“Oh, Matt. This is Dr. Mitchell, the head of the Geology Department.” T.J. stepped back as Matt moved to the buffet table. “I was just telling him about you. He’s also one of the scuba diving instructors, so if you want to learn to dive while you’re here, he’s forming classes in two weeks.”
“Pleased to meet you, Matt.” He was overweight and gay. “Beirut is a remarkable place. It’s got some interesting terrestrial and marine geology. The Med’s like a bath tub and the marine life is spectacular.”
Matt smiled politely and begged off. He stuffed a rolled grape leaf into his mouth. Garlic and olive oil filled his senses. “This is going to be a more interesting year than I first imagined.”
Dr. Martin J. Thomas, advisor to the American students, stepped up to the lectern and welcomed the students to the American University of Beirut Junior Year Abroad Program. Matt moved into the large hall to listen.
“… after the welcome remarks by AUB President Dr. Samuel B. Kirkwood, we will be receiving the first of five lectures on the politics and economics of Lebanon and the Middle East by William Fisher of the U.S. State Department.” Matt turned and walked out. He grabbed another beer and sat down on the steps of College Hall. He’d wait for Fisher’s talk. A group of male Arabic students glared at Matt as they walked by. He smiled but they muttered something in Arabic and walked off.
When Matt wandered back into the large hall William Fisher, a tall, lanky man in his late 20’s strode up to the podium and began to speak. Matt found a seat among the other students.
“Most of you have never heard the word terrorist before. But by the time you’re in your forties, terrorism will be a household word and your worst nightmare.”
Thus began an hour and a half of the most riveting political and current affairs lecture Matt and the other students had ever experienced. William Fisher had a firm command of facts and drew conclusions about the future that, to his assembled audience of fresh-faced youth from America, were shocking and unsettling. Back home in America everyone believed the future would be both prosperous and safe, thanks to years of economic and technological superiority and the benefits of freedom and capitalism. Even now they were ridding Vietnam of the communists and preserving peace.
“The greatest threat to peace in the next two to three decades will be the sudden and prolific spread of refugee camps. Right now the center of attention seems to be on the Palestinian refugee camps in southern Lebanon, but in the years to come there will be more and more concentrations of uprooted people living in poor and squalid conditions. Recognized by no country, they will have no legal citizenship, no adequate representation, and no hope. This is the deadly mix that will spawn a massive rise in terrorism, and it won’t stop at regional boundaries-it will inflame the entire world.”
Matt looked around. Todd was sitting next to Anne-Marie, who was sitting rigid, engrossed in what was being said. On the other side of the room, Brian and Susan were whispering to each other. He had his arm around her.
“When young people have no hope, no dreams, no outlet for their desire to create something positive, then out of frustration and anger they will focus their energy on ways to destroy. Youth who grow up in crowded refugee camps are the perfect prey for sinister organizations around the world that wish to destroy any hopes of peace.
“And why would they want to destroy? For profit. They make money when peace is shattered and countries go to war.” Fisher took a drink of water and looked out at the fresh faces of America’s youth. “Who are these people? They are the international arms dealers, the suppliers of traditional as well as chemical weapons, and of course the armed mercenaries. And there are many shadowy organizations who stir up conflict to generate profit. By sponsoring regional and global terrorism, they can line their own pockets with millions and millions of dollars. They hold allegiance to no country, religion or political doctrine. Their only devotion is profit, their only allegiance, power.”
Anne-Marie clapped. All heads turn towards her. Both she and Todd sank down in their seats. “And the thirst of angry refugees for arms and ammunition will lead to a rise in the growth, manufacture and distribution of illegal drugs, which will become the prime currency for funding terrorist activities. Terrorists may disguise their motives under a banner of religious or political injustice, but the organizations supplying them with arms don’t have noble disguises. Their motive is greed-pure, unadulterated, transparent greed, and on a scale that the world has never seen before. Global greed.”
William Fisher paused. Only twenty-eight years old and on his first assignment overseas, he was already one of the brightest stars in the State Department. He took a sip of water.
“Because of the weakness of President Helou and the current Lebanese administration, a deep divide is growing within the Lebanese Parliament. On one side are the Muslim Lebanese, who consider the Arab position in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict a sacred cause. Opposing them, the Christian Lebanese, who are fanatical about the continued independence of Lebanon and who worry about their own security in light of the rising tide of terrorism. This schism within the Parliament is the opening the terrorists and their financial backers need to dramatically increase their presence and support. I predict that the newly organized Palestinian Liberation Organization, and other so-called political action groups, will quickly transform themselves into ruthless global terrorists.
“I wish I could see a more optimistic future for this beautiful country, but I’m afraid all signs point to Lebanon as the battleground upon which terrorists, Israelis, the Western world, and surrounding Arab countries will wage war. And that war will escalate to engulf the entire world.”
“Is there any good news?” Todd Cummings called out, waving his hand in the air.
“The best solutions often begin with the best questions, Mr. Cummings,” replied William Fisher. “The good news is that there are various nations, including the United States, that are quietly trying to support President Helou and bring the two factions in Parliament closer together. We hope these efforts will prevent, or at least delay, the spread of terrorism. In addition, certain nations are working hard to gather information on terrorist groups and their supporters. The more we know about their plans, organizations, sources of income and where they get their weapons, the better chance we have of preventing the deaths of thousands of innocent people around the world.”
“You mean to tell us these terrorists will target civilians instead of the military?” asked Matt, dumbfounded at the thought of deliberately killing innocent people just to make a point on the world stage.
Anne-Marie Khoury jumped up. “Have you ever been to a refugee camp before, Mr. Fisher?”
“No.”
“So you’ve never spoken with the mothers, the children, the abandoned old men, the eager young people who can’t find work other than being garbage collectors, brick layers, housemaids, or kitchen workers? These people used to have homes, they used to have land. They once had a nation, Palestine. All of which was stolen from them by the Zionists, with the blessing of many of these same Western nations who you say are now so afraid of terrorism. Well, in case it slipped your mind, you guys helped create this mess.” She pointed dramatically at Fisher, her hand shaking. “Why can’t you see that the problem really lies with Israel and the West, and not the Palestinians?”
“Believe it or not, Ms. Khoury, I agree with you.” T.J.’s Nikon flashed a photo of the young woman pointing angrily at the speaker. “We did create this mess; it’s arrogant Western colonialism that’s to blame. But what most people fail to realize is these refugees, whom you so passionately defend, are the unwitting pawns in a much bigger game of global terror perpetrated by shadowy people with no morals at all. They won’t be fighting in a conventional manner for political or religious rights. They will be systematically murdering innocent women and children, office workers and shop attendants, restaurant staff, Israelis, Arabs, Palestinians, Christians, Muslims, Jews, Europeans, and even Americans. One day it may even happen on American soil. And there will be no warning. Just a massive explosion or a burst of machine-gun fire. They are mass murderers whose only motive is greed, and right now the displaced and disheartened Palestinians are their cannon fodder.”
“Professor Fisher?” Brian Walker stood up. “Or should I call you 007? This sounds like another one of those righteous speeches that the rich capitalists give to justify keeping the rest of the world permanently in the Stone Age. Are you dudes looking for another Vietnam? I doubt if you’ll do any better here than you’re doing over there. And all in the name of freedom, or so you say.”
The speaker smiled. “Let’s have this discussion at the end of the school year, Mr. Walker, after you’ve been here a while. I’d be curious to see if any of your views have been altered by living in the real world, and not just on an American university campus.”
“Well.” Dr. Thomas said, coming up on the podium at the end of William Fisher’s presentation. “It looks like
