Introduction to the evening news 14-12-2011

To strike or not to strike, that is the question! History repeats itself every time teachers decide to go on strike: it’s chaos.

A decision to strike exists but not all parties are committed to it: some schools will abide by it, while others will open there doors despite the absence of teachers, which will eventually translate into a no-classes episode. Some buses will go on their daily round to pick up students who will remain without an education if teachers do not show up. Therefore, strike or no strike, tomorrow, there will be chaos. 

Another hot-button issue on the menu today is “the shoe talk” at parliament. The verbal spar between MPs Nawaf Moussawi and Sami Gemayel erupted on the backdrop of the heated debate regarding the very controversial Hezbollah’s telecoms network in Tarshish. This exchange in verbal insults prompted Speaker Berri to ask to erase it from the minutes, but can it be erased from the memories?

The heat emanating from Nejmeh square was met with a rather cold and calm cabinet session in the Grand Serial. In fact, ministers agreed on subsidizing diesel oil by lifting the VAT imposed on it.