already determined. Also, one doesn't have to be completely liberal or completely conservative where one can actually pick and choose from the two concepts that best fit his/her way of life as long as no contradiction arises at any point. However, trying to cling to one concept has the serious price of really understanding the deep definition.
Unfortunately, the whole discussion about liberalism in Lebanon is reduced to sexual liberalism which I also believe is a real scam. Forget about gay rights, women rights, pro-life/pro-choice, free trade, small government/ big government, etc... The people's narrow understanding of a liberal is reduced to the degree of his/her sexual awareness. Moreover, many of those who claim sexual liberalism contradict their own views when confronted with cases that goes in harmony with the definition of liberalism and touches sensitive issues about their personal life. For many people, claiming sexual liberalism is nothing but a tool of seduction and a technique of self marketing as a civilized person with an open mind.
As one can tell, the concept of liberalism is an evolutionary concept that requires certain maturity level and a clear understanding of what is going on around. Every single word in the definition mentioned has different interpretations and has led to the development of the rule of law worldwide and specifically in the civilized world.
However, this word is repeated by many people in our society and mentioned under the political view of so many facebook users without really giving this word a good clear thought. Yes, the concept of liberalism versus conservatism can be place or time dependent This means, one could be conservative in the US and liberal in Lebanon but this only happens if some views have developed further in one place and still at late stages in another. This also means that one can have a positive opinion about something till a certain limit and a negative opinion about the same thing if that thing reached the limit that one has already determined. Also, one doesn't have to be completely liberal or completely conservative where one can actually pick and choose from the two concepts that best fit his/her way of life as long as no contradiction arises at any point. However, trying to cling to one concept has the serious price of really understanding the deep definition.
Unfortunately, the whole discussion about liberalism in Lebanon is reduced to sexual liberalism which I also believe is a real scam. Forget about gay rights, women rights, pro-life/pro-choice, free trade, small government/ big government, etc... The people's narrow understanding of a liberal is reduced to the degree of his/her sexual awareness. Moreover, many of those who claim sexual liberalism contradict their own views when confronted with cases that goes in harmony with the definition of liberalism and touches sensitive issues about their personal life. For many people, claiming sexual liberalism is nothing but a tool of seduction and a technique of self marketing as a civilized person with an open mind.
Friday, November 30, 2012
A Peace Campaign in Lebanon
This week's post is not a critical post but it is meant to shed light on the peace campaign that the Center for Development, Democracy and Governance (CDDG) has initiated during the independence day memorial and that will last for a month. I am writing this post as a founder and president of CDDG whom along with our excellent team of employees and volunteers, we were able to initiate a campaign that received lots and lots of positive feedback.
CDDG is a non-profit organization that has a relatively decent track record and you can check our history, mission, vision and objectives at www.cddg.org.
Below I am attaching two pictures, the original Lebanese flag and the banner of our campaign The original flag has two red strips with the cedar in the middle while the flag of the campaign has narrower red strips and thus more white space symbolizing "Less blood shed and more peace" as a slogan of the campaign. The campaign was carried out all across the country on several billboards, mini-boards, facebook, twitter, google plus and other social media tools.
CDDG is a non-profit organization that has a relatively decent track record and you can check our history, mission, vision and objectives at www.cddg.org.
Below I am attaching two pictures, the original Lebanese flag and the banner of our campaign The original flag has two red strips with the cedar in the middle while the flag of the campaign has narrower red strips and thus more white space symbolizing "Less blood shed and more peace" as a slogan of the campaign. The campaign was carried out all across the country on several billboards, mini-boards, facebook, twitter, google plus and other social media tools.
Friday, November 9, 2012
Interesting Facts about Lebanon
Very interesting facts and figures put together that would actually give the reader a good idea about essential practices and facts from our society.
1- Lebanon has around 350 schools and 32 officially recognized universities with 87.4% literacy rate- 93.1 % male and 82.2% female- (Literacy defined based on those who are above the age of 15 and who can read and write). However, the average national IQ is 82-86 depending on different sources. We are ranked the 52nd nation in average IQ along with Philippines. It is also widely understood that the average intelligence where almost half the population score is between 90 and 110. So you do the math on the percentage of those who are below 80. Check the following link to have an idea about IQ scores by examining its relation to professions. This is the best way to understand the score in my opinion.. (I chose this website but almost all websites that discuss this issue mention very close numbers. Lots of data about this issue are available) http://www.sq.4mg.com/IQ-jobs.htm
2- We are ranked the 40th nation for number of vehicles per capita.
