I was glad to read the following editorial by The Daily Star

The size of the Lebanese Forces gathering that took place on Sunday was nothing like that of Friday’s Hizbullah rally, but the speech delivered by Samir Geagea was reminiscent of the one given by Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah: Each man offered an interpretation of the war with Israel that ended last month, but neither provided much detail in terms of what to do next month - or next year. Both have expressed openness to the idea of renewed and even expanded dialogue, but as Lebanese history has made abundantly clear, occasional expressions of good intentions are not enough to overcome decades of inter-communal mistrust and government mismanagement. Only substantive give-and-take can begin to surmount these obstacles, and Parliament is the only appropriate venue.

Added responsibility therefore rests on the shoulders of Speaker Nabih Berri, whose power and prestige have been enhanced by his conduct during the war but who has failed thus far to make the most of his political rejuvenation. The national legislature has long been a province of Berri’s authority, and the limitations placed on its purviews practices by the Syrians are no more. It is time for Lebanon’s legislators to meet the challenges facing the country head-on by transforming their chamber from a debating club that periodically obstructs the other branches of government into a more business-like institution that unambiguously stakes out its territory and consistently acts assertively within it.

This country needs a Parliament in which MPs can reconcile what are some very different perspectives by hammering out compromises that allow new laws and procedures that serve the interests of all Lebanese. Berri’s chief partner in the carving out of a new space for productive and practical legislative work figures to be Prime Minister Fouad Siniora, but the assistance of people like Geagea and Nasrallah would also be invaluable in communicating to the public that whatever their differences, the country’s political leaders are willing to work together.

When Parliament becomes a factory floor for the manufacture of the new Lebanon, there will still be plenty of time, as should be the case, for spirited debate. The difference will be the existence of a functioning process that keeps the wheels of the state in motion toward today’s clearly defined goals as tomorrow’s are being discussed, all in an adult fashion. Members who want to use incendiary rhetoric will find themselves outnumbered by those who want to work. Polemical exercises will likely remain popular at party rallies, but the legislature will have moved on to a higher order of utility in the service of a people who will emphatically not miss the bad old days.