Who let the dogs out?

It’s official, the Lebanese and the Syrians have started insulting each other “doggie-style”.
One of the well-publicized banners held by group of Lebanese youngsters at Gebran Tueiny’s funeral read: “ The rooster of Annahar is stronger than the dogs of the Baath”. Faisal Mekdad, a Syrian diplomat who should have known better responded: “Every time a dog dies in Lebanon you want to start an international investigation?” The Lebanese are furious: “Stop killing us like dogs!”

Our canine friends must love the publicity, but why them? One answer is vocabulary; Take the phrase: “The Lebanese have a dogged determination to be victorious and free”. Or the phrase: “The killers have dogged Gebran till they killed him”, or “The Syrian regime has dug itself a big hole”. Not to mention all the doggerels and other slogans everyone keeps raising, only a few of which are witty enough to be dog-eared.

It would all have been funny if it weren’t too serious. The Syrian regime doesn’t just bark. It also bites.