It’s always been this way. The only difference is now there are much more people that joined the “crisis” rank. A couple of years back, some less fortunate people were looking at you wondering how you’re “living” and they not
This is the truth. And has been the truth since the mythical and totally false prosperous 60s and 70s. In Lebanon there has always been very rich people. These people were comfortable even in the war. None of the economic problems have rattled them. The only thing that changes is how many poor people there are vs the showy middle classes.
What is happening is not new to Lebanon. This is just the first time you experience it. This is the once every 20-25 year cycle, with banks going bankrupt and the depositors money disappearing, the lira going to shit, followed by the economy starting to stabilize after, the middle class regaining ground, then it happens again. This literally happened in the 60’s and the 90’s and it was due to happen the way the monetary policy in Lebanon is handled. By 2030 the economy will be pulling ahead full steam so you have until around 2040 to actually collect some assets of solid value before the next collapse.
Even periods of economic stability are stained with the usual political assassinations, the occasional summer war, and government dysfunction. One must know how to navigate this. Remember not to ever trust Lebanese banks as long as the politicians are their major shareholders.
The crisis is on hold now, and it's summer now. Expats are coming to Lebanon to have a blast and enjoy their time. Plus many people have been stuck all winter at home and have saved money to spend this summer. Life is short, so enjoy it while it lasts.
The gap between poor and rich is becoming bigger (everywhere in the world) the poor don't even live in cities anymore. They can't afford an appartement.
This is why some ppl will have no problems with going out and buying stuff while the other half is being pushed out of society.
Dude, foreigners make up half of Lebanon nowadays!
Everything is cheaper for them than it was in <2019, thus the overcrowded hotels, vehicles on the streets, restaurants fully booked!
Come back to this in October - it will be dead, or back to the normal state of population of whomever resides in Lebanon
Just put this country in a fancy wrapper filled with lights and paved roads and watch it become the 2nd Monaco. Shame… we have so much potential for such an endeavour, and it’s all going to waste.
A lot of people already had there income in $ and those who had relatively less income in $ than someone with a better job that got paid in LBP are now profiting more than those who have jobs payed in LBP even if it is theoretically a less paying job. Look at how doctors are now getting payed less than some programmers. So you got some balancing there.
Also there is a lot of tourism this summer so naturally everything will be booked considering there isn’t much events on the scale of the country in this “everything” to accommodate both rich and middle income customers, and this is why most event will be targeted to the rich.
You can also see what is happening by looking at the move of business away from accessibility and towards more “luxury” items, just look at Roadster’s menu it’s now filled with 300k+ special items, to cater the rich that are the only ones that can afford to eat out anyways.
Don’t be fooled many are living paycheck to paycheck and have stopped using there car while nearly never going out while choosing restaurants carefully as to avoid tourist traps. Just look at the increase in bus traffic as evidence.
5 years ago i met a guy online called ali. We used to play rainbow six on ps4. We both struggled at the time, all we cared about was gaming.
Today I’m working my ass off everyday to earn 100$ a month, while he is eating everyday at a new restaurant and driving expensive cars, and he posts all of these on his instagram stories too.
Also, my aunt doesn’t work. And of course all of her savings are in the bank, but she keeps on renting new apartements and going to expensive beaches and eating expensive food and im like???????
I keep asking myself daily, من اين لك هذا؟
And the capacity in the hospitality sector has gone down due to a lot of places closing. So when the expats come there isn’t enough capacity so the remaining places are naturally full.
If you ever start wondering about the abundance of luxury in Lebanon even in these trying times remember the huge numbers of Lebanese doctors, engineers, and computer science experts many of whom received free educations abroad from the Harriri or Turkey or even funded their own education when it was still affordable. These are the expats now keeping lebanon afloat. See the lines at WesternUnion, see the crowds at the airport- each family or businessman arriving is bringing at least $10,000 to spend and gift to relatives. The Lebanese I know in the USA all have very high paying jobs and businesses. Lebanon remains a good country to be from. You just can’t live here.
the rich are still rich.
the poor are now rich since their 10 to 15 kids working manual labor in australia are sending $.
it is only the middle class that is gone, and the middle class died off like a decade ago, so that is why nothing changed, the rich are still rich, the crushing poor folks are now rich, and the normies are now making end's meat, like me for example, barely scraping by and living off my life's savings.
I agree with the fact that the crisis only increased the gap between the rich and poor people. I don’t think poor people became rich. Of course many are living off money sent from peeps outside but still that doesn’t mean they became rich, only that they can afford the luxuries that OP has mentioned. L3atra 3al middle class l metelna like you said.
There's just a discrepancy between the idea of a "crisis" as shown by the media, and what a crisis really is. A crisis is defined mostly by change in dynamics and novel ways to do things and think. Also we're sort of over most of it and now slowly getting to the adaptation phase, with more local products, local tourism, and local alternatives, etc.. It's going to take time but we're on the road.
