It was just announced on MSNBC that Hosni Mubarak has turned over all authority to the military to oversee the governmental transition in Egypt. The military has guaranteed the repeal of emergency rule that the public has lived under for thirty years.
I'm watching the celebration in Tahrir Square right now.
Showing posts with label unrest. Show all posts
Showing posts with label unrest. Show all posts
Friday, February 11, 2011
Morning in Egypt: Another Tiananmen Square?
As I am writing this, at 2am PST, the military is surrounding the Presidential Palace in anticipation that the protesters in Tahrir Square are going to move on it today. The military has asked the protesters to go home, that they guarantee that the protesters demands will be met in full.
The protesters aren't buying it. They are laying in the square chanting "Peaceful". They are building latrines and showers in the Square and are saying on live television that they will not move until Mubarak steps down. They are calling this the "Friday for Martyrs".
My wish for Egypt is a peaceful transfer of governmental authority. However, after the massacre in Tiananmen Square over twenty years ago, I have concerns that this will end badly.
Always remember what happened after China bulldozed thousands of people with tanks and then conducted a countrywide witch hunt for dissidents: nothing. Not one country in the world did one meaningful thing. Oh, they suspended some loans and financial assistance, but big fucking deal. In fact not ten years later, China was named Most Favored Trading Partner of the United States.
The protesters aren't buying it. They are laying in the square chanting "Peaceful". They are building latrines and showers in the Square and are saying on live television that they will not move until Mubarak steps down. They are calling this the "Friday for Martyrs".
My wish for Egypt is a peaceful transfer of governmental authority. However, after the massacre in Tiananmen Square over twenty years ago, I have concerns that this will end badly.
Always remember what happened after China bulldozed thousands of people with tanks and then conducted a countrywide witch hunt for dissidents: nothing. Not one country in the world did one meaningful thing. Oh, they suspended some loans and financial assistance, but big fucking deal. In fact not ten years later, China was named Most Favored Trading Partner of the United States.
ALWAYS REMEMBER.
THERE IS NO REASON EGYPT WON'T GO THE SAME WAY.
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
What Is There To Say About Arizona?
Since my original idea for this blog was to post about spirituality and politics, I would be amiss not to comment on the recent shooting down in Tuscon.
First, let me just say that this is a horrifying tragedy.
Second, my sincere apology. I've told people that the way to deal with radicals in politics would just be to shoot them before they ran for the presidency. It was my frustrated response to the insurmountable partisanship in American politics. It was wrong, regardless of the reason, for me to say something like that. Again, I apologize.
There is a lot of room for apology in American politics right now. All of the articles that I've read, all the videos I've watched, the authors have said that all of us need to own up to how we contributed to the shooting in Arizona. Yet, when you read the comments following the articles, almost every commentator is focused on blaming one side or the other, instead of owning up to the universal wrongness in our society that led up to the murder of six people, serious injuries to 14 people, and the attempted assassination of Congresswoman Giffords.
That's where we are, folks. Not on the eve of a national revolution to rid ourselves of oppressive dictators, but dans de la merde, a nation that has gone totally lu-lu. All the legitimate politicians are exiting the scene via death or retirement and what we are left with are a bunch of whack-jobs who won't balance the nation's checkbook, on the take from corporations, and full of hateful rhetoric that stirs up all the other whack-jobs that are listening. Who cares what I say in the political arena as long as it gets me on TV or lands me a book deal? Right?
Wrong. That is a perversion of politics. American politics isn't supposed to be about personal gain or pushing your personal social agenda. It's supposed to be about performing a patriotic service by representing your fellow man. Few people in my generation were taught about having manners in public, much less about good citizenship. How do you expect them to be any kind of decent politician?
Since the shooting, some folks have jumped on the "watch what you say" bandwagon. While that sentiment sounds fine, it's a little too ambiguous and Big Brother to me. Watch what I say? My answer is "Back off, bitch." Why? In my experience, people that say things like that are generally not in the habit of using their freedom of speech. When the only people they talk to are their friends and family (not even their neighbors anymore!), freedom of speech, by and large, goes to the wayside. Don't talk about politics. Don't talk about religion. Don't talk about race. Don't talk about sex. Don't talk about money. (Holy crap. What DO you talk about???) So, telling someone else not to exercise their freedom of speech goes hand in hand with their own failure to take advantage of it. They have little or no connection to freedom of speech because they don't engage in it, therefore lack appreciation of it. If it was taken away, they wouldn't even notice.