There are 434 cars for every 1000 persons. This includes automobiles, SUVs, Vans and commercial vehicles and exclude motorcycles and other motorized two-wheelers. However, we are ranked 70 for owning personal computers per capita. Our rate is 102.076 per 1000 persons. That says a lot about the level of intellectuality.
3- Examining things superficially in Lebanon, one would say that the standard of living is good. Cars, clothes, nightlife, etc... However, trying to observe carefully, one can notice that most people try to save on the essentials individual needs in order to cover up social auxiliaries. Statistically speaking, we are 113th country in the list of 150 on the quality of life in a study done in 2010. I believe it got worse nowadays. (You can check the quality of life index in 2010).
1- Lebanon has around 350 schools and 32 officially recognized universities with 87.4% literacy rate- 93.1 % male and 82.2% female- (Literacy defined based on those who are above the age of 15 and who can read and write). However, the average national IQ is 82-86 depending on different sources. We are ranked the 52nd nation in average IQ along with Philippines. It is also widely understood that the average intelligence where almost half the population score is between 90 and 110. So you do the math on the percentage of those who are below 80. Check the following link to have an idea about IQ scores by examining its relation to professions. This is the best way to understand the score in my opinion.. (I chose this website but almost all websites that discuss this issue mention very close numbers. Lots of data about this issue are available) http://www.sq.4mg.com/IQ-jobs.htm
There are 434 cars for every 1000 persons. This includes automobiles, SUVs, Vans and commercial vehicles and exclude motorcycles and other motorized two-wheelers. However, we are ranked 70 for owning personal computers per capita. Our rate is 102.076 per 1000 persons. That says a lot about the level of intellectuality.
3- Examining things superficially in Lebanon, one would say that the standard of living is good. Cars, clothes, nightlife, etc... However, trying to observe carefully, one can notice that most people try to save on the essentials individual needs in order to cover up social auxiliaries. Statistically speaking, we are 113th country in the list of 150 on the quality of life in a study done in 2010. I believe it got worse nowadays. (You can check the quality of life index in 2010).
Friday, October 26, 2012
The Disaster of Collective Forgiveness
"To err is human, to forgive is divine". An excellent quote by the English poet Alexander Pope that should inspire us all. Forgiveness on a personal level is an act of maturity that emerges from the deep understanding of human nature and the more someone knows, the more he/she forgives. However, forgiveness is an individual right and not a collective right. For this same reason, if somebody is convicted and even if the victim drops the charges, the system still impose a punishment on the offender. Forgetfulness at the personal level is not forgiveness while on a social or collective level both forgetfulness and forgiveness are equivalent.
In our society, things are going in the wrong direction and both the personal and collective acts are disastrous. We tend to collectively forget and when the same issue is assessed on an individual level, no forgiveness is offered. This should be completely reversed in order to have a healthy society. For example, if a famous figure in our country makes a mistake, it takes few weeks for people to collectively forget about his/her misconduct. Thus people have collectively forgiven that person by forgetting. While when you approach people individually even after years, you notice that people are still holding grudges and bitterness against that person for that same act.
We as individuals have the right to forgive when the damage is inflected on us only and not on others. Collective forgetfulness is a big problem that paralyzes the system and makes it very difficult for it to evolve. A good judicial system can not be based on such a phenomena. People complain about the system and yet they do not even offer a push to that system in the basic needs that fuel up an evolutionary path for it.
What should we do?
We should be selective in our forgiveness when the damage is social or collective. This is the role of civil societies and political subgroups of bigger political entities.
In our society, things are going in the wrong direction and both the personal and collective acts are disastrous. We tend to collectively forget and when the same issue is assessed on an individual level, no forgiveness is offered. This should be completely reversed in order to have a healthy society. For example, if a famous figure in our country makes a mistake, it takes few weeks for people to collectively forget about his/her misconduct. Thus people have collectively forgiven that person by forgetting. While when you approach people individually even after years, you notice that people are still holding grudges and bitterness against that person for that same act.
