could the geopolitical realities outweigh our desire for other people to enjoy the rights that we have?our desire? Is that what's important here?
It absolutely amazes me that it's possible to shut down even wireless networks but I guess they need towers and those can be disabled. Actually amaze is incorrect. Fucking terrifies me is more accurate.Cell towers are just like huge WiFi routers. Just like you still need to plug a WiFi router into a regular Ethernet port/DSL or Cable line, the Cell Towers need their own internet connection (or they might link to a phone companies internal network, which will then take your requests out onto the internet)
I'm mostly computer-illiterate...but...is there anything that people on the rest of the Internet can do to help, at least with regard to the net access?Not really, but how long can they keep this up? Lots of businesses rely on the internet working. I assume that's true in Egypt too.
That's a nice thought, but if the consequences are bad for the values of our societyIn other words, what if they vote for the wrong people?
e.g: what the Suez canal becomes outside of the control of Western influence. Yes, our energy policies have made us dependent on the canal to the extent that we are.Actually, most of the oil we use comes from Canada and Venezuela, as well as local production.
Members of the Rendition Group follow a simple but standard procedure: Dressed head to toe in black, including masks, they blindfold and cut the clothes off their new captives, then administer an enema and sleeping drugs. They outfit detainees in a diaper and jumpsuit for what can be a day-long trip. Their destinations: either a detention facility operated by cooperative countries in the Middle East and Central Asia, including Afghanistan, or one of the CIA's own covert prisons -- referred to in classified documents as "black sites," which at various times have been operated in eight countries, including several in Eastern Europe.posted by notion at 7:40 PM on January 27, 2011 [27 favorites]
In the months after the Sept. 11 attacks, the CTC was the place to be for CIA officers wanting in on the fight. The staff ballooned from 300 to 1,200 nearly overnight.
"It was the Camelot of counterterrorism," a former counterterrorism official said. "We didn't have to mess with others -- and it was fun." (source)
If most of our oil production was domestic, then it would also be true that most of oil comes from Canada and Venezuela, as well as local production, since the second is a superset of the first.Actually, most of the oil we use comes from Canada and Venezuela, as well as local production.No, most of it, just barely, is domestic.
We'll spit through the streets of the cities we wreckposted by orthogonality at 7:54 PM on January 27, 2011 [6 favorites]
And we'll find you a leader that you can elect
Those treaties we signed were a pain in the neck
'Cause we're the Cops of the World, boys
We're the Cops of the World
And when we['ve] butchered your sons, boys
When we['ve] butchered your sons
Have a stick of our gum, boys
Have a stick of our bubble gum
We own half the world, oh say can you see
And the name for our profits is democracy
So, like it or not, you will have to be free
'Cause we're the Cops of the World, boys
We're the Cops of the World
Jim Lehrer: Has the time come for president Mubarak of Egypt to go... to stand aside?Video and Transcript.
Joe Biden: No. I think the time has come for President Mubarak to begin to move in the direction that to be more responsive to some of the needs of people out there.
Peter Bouckaert of Human Rights Watch: We are in East Alexandria. Immediately after prayer, the people came out of mosque with banners and started marching, shouting 'we are peaceful, we are peaceful'. Security arrived and immediately began shooting teargas and rubber bullets at peaceful protesters, about 600. Then one-hour rock throwing clash, but police didn't advance more than one block and kept being pushed back. Then a massive column of protesters came from the other direction and blocked in police, holding up their hands and shouting we are peaceful. Right now police is held up in the yard of mosque and protesters all around, police can't move. They repeatedly ran out of teargas and begged protesters to stop, protesters telling them to join them.
(later) The police have now given up fighting the protesters. The police and protesters are now talking, with protesters bringing water and vinegar (for teargas) to the police. Afternoon prayer has just been called and hundreds are praying in front of the mosque in east Alexandria.posted by memebake at 5:47 AM on January 28, 2011 [14 favorites]
Currently, we're being told that large numbers of plainsclothes police officers and security officers are going through the streets covering parked cars with gasoline. The activists expect that the govt plans to light all the cars on fire, claim that the protesters were burning everything, and use that as a pretext to use severe violence to repress the protests, and eliminating all means for the people to relay the truth out of the country.It worked for the TPS at the G20.
