Starve The Beast

The Beirut Spring has two practical ideas for the Lebanese politicians who are afraid of being the next target.

Idea #1: Get a Secret Santa.
Yesterday, Mr. Jumblat said that Mr. Murr was targeted because he knew too much. Jumblat’s idea resonated well in today’s dailies and throughout the Blogosphere. The killers, his theory goes, were afraid that Murr had something to say that could help find Hariri’s killers.
So the question is: If you do know something about who killed Hariri, how do you fend off an assassination attempt? Here’s my plan:
First step: prepare a signed document with everything that you have to say, clearly written with all the relevant details.
Next, leave that document sealed with someone you trust; someone who preferably lives abroad and who has access to the Lebanese and Arab media.
Next, make a public announcement in the newspapers or on T.V. that you have done this and that you have told your secret trustee (stress that he lives abroad) to make the documents public if anything happens to you.
If Jumblat’s theory is true, you should be safe.

Idea #2: Buy the killers off
Most of the Lebanese suspect that the Syrians are behind the attacks on Lebanese soil. In other words, this is a war between an intelligence-and-terror based governing system, and one that has a free-ish society with a market-based capitalist and democratic system.
So why don’t we use our core strength -our capacity to generate wealth- against our starving neighbor’s assassins? After all, most of the targets are very rich and more than willing to spend to stay alive.
Just announce (as individuals or as a government) that you are willing to pay ten million dollar to everyone who defects from an assassination operation, if he hands in the plans and the explosive material. That, coupled with a witness protection system and a credible promise of amnesty can starve off the killers from executioners.

Parallel to these short-term solutions, reforming the Lebanese intelligence system should be very high on the next government’s agenda. This time, I don’t think Lahhoud will refuse.

These are my ideas. If you have other ones, please feel free to share.