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I have always been super fascinated
at human's ability to adapt.
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We are so good at holding
onto the things that make us,
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you know, who we are.
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But if there's anything that
can throw a wrench in that idea,
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it's probably 2020.
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But you do have to admit,
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it is pretty awesome
seeing people globally,
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just sort of figure out
new ways to survive.
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Let's just take a second, as an example,
and we'll get Lebanon.
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But I'm going to warn you,
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If you're a vegetarian,
this is probably going to be rough.
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CRISIS DIET
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(Matthew) Since October 2019,
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Lebanon has been on the verge
of economic collapse.
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The revolution will happen!
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(Matthew) For months,
protesters filled Beirut streets,
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demanding an end to the government's
corruption they blame for inflation,
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soaring unemployment,
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and unaffordable food prices.
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The pandemic only made
the situation worse.
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Now, this crisis upon a crisis
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is even changing
the way Lebanese people eat.
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(Maher) We need to start
slaughtering in a bit.
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(Matthew) How long have you
been doing this job?
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(Maher) I've been a butcher
since I was twelve years old.
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(Matthew) For the Lebanese people,
meat is very important in their diet.
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- (Maher) Of course.
- (Matthew) You eat a lot of meat.
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(Maher) We're very used to meat.
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Let's say we have meat almost every day.
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The economy collapsed.
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So the people can't afford
to eat meat anymore.
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I'm one of the people
in the butchery business
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who hasn't had sheep in a month.
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(Matthew) Really?
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(Maher) It used to be
Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday,
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I sell three to four lambs every week.
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Then we started bringing two, then one.
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Then I stopped bringing it altogether.
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It's too expensive
and doesn't sell enough.
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(Matthew) Anxiety about money
has never been higher,
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meaning for many Lebanese
meat is now only for special occasions.
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Like today,
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when Muslims are preparing
to celebrate Eid al-Adha,
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the Feast of the Sacrifice.
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(Maher) Praised be to Allah, who allowed
butchering. Allah is the greatest.
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(Matthew) Traditionally,
that sacrifice is a sheep,
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butchered based on Islamic law
to be Halal.
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(Maher) Run away.
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(Matthew) We're outside the butcher shop
and these guys try to make a run for it
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but, unluckily for them, they were caught.
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(Maher) Put it up, please.
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(Matthew) You slaughter it like that
to make it [permissible,] right?
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(Maher) It's all [permissible.]
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You say, "In the name of Allah,"
to express the good intentions
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of the person making the sacrifice.
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(Matthew) Is it still alive?
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(Maher) Five minutes. OK.
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(Matthew) I'm going to become vegetarian.
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(Maher) Yes, the sight of blood...
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But it's normal.
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(Matthew) But it's a good thing
that one eats meat
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knowing where it comes from.
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This is it.
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This is the filet.
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(Matthew) Families like the Rida,
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who can still afford
a lamb for the holiday,
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are paying double
what they did for sheep last year.
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- Hello.
- Hi, how are you?
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- Now it's all here.
- All of it is in the bags.
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We will distribute all of these now.
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(Tharwat) The family that butchered
the sheep takes a ration.
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Some for their relatives
and the rest for the poor.
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(Matthew) So you've changed
the way you cook
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because of the economic situation?
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(Tharwat) Sure.
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We started eating more vegetables,
which is healthier.
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- We saw this lamb this morning.
- Yeah.
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It was moving.
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Yeah, it was alive.
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Yummy. It's delicious.
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How's your Eid this year?
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There's no Eid this year.
We haven't felt it.
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- Why?
- I mean,
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- because of the situation.
- There's no happiness or joy.
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(Matthew) A 100% increase
in the poverty rate
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means life is changed for most in Beirut.
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(Antoine) Hello.
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(Matthew) Even for Antoine El Hajj,
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a celebrity chef who's hosted
his own daily cooking show
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for the last 30 years.
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(Antoine) We'll first be cooking
cowpeas curry.
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We're cooking this dish
for the first time.
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You're all used to chicken curry,
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but you're not used to cowpeas curry.
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(Matthew) How much have Lebanese kitchen
changed since the coronavirus
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and the economic crisis?
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(Antoine) Since the beginning
of the coronavirus, it's changed a lot.
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The Lebanese people like meat,
including myself.
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I really liked meat.
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But it's been more than four months now,
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and I've eaten kibbeh
(minced meat-stuffed dough) only once.
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And it's impossible for me-- after hosting
a daily TV show for 30 years,
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which everyone watches.
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These people now can't afford
an ounce of meat,
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then I come and work with a kilo of meat.
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It just doesn't make sense.
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On the contrary, I want to be helping out
with the crisis we're facing here.
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That's why we're using recipes
that are good and appropriate,
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and at the same time affordable.
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Today, we made green pea curry,
ma'amoul with walnut,
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and ma'amoul with dates.
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Today's show has ended.
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We'll see you in future episodes,
always on Télé Liban.
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Goodbye.
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(Matthew) Lebanon's dire situation
got even worse in August
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when a massive explosion in Beirut
killed more than 190 people,
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caused billions of dollars
in property damage,
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and destroyed the country's largest port.
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Lebanon had depended on that port
to bring in 80% of its food.
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That reliance on imported food
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has already driven some people
to find solutions
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beyond just switching their diets.
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(Karim) I'm growing like,
I think more than 100 types of foods--
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citrus trees, avocados, mangoes...
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(Matthew) Karim El Hassan
was a cafe owner in Beirut
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before closing up his shop
and returning to his hometown.
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(Karim) My decision to come back was...
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merely just for security.
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I found it really futile to try to seek...
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a flow of income,
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so I can use that
and come and spend it on food,
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while I can actually just grow my own.
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So here's my lab--
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That's a sample of the things
we process on stock.
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Eggplant, cucumbers,
and mekti pickles, some herbs.
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I don't believe
a lot of people are content.
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They're not satisfied
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and they want to continue
affording meat and chicken
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almost on a daily basis,
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which is so unhealthy and it's abnormal.
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The system is setting us up for failure,
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and they're stretching it out
as much as possible.
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They're milking us to the last penny.
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I really fear for the future.
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I don't think we have
a bright future coming.
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You don't have a choice.
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Either you sit and you fight,
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or just migrate, leave.