They are being told by sources within the regime that very large groups of govt-organized thugs, calling themselves "ikhwan al-Haq" [a group never heard of, roughly translated as "brotherhood of truth"], are going to be in the streets with knives, swords, etc..., attacking and killing protesters in the streets tomorrow [Friday]; they don't know whether this may be deliberately and falsely leaked to discourage demonstrators; but they do see evidence that these groups are being organized. they may also claim that these violent groups are the demonstrators as a pretext to use violence on the real demonstrators.
Mubarak's regime has been wounded at its core, and even if he survives in the short run the regime will have to make major internal changes to regain any semblance of normality. An Egyptian regime which spends the next years in a state of military lockdown will hardly be a useful ally. ...posted by Joe Beese at 9:28 AM on January 28, 2011 [4 favorites]
Accepting Mubarak's fierce gambit now would put an end to any claim the United States has of promoting democracy and reform for a generation, and alienating the rising youth generation on which the administration has placed so much emphasis. It would also make Cairo the graveyard of Obama's Cairo speech and efforts to rebuild relations with the Muslims of the world. The United States will be better positioned to push such changes in the right direction if it maintains a strong and principled position today -- regardless of whether Mubarak or someone else ends up in control. The cautious strategy right now is the same as the principled one, whether Mubarak falls or if he survives.
In recent days, we expressed our hopes that all parties in Egypt, but especially the Mubarak administration, would act with restraint and show full respect for the peaceful expression of political opinion. We are saddened at the loss of life. We wish to express our solidarity with the Egyptian people and look forward to working with all democratic forces in Egypt to ensure the full exercise of democratic rights. The Egyptian military commendably refused to fire on peaceful demonstrators, and the media valiantly kept the Egyptian public informed."Actually, that was our statement on the failed Venezuelan coup in 2002 (with the Dictator and State switched out). But when you're looking for real statement of support for Egyptian democracy, it should read something like that.
[T]he extraordinary scenes from Egypt [are] filling America's TV screens – even if the early morning bulletins were more interested in Charlie Sheen's hernia.Bwa-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!
The exception has been Fox News, where coverage has been more muted. "You probably don't give a lot of time thinking about Egypt," a Fox News presenter suggested about an hour ago, before explaining that "groups linked to al-Qaida" were in danger of taking over the government in Cairo.
Guardian Live Blog, 19:04
The main US cable news networks had given Egypt minimal coverage so far this week, partly because of the time difference but also because of the president's state of the union address on Tuesday night absorbing so much energy.So far I haven't had much to say about the protests (beyond "holy shit wow!") but I will say this: Fuck you Fox News, fuck yyyyyyyoooooouuuuuu...
That has all changed today, with the the extraordinary scenes from Egypt filling America's TV screens – even if the early morning bulletins were more interested in Charlie Sheen's hernia.
The exception has been Fox News, where coverage has been more muted. "You probably don't give a lot of time thinking about Egypt," a Fox News presenter suggested about an hour ago, before explaining that "groups linked to al-Qaida" were in danger of taking over the government in Cairo.
7.15pm GMT: The White House has just announced that it is postponing its planned press conference on the situation in Egypt. There's some speculation that may be because Obama himself wants to make a statement personally, but in any case it has been postponed for the time being.Wonder if they're getting new info...
7.35pm GMT: There is a White House briefing on Egypt promised shortly, but the Associated Press has this bombshell – that the Obama administration is using US aid to Egypt as leverage over the Mubarak regime:posted by proj at 11:41 AM on January 28, 2011 [2 favorites]
An Obama administration official says the US will review its $1.5bn in aid to Egypt based on events unfolding in the country, where the authoritarian government is struggling to extinguish huge and growing street protests.
