The ministry of internal affairs has started its preparatory campaign for the 2013 elections by telling people to check their name on the voters lists before March 10th, which I told you to do a few days ago (link).
As part of its attempt at getting the Lebanese voter to feel more involved, especially that it pertains to bureaucratic stuff most people don’t want to feel concerned with, they have launched the following funny ad, which plays on the different types of Lebanese people who might be “violated” by errors on the lists:
The last 2 seconds of the ad are beyond hilarious, which is probably what might get some people to go to this website (link) and check if their name is correctly listed.
And if you thought the Roum Catholic part is far-fetched, just check out this screenshot (link) from the lists of my hometown.
OTV is currently running this Election Law promo ad in support of the “Orthodox Gathering Law” championed by the political party running OTV, the Free Patriotic Movement.
Here’s the ad:
I know firsthand that many people think this way – but to turn shameful political gossip that goes on behind closed doors into an ad that’s supposed to convince others of the same rhetoric is taking it way too far. This ad disgusts me.
But let me do what the ad does and say the following:
My name is Elie. I’m a Maronite from Batroun. At least that’s what my ID says *flashes new ID to the camera.* No matter what I do, I’ll be voting for Maronites. I don’t want to vote for Maronites only because I don’t believe they represent me.
You didn’t expect that now, did you?
There’s a fine line between proving a political point which I’m sure Aoun’s many MPs and politicians (à la son-in-law prodigy Gebran Bassil) are more than capable of doing and what the ad is all about. After all, part of the reason why I changed my opinion regarding the Orthodox Law (click here) was seeing an FPM MP named Simon Abi Ramia go on and on for ten minutes about how the Sunni vote is “killing off” Christians by drowning them out and choosing MPs that do not represent them. Such sectarian messages from MPs and TV promos such as the one in this post should not and will not be tolerated on any form of television.
Here’s a word for the politicians who believe that MPs selected by Sunnis do not represent me:
I, a Maronite Christian as we’ve already (and nauseatingly – because that’s a point that resonates apparently) established feel more represented by Nabil De Freige, Atef Majdalani, Samer Saadeh etc.. than by Assad Hardan or Emile Rahmeh.
You know what’s ironic? The FPM is supposed to be a “secular” party. At least that’s what my FPM-supporting friends kept shoving down my throat when I expressed discomfort with their party. “Oh you’re just being a Christian extremist” they said. “We embrace everyone,” they said.
The way I see it, the only thing the FPM is embracing lately with these disturbingly bad ads, with their horribly divisive rhetoric is a rising bout of Christian extremism. And Christian extremists today do not represent me.
Enjoy the ad by the only people in the country who care for your rights as Christians. Because, you know, Lebanon is made for you and no one else.
“Aux-armes, Chrétiens! Formez vos bataillons! Marchons, marchons! Qu’un sang impur (those darned Muslims) n’abreuve pas nos votes!” (this is a play on the French national anthem and translates to: to your arms, Christians. Form your battalions. Walk on, walk on so that impure blood doesn’t water down our votes.”) – this is the new slogan for the 2013 Elections.
Be ready for a lot of “we tried to restore your rights but THEY *points finger* didn’t let us” speeches over the next few months.
I blogged several months ago about a great ad video by Lebanese Brew: Courage is Contagious.
The message behind that video was about the importance of being courageous enough to be free in life. And it extremely well done.
Well, who knew Lebanese Brew can come back with an even better campaign this time around?
Not straying away from their previous message, the Try Something Brave campaign is here: Going out of your comfort zone and doing things that you never thought you’d do, on the last summer on Earth.
All of these amazing ads are part of a video that has creativity & ingenuity written all over it:
Can I say brilliant? Can I say awesome? Can I say I got goosebumps?
This is probably the first time I’d want to try something after an ad campaign. I really want to have some Lebanese Brew right now.
Check out the campaign’s website by clicking (here) – it will redirect you to their Facebook page where a countdown for a smartphone app (for both iOS and android) is taking place. Almost 90 hours to go until you can get the app and try something brave. I’ll make sure to let you know about the app too.
Cheers to Lebanese creativity!
Update: The agency that did these is Interesting Times. I mention this because I think these ads are such a breath of fresh air that I need to congratulate the agency, even though they don’t need me. They have this feel of Lebanese friends sitting together and coming up with them – very authentic and very refreshing. A job truly well done, Interesting Times!
With each passing year, we have two different days to celebrate our parents: one for our mothers and another for our fathers. The latter takes a very far backseat compared to the former.
But Exotica isn’t happy with the status quo.
No one ever forgets mother’s day, but Father’s day is not commonly celebrated. This time, Exotica is dedicating one whole week for our fathers, they surely deserve more! Show them how much they mean to you and how much you love them this week!
And they have an absolutely awesome ad as well.
Great job Exotica. I guess I need to start thinking about a birthday/Father’s day gift for my own father. Yes, my dad was born on Father’s Day. Makes him all the more awesome.
I am most definitely not into the Beirut clubbing scene. But this ad is simply awesome and it comes after a series of ads circulating the Lebanese scene that are also really well-made: the Fransabank ad, the Lebanese Brew ad or the Nadine Labaki Johnnie Walker one.
This ad, however, is not about a beer and not about a bank’s history. It’s simply about a new nightclub in Beirut called MAD Beirut. I had first seen the ad in my friend Ali El Dali‘s post about it, which he titled: This is what Beirut is all about.
While I disagree with Ali that this ad encompasses all that is Beirut, it showcases an aspect of the Lebanese population that many take for granted: the liveliness.
“Because you rocked the world, you shocked the world, you changed the world.”
A Separate State of Mind | A Blog by Elie Fares 
