"Lebanon" & "Beirut" related terms used to describe something negative

[Rabih]

Owen baulks at Beirut, but agrees rail must go
ABC Newcastle
May 03, 2012 11:46:25


Rubble in southern Beirut.

... Newcastle Liberal MP Tim Owen says he would not compare the inner-city to Beirut, but agrees with former Premier Nick Greiner that the rail line removal will be a catalyst for renewal ...

... His bleak assessment of Newcastle as being "like Beirut on a bad Friday night" prompted this response from Tim Owen.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-05-0...e&section=news

[Rabih]

Newcastle's Rail line: Beirut on a bad Friday night?
03/05/2012 , 7:47 AM by Hannah Thompson
ABC Sydney

http://blogs.abc.net.au/nsw/2012/05/...day-night.html (there are even audio recordings on this link)

[Rabih]

Asma Jahangir says govt has no control in Balochistan
Pakistan Today
Thursday, 3 May 2012 11:25 am



... She said all the institutions have to work within their limits for the betterment of general masses.
She expressed grave concern over the Lyari operation and compared the situation in the area to that of Beirut.
She urged the media and civil society to play their role in making Pakistan a prosperous country.

http://www.pakistantoday.com.pk/2012...n-balochistan/ (I know 1 guy this is gonna piss off)

[Rabih]

Newcastle 'like Beirut' says infrastructure chief
MICHELLE HARRIS - Newcastle Herald
03 May, 2012 11:06 AM

... Speaking at a Hunter Valley Research Foundation function at state Parliament yesterday, Infrastructure NSW chairman and former Liberal premier Nick Greiner issued a blunt assessment of the central business district of NSW's second city as "looking a bit like Beirut on a bad Friday night".

"So you've got a choice. You leave the CBD looking a bit like Beirut on a bad Friday night, or you get rid of the rail line. I do think it's as simple as that."...

http://www.theherald.com.au/news/loc...f/2542904.aspx

[Rabih]

It's been a busy 24 hours for bigots around the world

[wissarb]

La2 njala2o le pakisteniyeh.. This Amsa Jahaniger should have expresssed grave concern regarding her hideous face, mesh manzar. Does she really expect elsewise from a country that have always ranked one of the lowest on HDI? Let's have her sorry ass sued for defamation and slander, jst for the fun of it.

ABC, or better said, ZBC, is long debunked, no need to dwell further here.

[wissarb]

Local streets 'like Beirut'
Residents complaining about state of roads
By Karolyn Coorsh
June 8, 2012

Donwoods Drive is a doozy.

A gateway residential street to Hoggs Hollow, the steep swath of pavement can rattle teeth and bones. It practically crumbles beneath the weight of a bike or car.

“This is the worst road in the city,” says a cyclist struggling through the intricate maze of ruts and pockmarks on a sunny May afternoon.

Standing off to the side, councillor Jaye Robinson nods in agreement.

It’s nothing she hasn’t heard before.

“The residents email me and say, ‘We feel like these are the streets of Beirut, not a Toronto neighbourhood’.

“If you’re cycling or driving, it’s just a mess.”

...

http://www.mytowncrier.ca/local-stre...ke-beirut.html

[Rabih]

‘Disgraceful’ run-down area of Aylesbury that looks ‘more like Beirut’
Published on Monday 18 June 2012 11:34

Disused, damaged garages and dumped rubbish are making an area of Aylesbury look ‘more like Beirut’.

The area, just off Whaddon Chase and Cromwell Avenue, has been used as a dumping ground for old beds, clothes, furniture and other items, and there are concerns it may also be the site of criminal activity.

He added: “You wouldn’t expect that in Aylesbury.

“It looks more like Beirut.”

A spokesman for the The Vale of Aylesbury Housing Trust said: “The trust is aware of the condition of the garages.

http://www.bucksherald.co.uk/news/lo...irut-1-3963291

[Rabih]

Wrexham was branded ‘Little Beirut’ by a paramedic - comment now
by Steve Bagnall, DPW West
Jun 20 2012

A PARAMEDIC described Wrexham as “Little Beirut” after a survey found the town centre had one of the highest incidents of violent crime in Britain.

...

When asked what people thought of the survey Starlight Paramedics replied: “Agree it’s a nightmare for us paramedics, we call it Little Beirut.”..

http://www.dailypost.co.uk/news/nort...5578-31220230/

[wissarb]

The reason why I posted this tv series promo under such a thread, is obviously the redundant attribution of the arab world, Beirut in this case here, to terrorism/Al Qaeda/ and war on terror - the usual hollywood stunts at saving the world from terror threats but the ones they inflict better than no one else.

Based on an Israeli series, and actually filmed in Tel Aviv. What are the chances, right?

[Beiruti]

Do these scenes actually take place in "Beirut"? I didnt hear that mentioned.

[wissarb]

Originally Posted by Beiruti

Do these scenes actually take place in "Beirut"? I didnt hear that mentioned.

Wikipedia the show u can read more about its episode content there.

[Rabih]

I'm actually watching this show, parts of season 1 took place in Baghdad and yes the Middle East city of choice for season 2 is Beirut.. And like wissarb said they've shot the supposedly Beirut scenes in Tel Aviv..

Season 2 just started, let me watch it and I'll review the "Beirut" stereotypes, if any..

