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Originally Posted by Skip N
The other side of me says, WTF are Americans doing in Lebanon anyway!? Dont these folks know the middle east is prob not the best place to be now adays!?
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Skippy,
1. There were a lot of Lebanese Christians who fled civil war in the 1970's that came to the United States. Not only is there a cultural tie, but there are many family ties as well.
2. Lebanon is pretty modern and Beirut is considered to be one of the more cosmopolitan cities in the region. For the most part it's quite Western and has a large tourisim industry.
3. And perhaps most importantly...the single best thing we can to do combat terrorisim in the long run is to encourage the free exchange of business and ideas with other nations.
A strong collaborative relationship with Lebanon is critical to the future of the weak democracy that exists today.
We can't collaborate if we're not there...
-spence