The unquestioned political leadership bestowed on Mr. Jumblatt and the allegiance of his co-religionists is an easy matter to explain. It is a reflection of the nature of the deeply tribal, deeply feudalistic and deeply troubling Lebanese political and social culture. This phenomenon is replicated across all regions and all religious sects in Lebanon. As a result, what passes for democracy is a hollow institution of national elections that shuffles the minions but keeps the traditional leadership intact. The strings for all the marionettes in this tragedy are controlled by the hands of a few “master puppeteers”. The puppets play a passive role in this tragedy and are not in a position to organize and revolt. They are awaiting the miracle that could infuse them with life.

The traditional feudal lord-serf structure explains why the ramblings of a political leader are not questioned by any of his flock but why would anyone else take these constantly changing alliances seriously. They are not and they should not.

Mr. Jumblatt appears to have borrowed from the Druze religious sect one of its very highly controversial concept known as “Takya” and applied it to the non religious sphere. “Takya” is sort of a self defense mechanism that the Druze developed when their very existence was in jeopardy. The Moslem majority looked down with suspicion upon these Druze upstarts and was marshalling its vastly superior power and resources to squash the religious “deviants”. That is when the Druze decided to adopt the concept of “Takya” or pretense. It was decided that the Druze could avoid the wrath of the majority if they act as if they have assimilated when in reality they can go on practicing in secret their true beliefs. This flexibility was not meant to be genuine but was to be employed only in order to deceive. “Takya” has been a success, what better proof than the 1.2 million thriving Druze community but its ethics are lamentable especially if they are to be applied in the field of politics.

Tolerance, democratic principles and diversity were not seminal principles a thousand years ago and so one can in retrospect condone the policy of “Takya” which has saved a whole community from extermination. Obviously acts of genocide and religious persecution have not been totally banished but they are opposed by most in the modern world. That is why “Takya” serves no religious purpose in the present world environment and is an egregious practice in politics.

There is only one explanation for the constantly changing positions of Walid Jumblatt who cautions one day of the Iranian conspiracy only to support Iran the next day and who rails against Syria one day only to praise its steadfastness the next. He even seriously criticized some of his political allies for being too principled. The following few nuggets should demonstrate why Walid Jumblatt has earned his new moniker of “Jump-a-lot” and why ultimately he is not to be trusted since no one ever knows for sure who is the real Walid Bey. The use of “Takya” in politics is simply disastrous.

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"The New Middle East is the one that Iran [wants to impose] by means of the Syrian regime.... The abduction [of the two Israeli soldiers on July 12, 2006] came at a political timing that had nothing to do with the [Lebanese] prisoners, and everything to do with the Iranian-Syrian axis and [the attempt] to bind Lebanon to this axis. Today, more than ever before, Lebanon is being held hostage by the Syrian-Iranian axis." Aug 7 2006

“Hezbollah, an extension of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards is a part of the greater Pharsi project to extend Iran through Iraq, Syria and Lebanon” Oct 13, 2007

Jumblatt called for a joint Arab-Syrian-Saudi effort to form a (Lebanese) government and he cautioned that this partnership should not act in opposition to Iran. Sept. 2, 2009

A Podcast of the above has been posted to:

http://ramblings11.mypodcast.com/