Egypt and Friends

So, by now, I'm sure that you've all heard of the recent political unrest in Egypt, Tunisia, Jordan, Yemen, and Saudi Arabia, and in my mind there are really two major questions that everyone has to ask themselves. First, why now? What events andsocial platforms have led to the launch of such across the board, revolution (if I may call it that). Second, what will be the results? How will these upheavals affect the society of the countries in quesstion, and how will the United States, and the global community, deal with this recent turn of events?

My logic dictates that in order to understand a situation, we must first understand its roots. So, I'll first be providing a brief analysis of what I feel are the prime factors which led this to happening. The first is quite simple: hunger. 40 percent of the population lives on the equivalent of $2 USD per day, and use the Egyptian equivalent of the food stamp system. When this program was cut with so many others recently, the conditions were ripe for turmoil. Second, of course, is the constant "State of Emergency" (glorified marshal law) imposed on Eg\pt since the assassination of Anwar Sadat in 1981. Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak has used his power to act in a dictatorial sense, only putting on the show of running for election, just as Saddam Hussein did in Iraq. Many claim that Mubarak was generally benevolent, and I'm sure as far as dictators go he was quite the standup guy, but that's like saying he was the best looking car in a junkyard. He still isn't worth much. His State of Emergency has led to wrongful imprisonment, abuse of the Egyptian justice system, a curfew, and stifled personal freedoms. So, as we see, without going into too much detail, the Egyptians had reason enough to dislike their leader.

Now, to the present. Multiple factions are now vying for control of the tumultuous Egyptian state. Student protestors peacefully hold mass gatherings in the street. Egyptian citizens, taking ideas from their Tunisian counterparts, have used self-immolation as a means of calling attention to the situation. Many believe that a more violent approach must be taken. This leads me off on a necessary tangent. I find it appaling that most U.S. news networks fail to protray the brutality of these protests,and continue to claim that they are nonviolent. People were and are machinegunned down in the streets. The military stands by, yes, but the local police forces, corrupted by so many years of evil, have resorted to killing protestors. It's truly a shame to have to resort to Al Jazeera and Egyptian YouTubers to get real information, but when Anderson COoper gets punched in the face ten times in ten minutes, and CNN continues to call the protests "rowdy" and "tumultuous" instead of "violent," we are duped into believing something that just isn't true. And so, back to the present, we have the Muslim Brotherhood trying to gain control as well, and we have the loyalist pro-Mubarak forces. So, it's looking more and more like a revolution, with molotov cocktails, bullets, and rocks, flyiing through the air.

And finally, the future. We caan only hope that this revolution creates a State which actually affords freedoms and lberties, but at the same time moderately deals with its neighbors. And though it's been done in the past, such as with the Czech Republic, East Germany, and of course the U.S.A. (each one adding its own twist to the term "revolution), the hope here is still quite fleeting. The Muslim brotherhood wants to enforce its own brand of radicalized Sharia Law. Student protestors could win out and provide a liberalized democracy, the more moderate to conservative Egyptian citizens could ain a foothold and establish a Republican State, and of course, though Mubarak has stated he will not run for reelection, he has also said that he wishes to remain in an advisory role.

As with all things, only time will tell the results of this revolution. The West seems to back former UN Atomic Energy Council Director General (that's a mouthfull) Mohamen ElBaradei has stated he would take over a transitional government, but in reality, many protestors do not like ElBaradei. The effects of a new Egyptian state on Israel, Arab neighbors, Norhth African and European neighbors, and of curse the U.S. has yet to be seen. We can only wait and see what happens as the protests unfold.
I'll be posting my thoughts on the restriction of rights in Egypt and how they relate to rights restrictions here in the U.S. in the ocoming days, so stay tuned. Byut, until then, live ling, prosper, and may the force be with you.

~ Jeffrey