Not in my family. Sex, drugs, rock-n-roll, politics, business, religion, ... there isn't a topic we don't touch in a single evening. And it doesn't change in public. So, yes, I'm sensitive about someone saying, in essence, to shut up. If you don't participate in public discussion, you have no business suggesting to someone that they "watch what they say".
How about I offer this, instead: "Certain topics require thoughtful consideration before speaking." See? Reasonable. Civilized. Inoffensive. Responsible. And guess what else? A perfect political statement in a nation gone crazy.
First, let me just say that this is a horrifying tragedy.
Second, my sincere apology. I've told people that the way to deal with radicals in politics would just be to shoot them before they ran for the presidency. It was my frustrated response to the insurmountable partisanship in American politics. It was wrong, regardless of the reason, for me to say something like that. Again, I apologize.
There is a lot of room for apology in American politics right now. All of the articles that I've read, all the videos I've watched, the authors have said that all of us need to own up to how we contributed to the shooting in Arizona. Yet, when you read the comments following the articles, almost every commentator is focused on blaming one side or the other, instead of owning up to the universal wrongness in our society that led up to the murder of six people, serious injuries to 14 people, and the attempted assassination of Congresswoman Giffords.
That's where we are, folks. Not on the eve of a national revolution to rid ourselves of oppressive dictators, but dans de la merde, a nation that has gone totally lu-lu. All the legitimate politicians are exiting the scene via death or retirement and what we are left with are a bunch of whack-jobs who won't balance the nation's checkbook, on the take from corporations, and full of hateful rhetoric that stirs up all the other whack-jobs that are listening. Who cares what I say in the political arena as long as it gets me on TV or lands me a book deal? Right?
Wrong. That is a perversion of politics. American politics isn't supposed to be about personal gain or pushing your personal social agenda. It's supposed to be about performing a patriotic service by representing your fellow man. Few people in my generation were taught about having manners in public, much less about good citizenship. How do you expect them to be any kind of decent politician?
Since the shooting, some folks have jumped on the "watch what you say" bandwagon. While that sentiment sounds fine, it's a little too ambiguous and Big Brother to me. Watch what I say? My answer is "Back off, bitch." Why? In my experience, people that say things like that are generally not in the habit of using their freedom of speech. When the only people they talk to are their friends and family (not even their neighbors anymore!), freedom of speech, by and large, goes to the wayside. Don't talk about politics. Don't talk about religion. Don't talk about race. Don't talk about sex. Don't talk about money. (Holy crap. What DO you talk about???) So, telling someone else not to exercise their freedom of speech goes hand in hand with their own failure to take advantage of it. They have little or no connection to freedom of speech because they don't engage in it, therefore lack appreciation of it. If it was taken away, they wouldn't even notice.
Not in my family. Sex, drugs, rock-n-roll, politics, business, religion, ... there isn't a topic we don't touch in a single evening. And it doesn't change in public. So, yes, I'm sensitive about someone saying, in essence, to shut up. If you don't participate in public discussion, you have no business suggesting to someone that they "watch what they say".
How about I offer this, instead: "Certain topics require thoughtful consideration before speaking." See? Reasonable. Civilized. Inoffensive. Responsible. And guess what else? A perfect political statement in a nation gone crazy.
Monday, December 20, 2010
Integral Options Cafe: Chris Hedges: Every Act of Rebellion Helps Tear Down Our Corrupt System
Whether you consider yourself a rebel or if you're a citizen discouraged by the status quo, you may find comfort in this writer's experiences and perspective.
Integral Options Cafe: Chris Hedges: Every Act of Rebellion Helps Tear Down Our Corrupt System
Integral Options Cafe: Chris Hedges: Every Act of Rebellion Helps Tear Down Our Corrupt System
Monday, December 13, 2010
Off With Their Heads!
I almost missed out on what's going on in the UK. Goverment spending has been cut for education and university tuition has tripled. TRIPLED! Did the plebes take this sitting down? Hell, no! Read about the student response here.
Here is an interview with one of the protestors:
Here is an interview with one of the protestors:
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