The official spoke on condition of anonymity because of the delicacy of the situation. Egypt has been a key US ally in the volatile region. US officials are now increasing calls on President Hosni Mubarak, the target of the protesters, to respond with restraint and reverse steps taken to cut off the protesters' ability to communicate.
The decision to review assistance to Egypt is a significant step as the US seeks to balance the desire to maintain stability in the region with a recognition of the unexpected scope and uncertain outcome of the protests.
8.43pm GMT: While Robert Gibbs is saying as little as possible ("this is a fluid situation") in a baroque manner, al-Jazeera reports that "intense gunfire heard near key govt buildings in the Egyptian capital".posted by proj at 12:48 PM on January 28, 2011
Very unusually, Gibbs is taking questions from foreign journalists. That almost never happens at a White House press briefing.
Some middle-class Egyptians did not report thefts from their apartment blocks because they knew the police would immediately go and torture "all of the doormen", the cable added. It cited one source who said the police would use routinely electric shocks against suspected criminals, and would beat up human rights lawyers who enter police stations to defend their clients. Women detainees allegedly faced sexual abuse. Demoralised officers felt solving crimes justified brutal interrogation methods, with some believing that Islamic law also sanctioned torture, the cable said.One can see why the protestors might call on the army to protect them from the cops, as has been reported.
Why is everyone saying that the revolution will spread to Iran? Iran is MUCH more stable than most all other middle eastern countries, and few people in Iran would want to overthrow the theocracy, because for all of the evils the theocracy commits, it at least makes sure that the US and other foreign powers stay the hell out of Iran. Most people in Iran don't want a revolution. They already had one, and it completed its objectives.Uh, were you paying attention in 2009?
We always knew that, of course, but now the goverment has publicly admitted it by opening fire upon it's own people during their evening prayers. The Egyptian goverment has, esentially, lost. They may win the battle and crush the protestors, but they've still lost. The Egyptian people will never again be under any illusions as to the true nature of their state.I don't think they were under any illusions. But now they'll know the government isn't as powerful as they thought, and that by acting together they can really fuck things up.
Benjamin Netanyahu, the Prime Minister of Israel, says he's "not sure the time is right for the Arab region to go through the democratic process." Can someone who understands the Middle East better explain this hesitance? I thought Israel would be more enthusiastic about the prospect of a democratic neighbour.Lol. Egypt under Mubarak has been a pretty good ally of Israel, against the will of the people (i.e. assisting the blockade of Gaza), so a democratic Egypt would be less support of Israel then it currently is, probably.
"You probably don't give a lot of time thinking about Egypt," a Fox News presenter suggested about an hour ago, before explaining that "groups linked to al-Qaida" were in danger of taking over the government in Cairo."
Guardian Live Blog, 19:04
No, he's saying he'll replace his cabinet.Er, I was replying to koeselitz
The tools of any revolution, whether they speeches, rocks, bottles or 140 character blurbs, will never be without imperfection.Rocks aren't perfect, but it would still be terrible for a revolution to depend on a supply of them shipped from overseas.
It's fuck all like Iran - where's the charismatic religious leader in exile waiting to return?Yeah, it seems like would be Mohamed Elbaradei, who is a Nobel Laureate. But we don't really know who will end up in control.
The future of the Mubarak family’s grip on Egypt now appears to be a matter for the Egyptian Army to decide. ...posted by Joe Beese at 3:52 PM on January 28, 2011 [1 favorite]
... the generals could decide, as other Arab generals in their position have before, to level their guns in defense of the status quo. The People’s Liberation Army did that at Tiananmen Square, of course. ... The students and the urban workers who had persuaded themselves that they were near victory were also stunned by the Army’s indiscriminate, decisive violence. They seemed to expect until the last hours that the military would stand with them. We can hope, at least, for something better in Egypt during the days ahead. Its Army officers have lived in a much wider world than the P.L.A.’s commanders had known. Many of Egypt’s generals have probably learned by now to think for themselves. They may not be democrats, but they will not likely wish to act merely as bodyguards for a despot.