We as individuals have the right to forgive when the damage is inflected on us only and not on others. Collective forgetfulness is a big problem that paralyzes the system and makes it very difficult for it to evolve. A good judicial system can not be based on such a phenomena. People complain about the system and yet they do not even offer a push to that system in the basic needs that fuel up an evolutionary path for it.
What should we do?
We should be selective in our forgiveness when the damage is social or collective. This is the role of civil societies and political subgroups of bigger political entities.
Friday, October 12, 2012
A Commitment with Complaints is not a Commitment
Years ago while I was still residing in Philadelphia, I call an American friend of mine asking him to help me move out of my old apartment at a certain date. The guy mentioned that he will get back to me after checking his schedule. Hours later, he calls me to tell me that he can do it. The day I moved out was hectic, full of last minute unpleasant unpredictable surprises; not enough boxes, late checking in the new apartment, walking more than 1Km back and forth around 10 times in addition to the extreme cold weather of Philadelphia after our moving cart broke down. I started complaining about the situation but I never heard one complaint from my friend.
Years before that while I was living in Lebanon, I asked a Lebanese friend of mine to take me to my hometown (about 30Km drive) to get some official documents that I needed to submit for the university back then. It took him less than 10 seconds to say yes. I mentioned that there will be some traffic on our way there in addition to the expected long waiting for the documents and he interrupted me saying "No problem my friend". The day we had to go, he calls me in the morning telling me that he forgot about his dentist appointment but he is coming anyway. On our way there, we got stuck in traffic (predictable in Lebanon in addition to my previous warning) and then I heard "**** ikht el3aj2a" (Curse in Arabic) more than 30 times which average up to 1 curse/Km. We got there and as usual and completely predictable, we had to wait for my official documents for an hour or so and another bunch of curses for the government and the system were thrown left and right. We finish and we had the traffic problem on the way back as well.
What is the difference between the two cases and which one I prefer?
We are emotional people pressured by unnecessary social commitments where we feel pressured at many points to say yes when we mean no and say no when we want to say yes. The happiness and support that I felt from the quick reply of my Lebanese friend were great at that moment but all the appreciation transformed into an unease feeling all the way. Besides I was stunned for the moment by my American friend who told me "I will get back to you after checking my schedule". However, my appreciation to the guy kept growing and still growing.
It seems I made a choice on my preference and I made a choice as well on the type of person I want to be in case I was asked for help at any point. Commitment whether it is for a cause, for people, for family and even for ones self is definitely rewarding but it also comes at the price of unpredictability in certain situations specially when it is related to others where it is beyond your control.
Years before that while I was living in Lebanon, I asked a Lebanese friend of mine to take me to my hometown (about 30Km drive) to get some official documents that I needed to submit for the university back then. It took him less than 10 seconds to say yes. I mentioned that there will be some traffic on our way there in addition to the expected long waiting for the documents and he interrupted me saying "No problem my friend". The day we had to go, he calls me in the morning telling me that he forgot about his dentist appointment but he is coming anyway. On our way there, we got stuck in traffic (predictable in Lebanon in addition to my previous warning) and then I heard "**** ikht el3aj2a" (Curse in Arabic) more than 30 times which average up to 1 curse/Km. We got there and as usual and completely predictable, we had to wait for my official documents for an hour or so and another bunch of curses for the government and the system were thrown left and right. We finish and we had the traffic problem on the way back as well.
What is the difference between the two cases and which one I prefer?
We are emotional people pressured by unnecessary social commitments where we feel pressured at many points to say yes when we mean no and say no when we want to say yes. The happiness and support that I felt from the quick reply of my Lebanese friend were great at that moment but all the appreciation transformed into an unease feeling all the way. Besides I was stunned for the moment by my American friend who told me "I will get back to you after checking my schedule". However, my appreciation to the guy kept growing and still growing.
It seems I made a choice on my preference and I made a choice as well on the type of person I want to be in case I was asked for help at any point. Commitment whether it is for a cause, for people, for family and even for ones self is definitely rewarding but it also comes at the price of unpredictability in certain situations specially when it is related to others where it is beyond your control.
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