They say the atmosphere was good, pleasant and warm; that the dialogue was candid, transparent and friendly; and that the two men were quick to find identical, similar and common grounds. The two men practically proved that dispute did not necessarily lead to hostility, and neither one of them touched high voltage lines or got electrocuted. They say the dinner was delicious; salad, dandelion leaves, grilled lamb chops, hommos and other kinds of food that do not threaten the health of the national unity government. They claim that a new page was opened between Prime Minister Michel Aoun and General Fouad Siniora; the spring of accusations will dry up; the school of gripe will change its curricula; forgiveness has folded the page of massacre; and a new era of love has started and will last this time since the two men have shared bread, salt and Gibran.

I know that citizens wish this lunch had taken place right after the July War, even if it had been a feast over ministerial posts, granting the opposition the obstructive third, and letting into the government those who are preparing to join it now. All that would have cut the path of agony short. All that would have spared us the funerals and the tents, and perhaps even paved the road to the palace. All that, however, is in the hands of history now, and according to wisdom, better come the dinner late than never.

An old friendly tie links me to both men, at least from my side. For now, what ties me to them is a line of ink, questions and answers. I met the general in the shelter of the palace almost two decades ago. I saw him repressed in exile, and I met him as an angry leader upon his return. I also knew the "soft and firm" man on his grounds at the ministry of finance, then a master at the Grand Serail after the earthquake, then a besieged captive in the era of tents and camps. This is why I was pleased to hear about the dinner. Alas! Poor intentions are often the spice of writers, may God forgive me!

I had a feeling that the dinner was also an opportunity to savor some feelings of revenge, which is absolutely legitimate in politics, especially that the concerned party felt that he had been unusually mistreated. On the way to Rabieh, Prime Minister Siniora did not miss the fact that it was the general who was inviting him, the very man who led the masses and the slogans to seal the siege around the Serail. Some hypocrites claim that the general was among those wanting to break into the Serail had the others not realized that it was a serious demarcation line among the sectarian, confessional and political powers in the region. He was also aware of the fact that the invitation was issued by someone who has studied psychological war during his military training in France, and that he masters the art of demonizing his opponents, drowning them with accusations, and profiting from playing the victim. Neither did he forget the fact that the general had held him and his team responsible for the debt, waste, and corruption by using his selective memory that at least ignored the role of parties who were active partners in the accused republic.

Nor did Siniora miss the fact that after dinner, he was receiving an envoy from Hezbollah which had lost the way to the Serail after the July War and the sit-in. Siniora may have found some vindication on that day; after all, for two years he had been subject to all forms of accusations, starting with the charge of stealing bread from the people, wasting foreign aid, and collaborating with Condi in the Great Middle East conspiracy. This is not to mention the movements of the Labor Union which only awakes on the eve of national catastrophes. Most likely, Siniora was smiling, and in his mind, he was telling himself that had the accusations been true, the opposition would certainly not have agreed to participate in a national unity government under his premiership. He smiled and savored the pleasure of revenge.

The man behind the invitation also felt the desire to avenge those who two decades ago said his cabinet was an unconstitutional misfit; the desire to avenge the March 14 Movement which did not inaugurate him as its leader as he stepped out of the plane nor did it offer him what he deserved on its electoral lists. And the desire to avenge the March 14 Christians, the Lebanese Forces, Bkirki, and all those who believed that Hariri's blood alone had opened a new page while forgetting the general's stances and guns. Having lost the palace, he punished those who cut him off. His coalition enters the government with an exceptional size. It is the sweetness of revenge.

It is the sweetness of revenge. The opposition fed the majority a cup of poison during the disciplinary operation in Beirut. It fed it the bitter cup of the obstructive third in Doha. The majority responded by feeding the majority the cup of the presidential elections and the cup of returning Siniora to the premiership. Amidst the exchange of bitter and poison cups, a government of national revenge will be born.

They say the dinner was delicious, the "understanding" was deep, and that love between the two men would last since they have shared bread, salt and Gibran.