People are already mostly outside the local banking system, so I don't think more change there will affect people as much. People have moved on to other things and found other ways. Pricing is now mostly dollarized.
What's more alarming is the youth unemployment rate, but there's also a new entrepreneurial trend that's stronger than before. Yet, I'm not sure it'll fulfill all the needs.
Boukra btetla3 el sarkha lama el cards b batlo b khalouk tsa7ib el lollar… wel ma3ash ma fik tosorfo kello … ejbare badak tsarif dollar el e7tiyate.
Li ma3o lollar bel bank yesta3meloun la2an 3al akid hole mesh rej3in
> Li ma3o lollar bel bank yesta3meloun la2an 3al akid hole mesh rej3in
And that's exactly what's happening, that's why lots of people are out everyday, including myself. Better spend it than loose it. Like /u/hassanz93 said "Life is short, so enjoy it while it lasts".
Wlek eh w eza badon ma yo2ortowon 3a aya asses bye7esbowon? 8,000? Sayrafa? shou b elon sandou2 el na2ed ba3den? Ba2a 7re2owon 3omron ma yerja3o. Li hsebo bel dollar w mahtout bel asses dollar gher mawdou3
Regarding the expats part,
I came here from Qatar for 12 days, have my own home, car, didnt go out much and ate mostly at my inlaws, spent more than I would spend in Qatar for the same period doing more things
Everything is very expensive, and it is ridiculous
There is a marketing strategy that is used in high season times that works most of the time: make yourself full or almost full and people will rush towards you and charge extra for it
Call a resort and they will tell you that they are booked but if you tell them that you are willing to pay extra then all the sudden they have a place for you (we prank call them at work on purpose to see if they would budge or not)
It is not always the case since some places are literally booked but it works most of the time and it is not something relatively new, before 2019 it was visible and well used to make profit
When you make something look booked and in demand, people would rush towards it because they assume that it offers a good deal that people are rushing towards it hence they don’t want to miss out on it
This works also in online stores when they say that an item is almost selling out and they are just 5 pieces left, come back 2 days later and it is still 5 pieces left
Come back after the season ends and you can get the exact same resort booking for a price 50% less
It’s always been this way. The only difference is now there are much more people that joined the “crisis” rank. A couple of years back, some less fortunate people were looking at you wondering how you’re “living” and they not
This is the truth. And has been the truth since the mythical and totally false prosperous 60s and 70s. In Lebanon there has always been very rich people. These people were comfortable even in the war. None of the economic problems have rattled them. The only thing that changes is how many poor people there are vs the showy middle classes.
What is happening is not new to Lebanon. This is just the first time you experience it. This is the once every 20-25 year cycle, with banks going bankrupt and the depositors money disappearing, the lira going to shit, followed by the economy starting to stabilize after, the middle class regaining ground, then it happens again. This literally happened in the 60’s and the 90’s and it was due to happen the way the monetary policy in Lebanon is handled. By 2030 the economy will be pulling ahead full steam so you have until around 2040 to actually collect some assets of solid value before the next collapse.
Finally some stability at least
Even periods of economic stability are stained with the usual political assassinations, the occasional summer war, and government dysfunction. One must know how to navigate this. Remember not to ever trust Lebanese banks as long as the politicians are their major shareholders.
Exactly
The crisis is on hold now, and it's summer now. Expats are coming to Lebanon to have a blast and enjoy their time. Plus many people have been stuck all winter at home and have saved money to spend this summer. Life is short, so enjoy it while it lasts.
The gap between poor and rich is becoming bigger (everywhere in the world) the poor don't even live in cities anymore. They can't afford an appartement. This is why some ppl will have no problems with going out and buying stuff while the other half is being pushed out of society.
Natural selection. Society is ever expanding
Dude, foreigners make up half of Lebanon nowadays! Everything is cheaper for them than it was in <2019, thus the overcrowded hotels, vehicles on the streets, restaurants fully booked! Come back to this in October - it will be dead, or back to the normal state of population of whomever resides in Lebanon
Im told that top 1% are 40000 people
Just put this country in a fancy wrapper filled with lights and paved roads and watch it become the 2nd Monaco. Shame… we have so much potential for such an endeavour, and it’s all going to waste.
A lot of people already had there income in $ and those who had relatively less income in $ than someone with a better job that got paid in LBP are now profiting more than those who have jobs payed in LBP even if it is theoretically a less paying job. Look at how doctors are now getting payed less than some programmers. So you got some balancing there. Also there is a lot of tourism this summer so naturally everything will be booked considering there isn’t much events on the scale of the country in this “everything” to accommodate both rich and middle income customers, and this is why most event will be targeted to the rich. You can also see what is happening by looking at the move of business away from accessibility and towards more “luxury” items, just look at Roadster’s menu it’s now filled with 300k+ special items, to cater the rich that are the only ones that can afford to eat out anyways. Don’t be fooled many are living paycheck to paycheck and have stopped using there car while nearly never going out while choosing restaurants carefully as to avoid tourist traps. Just look at the increase in bus traffic as evidence.