Torture and police brutality in Egypt are endemic and widespread. The police use brutal methods mostly against common criminals to extract confessions, but also against demonstrators, certain political prisoners and unfortunate bystanders. ...posted by Joe Beese at 5:18 PM on January 28, 2011
Another contact at a human rights NGO told us that her friends do not report thefts from their apartments because they do not want to subject “all the doormen” in the vicinity to police beatings. She told us that the police’s use of force has pervaded Egyptian culture to the extent that one popular television soap opera recently featured a police detective hero who beats up suspects to collect evidence.
THE PRESIDENT: Good evening, everybody. My administration has been closely monitoring the situation in Egypt, and I know that we will be learning more tomorrow when day breaks. As the situation continues to unfold, our first concern is preventing injury or loss of life. So I want to be very clear in calling upon the Egyptian authorities to refrain from any violence against peaceful protestors.posted by empath at 8:58 PM on January 28, 2011 [12 favorites]
The people of Egypt have rights that are universal. That includes the right to peaceful assembly and association, the right to free speech, and the ability to determine their own destiny. These are human rights. And the United States will stand up for them everywhere.
I also call upon the Egyptian government to reverse the actions that they've taken to interfere with access to the Internet, to cell phone service and to social networks that do so much to connect people in the 21st century.
At the same time, those protesting in the streets have a responsibility to express themselves peacefully. Violence and destruction will not lead to the reforms that they seek.
Now, going forward, this moment of volatility has to be turned into a moment of promise. The United States has a close partnership with Egypt and we've cooperated on many issues, including working together to advance a more peaceful region. But we've also been clear that there must be reform -- political, social, and economic reforms that meet the aspirations of the Egyptian people.
In the absence of these reforms, grievances have built up over time. When President Mubarak addressed the Egyptian people tonight, he pledged a better democracy and greater economic opportunity. I just spoke to him after his speech and I told him he has a responsibility to give meaning to those words, to take concrete steps and actions that deliver on that promise.
Violence will not address the grievances of the Egyptian people. And suppressing ideas never succeeds in making them go away. What's needed right now are concrete steps that advance the rights of the Egyptian people: a meaningful dialogue between the government and its citizens, and a path of political change that leads to a future of greater freedom and greater opportunity and justice for the Egyptian people.
Now, ultimately the future of Egypt will be determined by the Egyptian people. And I believe that the Egyptian people want the same things that we all want -- a better life for ourselves and our children, and a government that is fair and just and responsive. Put simply, the Egyptian people want a future that befits the heirs to a great and ancient civilization.
The United States always will be a partner in pursuit of that future. And we are committed to working with the Egyptian government and the Egyptian people -- all quarters -- to achieve it.
Around the world governments have an obligation to respond to their citizens. That's true here in the United States; that's true in Asia; it is true in Europe; it is true in Africa; and it's certainly true in the Arab world, where a new generation of citizens has the right to be heard.
When I was in Cairo, shortly after I was elected President, I said that all governments must maintain power through consent, not coercion. That is the single standard by which the people of Egypt will achieve the future they deserve.
Surely there will be difficult days to come. But the United States will continue to stand up for the rights of the Egyptian people and work with their government in pursuit of a future that is more just, more free, and more hopeful.
Thank you very much.
The source wants to stay anonymous but I cant evaluate the credibility of the source: "A source from within the Presidential Guard has claimed to my friends in Cairo that the army intends to end the protests on Sunday, by any means necessary even if it meant violence and bloodshed. Junta goons are causing chaos in Cairo to claim an unstable situation which will extend until Saturday. Then under the guise of bringing back order, they will "crush them with any amount of force needed!". The sources are unsure of the American role but believe the Americans will go with it."I really hope this is wrong. I hope memebake's friend was right about there being a psychological difference between the police and the military, and that the military will refuse to fire on their own citizens.
No they don't. I know what you mean, but they don't think of it as "bad" in the way you and I do. If they did, they wouldn't be where they are today.languagehat: read some of the wikileaks cables released yesterday. They very clearly lay out the problems, and it turns out that the U.S. was actually secretly working with pro-democracy groups trying to undermine Mubarak. Now, it may well be that the U.S. only wanted Egypt to be "more democratic" only to make it more stable and to prevent an Iran style backlash. But they were definitely aware of the problem and actually working towards solving it.
