Petro Elite makes sense in its own logic

Petro Elite (here). Now here me out. 10452 km2 is Lebanon's supposed area (Shebaa farms included if you must know), so Petro Elite which started as "Antelias needed correct diesel" - now goes "10,452 km2 needs correct diesel". Logical in its own logic. But one must be aware of the original campaign, and since it was not exactly widespread, confusion is indeed permissible in this case. To them it was stretching it out, because yes, you start with one area and then cover the whole country (well, supposedly that is, as I have no idea about their logistics), but as I said, independently the ad can be tricky to understand with the prerequisite which - apart from my own coverage - kind of went below the radar.

Petro Elite, funky line and small logo

Petro Elite, well seems there is a reason I have not heard of them. Apparently they operate between Antelias and Baabda. Look the ad does what it is supposed to do - look and it and remember it (oddly, for once a bigger logo would have helped), because the line is cute, funky, and it rhymes. "Mazout Mazbout" (a correct - read not cheated - diesel). OK, the ad does add a lot of other info as well, some of it too small in typo to be read from afar on the highway. But the line works. As I said, it needed a bigger logo paradoxically.

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Honest Petroleum - with a hint of basic instinct

Let's face it, Honest Petroleum just did what no ad should do - rely on sex appeal, shoot with whatever means, play on cheopo visuals (see the ad here). Say whatever you want about exploiting women, and give as much as you want about gender abuse. I myself saw the ad about 6 times, and now can lecture you, less effectively to be honest, about the merits of green diesel being sold at the best prices. Of course, in 2024, as I said - you can go ethics for days, or just simply capitulate and say the ad works. Very well actually. And yes, I still saw hints of Sharon Stone in Basic Instinct with that white dress.

Lebanon: Hoping for a very, very mild winter

Artwork by Tarek Chemaly

As an agriculture engineer I understand the need for water during winter, that constant drizzle of water that is coming - neither too slowly nor too fast - for the soil to be able to absorb it. I also understand the need for snow, which, when melting feeds the rivers that in turn feeds the irrigation of crops.

As a Lebanese citizen who yesterday endured a power outage from 4 A.M. till 7:13 P.M., who has nightmares about filling the diesel tank (large diesel tank!) to feed the central heater for the house (large house!), and who is worried sick that the price of diesel is skyrocketing, and who is even more worried that there would be no power to be able to generate heat to begin with, I am currently hoping for a mild winter.

A very, very mild winter.

Sure, economically I understand the need to eliminate the subsidy on prices - which is of course, paradoxical. As an economist (yes, am an economist too) I get it. I also understand the subsidized prices were choking us. But as a human being with an elderly mother - who is already cold in the heat of the summer - I am in that conundrum of perplexed and perplexing thoughts pulling me both ways. Ergo, the hope for a mild winter.

A very, very mild winter.

Honestly, yesterday's power outage freaked me out so bad - not because it happened. I managed to read a full book yesterday since internet was down anyway, and since I inherited about a thousand books, so might as well read them. It freaked me out because I was thinking if this was a winter day, with no electricity all day long, with little to no lights coming from outside, with steep cold (I am almost athermic in terms of body, I rarely feel heat or cold) that would really annoy my mother, this would have been a total nightmare, even if there was diesel in the tank (which would be useless as it needs power to be turned on). Did I mention I was hoping for a mild winter?

A very, very mild winter.

In Lebanon, there is a proverb that goes: "bayn tishrin w tishrin sayf tene" (between October - in Arabic called tishrin el awal - and November - in Arabic called - tishrin el tene, there's another summer). I was hoping this would extend to December (in Arabic called kanoun el awal) and January (in Arabic called kanoun el tene) so that the proverb becomes "bayn kanoun w kanoun sayf tene". In English that would translate into - a mild winter.

A very, very mild winter.