My thoughts: Good for the people of Egypt. They have successfully overthrown a pretty brutal dictator with relatively little bloodshed. It has been inspiring to watch the rallies and protests. These people are tired of economic stagnation and political oppression, and it is obvious when you look at the passion and determination of the protesters.
However, there is a huge potential for this to turn bad quickly. First, surveys of Egyptians show they are pretty...ummm...how should I say it...Muslim-y? A large percentage of the country supports killing those who convert from Islam to some other religion, limited rights for women, instituting Sharia Law, and of course, the ole Muslim standby, beheadings. Second, the most organized group that could seize power is the Muslim Brotherhood. Here is a link to their Wikipedia Page. If this group comes to power, then it is likely that Israel will not be too happy about it. Personally, I have always thought it is Israel's job to defend Israel, so I don't really care one way or another whether Egypt gets along with them in that sense. But it probably isn't a good thing for the overall stability of the region. Last, this could be an opportunity for some new strong man to take the place of Mubarak, and this strong man may not be so friendly with the US or Israel. Thoughts???
I have nothing further to add, you pretty much summed up my thoughts exactly.
ReplyDeleteI'll comment more on this later but getting rid of Mubarak was the easy part. There is a serious power vacuum in Egypt now and how the U.S. government chooses to involve itself will be crucial.
ReplyDeleteThe Tea Party protesters could take a few notes.
ReplyDeleteI think you sum up the situation nicely. As far as U.S. policy is concerned, the government should sit back and not try to influence the events but still monitor the situation closely in order to protect U.S. interest. Our track record in funding brutal dictators and stifling democratic movements that don't conform to a pro-U.S. ideology is...well, pretty shitty.
ReplyDeleteI love the contrast of the picture and the title of the blog. I also think we should sit back, but I'm glad we are forthcoming with the fact that removing this dictator will probably hurt us. In the mean time I'm stoked for these guys, but am also afraid of what is to come.
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