5:13am The Egyptian army secured Cairo's famed antiquities museum early on Saturday, protecting thousands of priceless artifacts, including the gold mask of King Tutankhamun, from looters.posted by ryanrs at 7:57 AM on January 29, 2011
6:04am Al Jazeera's Jane Dutton, reporting from Cairo, says the National Museum in the capital has not been damaged by the fire that destroyed the neighboring office of the National Democratic Party last night.
[via Al Jazeera live-blog]
The #Egyptian government can't reshuffle the deck and then stand pat. President #Mubarak's words pledging reform must be followed by action.posted by proj at 8:10 AM on January 29, 2011 [4 favorites]
The #Egyptian government can't reshuffle the deck and then stand pat. President #Mubarak's words pledging reform must be followed by action."And your words, too, Mr. State Dept. must be followed by action.
That's not what I'm talking about. I'm saying that the visceral disgust you and I and most people here feel when thinking of brutal thugs like Mubarak is not felt by people in power.Well, you're talking about how they feel not what they think, there's quite a difference.
Tourism is absolutely massive in Egypt and if foreigners stop coming to see the country, the present economy will look absolutely rosy.They're not blowing up the pyramids.
Residents reported gangs of youths, some on motorbikes, roaming the streets, looting supermarkets, shopping malls and shopsI'm a layman when it comes to Egyptian affairs, but when I think of young men on motorcycles causing mayhem during a popular uprising I am reminded of the Basij. This is an honest question and I have no idea whether it is warranted, but is there any chance these are just NDP-aligned thugs?
Ayman Nour, opposition leader and head of the Ghad Party, told Al-Masry Al-Youm that his fellow party members have caught several thugs who work for the Interior Ministry. After capturing them in downtown Cairo and Heliopolis, Nour's followers found ministry of interior IDs on them, Nour said.posted by scody at 4:49 PM on January 29, 2011 [3 favorites]
“The regime is trying to project the worst image possible to make it clear to people that they have only one of two alternatives: either the existing order or chaos,” he said.
Zahi Hawass, the Secretary General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, said the would-be looters only managed to vandalise two mummies, ripping their heads off. They also cleared out the museum gift shop.posted by ZeusHumms at 5:01 PM on January 29, 2011
He said the museum's prized King Tutankhamun exhibit, which includes the boy pharaoh's gold death mask, had not been damaged and was safe.
However, the museum's contents could still be damaged by the potential collapse of a neighbouring building gutted by fire, Hawass said.
Indeed, Obama's own response – about the need for reforms and an end to such violence – was an exact copy of all the lies Mubarak has been using to defend his regime for three decades. It was deeply amusing to Egyptians that Obama – in Cairo itself, after his election – had urged Arabs to grasp freedom and democracy. These aspirations disappeared entirely when he gave his tacit if uncomfortable support to the Egyptian president on Friday. The problem is the usual one: the lines of power and the lines of morality in Washington fail to intersect when US presidents have to deal with the Middle East. Moral leadership in America ceases to exist when the Arab and Israeli worlds have to be confronted.posted by gman at 5:21 PM on January 29, 2011 [9 favorites]
I'm as thrilled as anyone by what I see in the Cairo streets, but when I turn on American television I see only grim faces. Robert Gibbs looked frightened during his delayed press briefing yesterday afternoon; he didn't know what to say. Obama's comments last night were equivocal and opaque: I'm with Mubarak, for now. This is his 9/11 -- the day Arabs blindsided a president.posted by scody at 6:01 PM on January 29, 2011 [10 favorites]
I thought this is what he wanted for the Arab world: democracy! But the market dropped, and the cable shows are filled with mistrust of the Arab street. Our talking heads can't stop talking about the Islamists. [...]We are seeing a dictator dissolve before our eyes. These are the events we cherished in history books; let us embrace the Egyptian movement.
