Aoun Returns After 15 Years of Exile

Whee hoo! Way to go, Lebanon! As you may know, I think the Lebanese are the most beautiful people in the world, so obviously I was happy to see Syria get the heck out of there.

I have prepared a few asylum cases for Christian Lebanese and was very affected by the oppression and terror they faced at the hands of the Syrians (e.g. "mysterious" murders, disappearances, etc.) and am very biased on the issue. One of our clients grew up in Beirut, and described--as a side note--watching missiles fly over his father's head as he watched him walk to work. He described how his mother stood on their balcony every day, watching his father until she couldn't see him any more, then waiting again at the end of the day to make sure he returned home. I mentioned to him that must have been a terrifying way to grow up. He seemed surprised that I would think so (he had not been in the U.S. very long at that time). He said, Oh, no, it was just normal.

OK, I know that watching bombs fly over your father's head every day is not enough to qualify as past persecution for the purpose of obtaining asylum in the United States (Ah, well, if I made the rules, it would be). But still, how can you prepare an affidavit describing past persecution when you are coming from completely different starting points, to wit: Growing up, Ugly Juice's biggest fear, was, oh, who knows? Getting my name on the board? Being late for the bus? Having to eat fried eggs for breakfast? Dang.