Of elephants and hot potatoes

Lebanon is a wealthy country. In principle. It has all sorts of assets – land, water, industry, skilled workers and competitive professionals, a deep education system, touristic and cultural treasures, seasonal agricultural outputs and the related agro-industry, and so forth. Some of the country’s assets are well known to the point of hyperbole, such as the trade-link location at the crossroads of cultures and the marvelously sized external economic network of expatriates.  Beyond – for a small country sizeable – their number and complexity, Lebanon’s assets have stories that are as disturbing as they are particular. Some publicly controlled assets, for example in telecommunications, are more tangible and quantifiable than others but have underperformed under state tutelage. Other intangible ones, such as the culinary culture and the ability to attract visitors, have shown vacillating performances in reflection of regional and international factors. While the tale of domestic transportation assets has been