Why is America so afraid?
Because we are seeing a giant leap in Arab power, in which the people of the largest Arab nation demand that they be allowed to fulfill their potential. This change portends a huge shift in the balance of power in the region. For the U.S. has played only a negative role in the Egyptian advance, supplying the teargas, and it seems inevitable that Egypt will cease to be a client state to the U.S. And thereby threaten the order of the last 30 years.
Yes, but the Ottoman Empire was Islamic the way the British Empire was Christian. A new caliphate would be serious about religion.OBVIOUSLY. You just can't trust those muslins.
The Egyptian government can't reshuffle the deck and then stand pat. President Mubarak's words pledging reform must be followed by action.This is not the sort of wholehearted endorsement that Mubarak was probably hoping for.
Alaa Abd El Fattah, a prominent Egyptian blogger who was interviewed on Al Jazeera today, made the interesting observation that the uprising’s most effective organizational strength comes from a quarter that has been ignored by most of the media: soccer fans known as ultras.The beautiful game!
“The ultras — the football fan associations — have played a more significant role than any political group on the ground at this moment,” Alaa said. “Maybe we should get the ultras to rule the country,” he joked.
1.21pm: "At first we trusted the army, but we don't trust them any more," protester Mohamed Ali tells Peter Beaumont as a new tank unit moves into Tahrir Square.posted by proj at 5:26 AM on January 30, 2011
Osama Ghazlai Harb of the National Democrsatic Front told BBC Arabic that this would be a transitional administration that would oversee the cancellation of the emergency laws and the release of all political prisoners.Wonder who the other three groups are - I hope this serves as a strong countermove to support what is happening in Tahrir Square.
The powerful Muslim Brotherhood, which has kept a low profile so far, said it was backing the demand along with other four groups.
Q: [People] often attack you as a political commentator for focusing your criticism against the activities of the United States, and not so much against the old Soviet Union, or Vietnam, or Cuba. . . I'd like to know what you think about that kind of criticism?I'll leave out who said that, because the idea is far more important than the messenger.
A: . . . I focus my efforts against the terror and violence of my own state for really two main reasons. First of all, in my case the actions of my state happen to make up the main component of international violence in the world. But much more importantly than that, it's because American actions are the things that I can do something about. So even if the United States were causing only a tiny fraction of the repression and violence in the world. . . that tiny fraction would still be what I'm responsible for, and what I should focus my efforts against.
. . . Again, it's a very simple ethical point: you are responsible for the predictable consequences of your actions; you're not responsible for the predictable consequences of somebody else's actions.
At one point, a rumor spread through Tahrir Square that Mubarak had fled the country. A massive cheer rippled through the crowd. People began jumping up and down in joy. One man wept uncontrollably. When it turned out not to be true, the cheers quickly ended but it provided a brief glimpse of the sheer raw desire for Mubarak’s ouster. Reports now indicate that Mubarak’s two sons and his wife, Suzanne, have fled Egypt, as have some of his closest business cronies. Many people believe that is a sign that Hosni will not be far behind.posted by notion at 9:13 AM on January 30, 2011
... since 1993 Suleiman has headed the feared Egyptian general intelligence service. In that capacity, he was the C.I.A.’s point man in Egypt for renditions—the covert program in which the C.I.A. snatched terror suspects from around the world and returned them to Egypt and elsewhere for interrogation, often under brutal circumstances.posted by Joe Beese at 10:43 AM on January 30, 2011 [2 favorites]
... Edward S. Walker, Jr., a former U.S. Ambassador to Egypt, described Suleiman as “very bright, very realistic,” adding that he was cognizant that there was a downside to “some of the negative things that the Egyptians engaged in, of torture and so on. But he was not squeamish, by the way.”
Widespread politically-motivated unrest, he said, was not likely because it was not part of the "Egyptian mentality." Threats to daily survival, not politics, were the only thing to bring Egyptians to the streets en masse. [NDP insider and former minister Dr. Ali El Deen Hilal] Dessouki said the NDP focus on economic reform would continue up to the elections and after any transition of power. He added that Egypt was moving towards democracy, but that a transition from a "pharoanic" political system would take a long time.That quote just...really gets me going. What a patronising prick.
