Anyone who supported Bush’s invasion of Iraq should be ashamed to suggest that there are no alternatives between western lickspittle dictators and radical Islam.
Why do we know so many devils? Anyway, the W Doctrine is, we support democracy in the Middle East, so the choice is obvious, Mubarak out, let the people elect their own government.
“Radical Islam is not involved. It’s a secular revolt.”
Just as it was in Iran and in Tunisia …
We know what happened in Iran, and the erstwhile exiled ‘militant Muslim cleric’ has just returned to Tunisia - supposedly with no political ambitions …
Come to think of it, dictators don’t have political ambitions …
Radical Zionism, Radical Christianity, Radical Islam= same devils. NO sectarian state is a “free” state- ever. Those thrown out of the “Brotherhood” started AlQaeda, so it is interesting how those quick to jump to conclusions keep wounding their feet.
Other nations have their devils and yet they keep them under control! France has its far right, Canada has its lys nuts (I can already hear TCL complaining, but they don’t kill people!)
Why can’t we trust them to kee their own nuts under control. It’s in their own interest.
Seeing as when the Islamic brotherhood tried to lead a chant yesterday in the square of ‘Allah Ackbar” were shouted down by the rest of the crowd, yelling “Muslim, Christian, We are all Egyptian”, I think someone’s trying to do some fear-mongering here.
Less than 25% of Egyptians are connected to the internet …as if it meant anything. It helped in organizing the protests, is all …
The Iranian revolution was led primarily by the secular intelligentsia … . but was later hijacked by the Mullahs, who were much better organized and fervent …
Revolutions with power vacuums almost without exception end with the most fervent and best organized zealots taking dictatorial control … .
We continue looking at different cultures / civilizations through our Western materialistic spectacles and thus anticipate results that are logical to us. The reality however in these places is entirely different.
I have extensively traveled through Egypt and other Middle East countries, and it is amazing how differently they view / understand the World. In Egypt for example, October __ 1973 is celebrated as victory over Israel - there are streets and squares so named … Their understanding of the US and the West in general is bizarre …only being exacerbated by the power of the new technologies.
” … having no one left to turn the power over to. It’s VERY different in Egypt today than it was in Iran in 1978!”
How so? He just had to promise that his son will not seek the position …The general he recently appointed as VP might serve to transit, but … ?
Russia - less than 2% Bolshevik >> 100% Communist in a matter of days …Iran, most of Eastern Europe after the WWII, and on and on … .In fact show us an example where a like situation ended with a pluralistic democracy?
You see, telecom companies realized that a sale in Teheran was as proffitable, if not more, than a sale in Manhattan. So they started selling technology there. Lots of those states, with an economy fueled by petrodollars, paid decent postsecondary education to their students and even sent some to study abroad (when i was at UdeM, a few years ago, many Tunisians were there.) So those parents we would have seen on World Vision a few decades ago are now educated people who won’t take prefabricated answers to their questions now, not even from mullahs and not from us. Not unlike the baby boomer generation here.
Some say the help we gave them made us enemies. But is an empire (or superpower) worth preserving when it has to dumb down his “conquered provinces” in order to stay afloat?
All empires did that, but all of them were worth tearing down.
Odon Premium Member over 13 years ago
The devil is in the dictator.
Jaedabee Premium Member over 13 years ago
Agreed, Radish.
Michael Peterson Premium Member over 13 years ago
Anyone who supported Bush’s invasion of Iraq should be ashamed to suggest that there are no alternatives between western lickspittle dictators and radical Islam.
ianrey over 13 years ago
Why do we know so many devils? Anyway, the W Doctrine is, we support democracy in the Middle East, so the choice is obvious, Mubarak out, let the people elect their own government.
petergrt over 13 years ago
“Radical Islam is not involved. It’s a secular revolt.”
Just as it was in Iran and in Tunisia …
We know what happened in Iran, and the erstwhile exiled ‘militant Muslim cleric’ has just returned to Tunisia - supposedly with no political ambitions …
Come to think of it, dictators don’t have political ambitions …
Dtroutma over 13 years ago
Radical Zionism, Radical Christianity, Radical Islam= same devils. NO sectarian state is a “free” state- ever. Those thrown out of the “Brotherhood” started AlQaeda, so it is interesting how those quick to jump to conclusions keep wounding their feet.
Redeemd over 13 years ago
Freedom and Islam are diametrically opposed. Don’t hold your breath, people.
petergrt over 13 years ago
The tech savvy militant Muslims want drag us all to the 7th century.
CorosiveFrog Premium Member over 13 years ago
Such condescendance!
Other nations have their devils and yet they keep them under control! France has its far right, Canada has its lys nuts (I can already hear TCL complaining, but they don’t kill people!)
Why can’t we trust them to kee their own nuts under control. It’s in their own interest.
petergrt over 13 years ago
Ventriloquist:
I thought about responding to some of your earlier suppositions, but when you played the technology card, I found it too silly …
idres Premium Member over 13 years ago
Seeing as when the Islamic brotherhood tried to lead a chant yesterday in the square of ‘Allah Ackbar” were shouted down by the rest of the crowd, yelling “Muslim, Christian, We are all Egyptian”, I think someone’s trying to do some fear-mongering here.
petergrt over 13 years ago
Less than 25% of Egyptians are connected to the internet …as if it meant anything. It helped in organizing the protests, is all …
The Iranian revolution was led primarily by the secular intelligentsia … . but was later hijacked by the Mullahs, who were much better organized and fervent …
Revolutions with power vacuums almost without exception end with the most fervent and best organized zealots taking dictatorial control … .
We continue looking at different cultures / civilizations through our Western materialistic spectacles and thus anticipate results that are logical to us. The reality however in these places is entirely different.
I have extensively traveled through Egypt and other Middle East countries, and it is amazing how differently they view / understand the World. In Egypt for example, October __ 1973 is celebrated as victory over Israel - there are streets and squares so named … Their understanding of the US and the West in general is bizarre …only being exacerbated by the power of the new technologies.
petergrt over 13 years ago
” … having no one left to turn the power over to. It’s VERY different in Egypt today than it was in Iran in 1978!”
How so? He just had to promise that his son will not seek the position …The general he recently appointed as VP might serve to transit, but … ?
Russia - less than 2% Bolshevik >> 100% Communist in a matter of days …Iran, most of Eastern Europe after the WWII, and on and on … .In fact show us an example where a like situation ended with a pluralistic democracy?
CorosiveFrog Premium Member over 13 years ago
You see, telecom companies realized that a sale in Teheran was as proffitable, if not more, than a sale in Manhattan. So they started selling technology there. Lots of those states, with an economy fueled by petrodollars, paid decent postsecondary education to their students and even sent some to study abroad (when i was at UdeM, a few years ago, many Tunisians were there.) So those parents we would have seen on World Vision a few decades ago are now educated people who won’t take prefabricated answers to their questions now, not even from mullahs and not from us. Not unlike the baby boomer generation here.
Some say the help we gave them made us enemies. But is an empire (or superpower) worth preserving when it has to dumb down his “conquered provinces” in order to stay afloat?
All empires did that, but all of them were worth tearing down.