And by the way if you're a fan of political thrillers like 24, I highly recommend this one. Clair Danes is just great

[Hassoun]

Can't they just leave Beirut alone?!!!!

[Rabih]

A good piece by Michael Karam published in UAE's the National today

Hollywood adopts flag of convenience for Beirut portrayals
Michael Karam
Oct 11, 2012



When is Beirut not Beirut? When Fox 21 studios wants it to look like the Gaza Strip on a bad day. I kid thee not.

In the week that the Beirut Film Festival tried to restore some lustre to Lebanon's tarnished image, global television viewers were treated to season two of the CIA thriller Homeland.

Episode two, "Beirut is back", was set in a city purporting to be, yes, you got it, Beirut, but was apparently filmed in locations across Israel.

It was misrepresentation at its most outrageous and, apart from a few indignant posts on the social media, no one really appears to care about this blatant attack on what little brand equity Lebanon has accrued.

Our ministry of tourism has blown a small fortune in the past decade trying to sell Lebanon as the Middle East's Juan les Pins and not Tehran-On-Sea.

It is not the first time the capital has been unfairly treated by the American entertainment industry.

The opening scenes of The Insider show Al Pacino opening the window on to no Beirut I have ever seen, while in Delta Force, Chuck Norris battled his way through a Lebanon that made Kabul look like Las Vegas.

Brands are guarded jealously. Just think of the Olympic rings, the use of the term Fifa World Cup and how the external communication departments of the world's luxury goods can get worked up into an almost psychotic lather over how their products are portrayed.

The same is true for countries. Who can say Malaysia without completing the annoyingly brilliant "Truly Asia" jingle or hum "Incredible India" as an elephant trundles into yet another glorious sunset?

New Zealand, a country that was known for sheep, rugby and little else, has in the last decade become one of the world's most sought-after destinations, much of it down to the success of The Lord of the Rings trilogy.

Lebanon also has a brand of sorts - one that we have been steadily cultivating, despite the odd war and security hiccup. Somehow, we have been able to shoehorn Beirut into the global consciousness for all the right reasons. We had ditched the raving, bearded Kalashnikov-wielding madman image and convinced the world we live to party.

CNN thinks we are cool, as does a legion of feature writers from the travel sections of the international press who came and cooed.

We swamped the world with our fashion sense, our joie de vivre and images of doe-eyed Lebanese beauties, and we dazzled with our steel and glass skyline. We tantalised with our food and restaurants.

With this kind of accumulated equity you would think that those savvy people at the ministry of tourism would zealously protect our image as the most glamorous city in the Levant and chase out of town anyone who sought to caricature Lebanon as Al Qaeda central. As if anyone would dare.

Well, Fox dared. "Beirut is Back" had none of the bling and the glamour that fairly or unfairly has come to define modern Lebanon.

The cars were those ancient and ropy Mercedes from central casting, but the reality is that there are probably more Porsche Cayennes per capita in Beirut than there are in Stuttgart.

Beirut airport looked like it was teleported to El Salvador, while the CIA's Carrie Mathison, played by Claire Danes, felt compelled to wear a hijab.

Yes, all the clichés were rolled out to ensure that Lebanon was portrayed as a hostile, western-hating and conservative Arab country. Why? Because that was the vibe the show's producers wanted.

Clearly we thought we were doing enough.

When CNN's Richard Quest barked his way through a report on how the Lebanese grooved on down like no nation on Earth and how every rooftop in Beirut resembled the last days of Pompeii, it made not a jot of difference to an entertainment industry that insists Beirut is still more Kim Philby than Kim Kardashian. This is, I suppose, our lot in life.

http://www.thenational.ae/thenationa...rut-portrayals

[Hebrewtext]

Originally Posted by wissarb

The reason why I posted this tv series promo under such a thread, is obviously the redundant attribution of the arab world, Beirut in this case here, to terrorism/Al Qaeda/ and war on terror - the usual hollywood stunts at saving the world from terror threats but the ones they inflict better than no one else.

Based on an Israeli series, and actually filmed in Tel Aviv. What are the chances, right?

Lebanon = Hizbullastan

the western cultured Christians and some others are a minority,

it was filmed around the rundown areas of south Tel Aviv and Jaffa.

[Rabih]

That's what you're government wants you to believe to legitimize it's lust for war.

You may think you live in the most democratic society in the region, but you're nothing more than propaganda-brain-washed haters, I pity you.

[wissarb]

Israel = Colonialism & Apartheid

Hebrewtext = Trolltext

[NorthPole]

Originally Posted by Marco Polo

Grozny. Sarajevo.

You see? Not so bad! You have competition!

[Rabih]

Notorious street was dubbed 'Little Beirut'

WOODCOCK Street became notorious after a number of families moved out because of incre-ased levels of crime.

In 2002 the Mail reported how those who stayed behind described it as living in "hell on earth" and "Little Beirut".

Since then, a programme of regeneration has begun, with empty houses being demolished to stop vandalism and arson.

The St Andrew's Square develop-ment, comprising 106 new homes, has transformed the area alongside the 38-home Junella Fields scheme.

They are two of only a few schemes to be completed as part of the Gateway regeneration scheme, which was abandoned by the Government in 2010.

http://www.thisishullandeastriding.c...ail/story.html