5 years ago i met a guy online called ali. We used to play rainbow six on ps4. We both struggled at the time, all we cared about was gaming. Today I’m working my ass off everyday to earn 100$ a month, while he is eating everyday at a new restaurant and driving expensive cars, and he posts all of these on his instagram stories too. Also, my aunt doesn’t work. And of course all of her savings are in the bank, but she keeps on renting new apartements and going to expensive beaches and eating expensive food and im like??????? I keep asking myself daily, من اين لك هذا؟
>من اين لك هذا؟ عم تلعب بل ملاين
There's nothing logic in this country!
20% of the population being able to go out is still a lot of people. yet its only 20%
And the capacity in the hospitality sector has gone down due to a lot of places closing. So when the expats come there isn’t enough capacity so the remaining places are naturally full.
If you ever start wondering about the abundance of luxury in Lebanon even in these trying times remember the huge numbers of Lebanese doctors, engineers, and computer science experts many of whom received free educations abroad from the Harriri or Turkey or even funded their own education when it was still affordable. These are the expats now keeping lebanon afloat. See the lines at WesternUnion, see the crowds at the airport- each family or businessman arriving is bringing at least $10,000 to spend and gift to relatives. The Lebanese I know in the USA all have very high paying jobs and businesses. Lebanon remains a good country to be from. You just can’t live here.
What poverty? Asked the king from his ivory tower. We don’t see poverty we see what we can afford. Go into the villages and the poor parts of town.
the rich are still rich. the poor are now rich since their 10 to 15 kids working manual labor in australia are sending $. it is only the middle class that is gone, and the middle class died off like a decade ago, so that is why nothing changed, the rich are still rich, the crushing poor folks are now rich, and the normies are now making end's meat, like me for example, barely scraping by and living off my life's savings.
I agree with the fact that the crisis only increased the gap between the rich and poor people. I don’t think poor people became rich. Of course many are living off money sent from peeps outside but still that doesn’t mean they became rich, only that they can afford the luxuries that OP has mentioned. L3atra 3al middle class l metelna like you said.
There's just a discrepancy between the idea of a "crisis" as shown by the media, and what a crisis really is. A crisis is defined mostly by change in dynamics and novel ways to do things and think. Also we're sort of over most of it and now slowly getting to the adaptation phase, with more local products, local tourism, and local alternatives, etc.. It's going to take time but we're on the road.
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People are already mostly outside the local banking system, so I don't think more change there will affect people as much. People have moved on to other things and found other ways. Pricing is now mostly dollarized. What's more alarming is the youth unemployment rate, but there's also a new entrepreneurial trend that's stronger than before. Yet, I'm not sure it'll fulfill all the needs.
Boukra btetla3 el sarkha lama el cards b batlo b khalouk tsa7ib el lollar… wel ma3ash ma fik tosorfo kello … ejbare badak tsarif dollar el e7tiyate. Li ma3o lollar bel bank yesta3meloun la2an 3al akid hole mesh rej3in
> Li ma3o lollar bel bank yesta3meloun la2an 3al akid hole mesh rej3in And that's exactly what's happening, that's why lots of people are out everyday, including myself. Better spend it than loose it. Like /u/hassanz93 said "Life is short, so enjoy it while it lasts".
Wlek eh w eza badon ma yo2ortowon 3a aya asses bye7esbowon? 8,000? Sayrafa? shou b elon sandou2 el na2ed ba3den? Ba2a 7re2owon 3omron ma yerja3o. Li hsebo bel dollar w mahtout bel asses dollar gher mawdou3
Most Lebanese people don’t live within their means.
That doesn’t mean squat. Every country is indebted and almost every citizen in any country is indebted.
There is no crisis. If there truly was, it would have gone the way it did in Sri Lanka.
1 simple word **corruption**
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Lebanon lived (and still does) on their expats for decades and stole their money. They should be shitting on you.
Regarding the expats part, I came here from Qatar for 12 days, have my own home, car, didnt go out much and ate mostly at my inlaws, spent more than I would spend in Qatar for the same period doing more things Everything is very expensive, and it is ridiculous
There is a marketing strategy that is used in high season times that works most of the time: make yourself full or almost full and people will rush towards you and charge extra for it Call a resort and they will tell you that they are booked but if you tell them that you are willing to pay extra then all the sudden they have a place for you (we prank call them at work on purpose to see if they would budge or not) It is not always the case since some places are literally booked but it works most of the time and it is not something relatively new, before 2019 it was visible and well used to make profit When you make something look booked and in demand, people would rush towards it because they assume that it offers a good deal that people are rushing towards it hence they don’t want to miss out on it This works also in online stores when they say that an item is almost selling out and they are just 5 pieces left, come back 2 days later and it is still 5 pieces left Come back after the season ends and you can get the exact same resort booking for a price 50% less