Religion still creates a lot of jobs, most of which are probably prosaic, like Hizballah's construction jobs. :-> One of the reasons why religion is capable of sustaining itself, even when and where the secular left have trouble doing so, is that many people voluntarily donate money to their religious institutions, charities, and so forth, and they in turn employ many and provide services to people in need. As most governments in the world have curtailed their social programs, and neoliberal capitalism has and continues to uproot peasants and agricultural laborers and create more precarious service and informal-sector jobs than industrial jobs in the formal sector in many parts of the world, more people than before are likely to turn to religious institutions, charities, etc. Secular leftist organizations (excepting those already in power), not in possession of as much resources as religious institutions, have traditionally put more emphasis on organizing regularly employed workers and others than providing service to the unemployed and the working poor, but, in this day and age, the latter has to be given as much attention as the former, or else a majority of working people have nowhere to turn other than religious institutions. Then again, how?
<http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/828812.html> Last update - 21:50 21/02/2007 Hezbollah construction company scoffs at U.S. decision to freeze assets By The Associated Press
BEIRUT - A Lebanese construction company that the U.S. government said is owned and operated by the militant Hezbollah group scoffed Wednesday at Washington's decision to freeze its assets under U.S. jurisdiction, saying its projects would not be affected by the American measure.
Stuart Levey, the U.S. Treasury Department's undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence, said Tuesday that Hezbollah uses the company, named Jihad al-Bina, for its construction needs and to attract popular support though civilian construction services.
Hezbollah condemned the U.S. decision as a new aggression on Lebanon and Lebanese civilians following last summer's Israel-Hezbollah war.
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"The U.S. Administration continues to classify a number of political organizations and resistance movements according to its hostile political program," a Hezbollah statement, faxed to The Associated Press late Wednesday, said.
It claimed the measure against the Jihad al-Bina came because the company is rebuilding areas destroyed by "the brutal Zionist aggression last summer which occurred with a clear political, military and financial American support."
Hezbollah's media chief, Hussein Rahhal, said he did not know if Jihad al-Bina was owned and operated by the militant group. But a senior Hezbollah official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not allowed to talk to the press, said the company was operated but not owned by Hezbollah.
Kassem Aleiq, director general of Jihad al-Bina, said the company's development projects, mainly in predominantly Shiite Muslim areas in Lebanon, would not be affected by the U.S. decision. He said Jihad al-Bina is a not-for-profit development and services group.
This matter does not concern us. Our projects and programs to serve our people will continue and will not be affected, Aleiq said.
Our work is within our (Shiite) community, villages and towns all inside Lebanon. Any project we carry out is covered under the country's laws, he added.
Jihad al-Bina, or construction for the sake of the holy struggle, rebuilds homes damaged in Israeli attacks and provides water and garbage collecting services to residents of southern and eastern Lebanon.
The U.S. State Department has placed Hezbollah, a Shiite Muslim group supported by Iran and Syria, on its list of international terrorist organizations. -- Yoshie <http://montages.blogspot.com/> <http://mrzine.org> <http://monthlyreview.org/>