5. (C) According to XXXXXXXXXXXX, the worst police torture takes place during murder investigations. He said that his brother-in-law who is a police officer in the Delta Governorate of Kafr El-Sheikh described "unrelenting pressure" from superiors to solve murder cases by any means necessary. XXXXXXXXXXX said human rights lawyers and XXXXXXXXXXXX have told him that to conduct murder investigations, police will round up 40 to 50 suspects from a neighborhood and hang them by their arms from the ceiling for weeks until someone confesses.
The Egyptian people are fighting, not only to end the 30-year reign of dictator Mubarak, but for democracy. So far, our government has continued its de facto support for the Mubarak regime by paying lip service to the need for "reform" at the same time that it lauds Mubarak as an ally and source of "stability" in the Middle East. President Obama and his spokespeople have carefully avoided the fundamental issue. The Egyptian people are not asking their government to reform itself. They are demanding an end to the entire autocratic and kleptocratic regime they have endured for even longer than Mubarak’s rule. [emphasis mine] They want democracy.Personally, I don't know if it would actually go far in undoing the damage, but at least it would be one step in the right fucking direction.
...So far, President Obama has spoken out for free expression in Egypt and has called for restraint by both sides – as though an unarmed populace, demanding democracy, were the physical or moral equivalent of a brutal state security apparatus. But our president has remained silent about the demonstrators’ goal: a democratic Egypt. In his June 2009 Cairo speech, when nothing was immediately at stake, President Obama uttered eloquent words of support for democracy. If he spoke out forcefully in support of the Egyptian people, as he did for the Tunisian people in his State of the Union address, he could tip events in a direction that would earn America the gratitude of the Egyptian people.
This would go far to undoing the damage to America’s standing in the Arab and Muslim world created by the catastrophically wrong-headed foreign policies of the George W. Bush era. It would also do more to undermine al-Qaeda’s international campaign of hatred and terrorism than has been achieved by two wars and over a trillion dollars in military spending.
On message boards, social networking sites and the web pages of leftwing groups across the nation, young Americans are voicing interest in similar riots taking place on our very soil. Socialists, liberals and eco-terrorists are fully behind the violence in Egypt. Their talk of a coup d’etat in the U.S. is dangerous, possibly treasonous, and threatens our greatest traditions of moral primacy.Of course, this presumes that Palin and the Tea Party aren't getting geography lessons from Fox.
This dilemma does have a silver lining, however. It offers Sarah Palin an incredible opportunity. Stung after the events in Tucson, where leftwing activists tried to blame her for the acts of a mentally disturbed occultist, she could rise to the occasion and show off her credentials on the international stage. President Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton have been slow to discuss what is happening in Egypt. In truth, they are playing a sickening balancing act of recalcitrant diplomacy, ultimately toying with the safety and future of the United States in ways they do not seem to appreciate.
Governor Palin needs to speak out publicly and forcibly for an American-led invasion to protect our interests in North Africa. As the largest recipient of foreign aid next to Israel, the United States has a tremendous investment in keeping Egypt stable and relatively terrorist-free.
Today, representatives of the of the Egyptian labor movement, made up of the independent Egyptian trade unions of workers in real estate tax collection, the retirees, the technical health professionals and representatives of the important industrial areas in Egypt: Helwan, Mahalla al-Kubra, the tenth of Ramadan city, Sadat City and workers from the various industrial and economic sectors such as: garment & textiles, metals industry, pharmaceuticals, chemical industry, government employees, iron and steel, automotive, etc… And they agreed to hold a press conference at 3:30pm this afternoon in Tahrir Square next to Omar Effendi Company store in downtown Cairo to announce the organization of the new Federation of Egyptian Trade Unions and to announce the formation of committees in all factories and enterprises to protect, defend them and to set a date for a general strike...Great news.
posted by fuq at 5:57 PM on January 27, 2011 [38 favorites]