After all these days of the Egyptian people fighting for their freedom from tyranny, one thing is clear to me: Many American and Israeli politicians and pundits only think about what a free Egypt means to them. Those self-centered people are a disgrace. The leaders of two so called “democratic nations” have propped up a dictator for 30 years and they should be ashamed of themselves. They prefer stability of the region. The stability has been maintained by not letting people have any free will or say over the direction of their countries. The stability of dictators is a thin cover for the unrest and discontent of the people. The underlying instability of this region will always be there as long as the people are repressed, abused and downtrodden. I have read “people” are afraid Egypt will go the way of Iran. However we (Britain and America) made Iran a place ruled by Islamic fundamentalists. In 1951 Iran was a parliamentary democracy and Mohammad Mosaddegh was elected as Prime Minister. He undertook a number of reforms, including nationalizing Iranian oil fields, which the Britain and America did not like. We could not let Iran control their oil, so after a series of unsuccessful efforts to get rid of him by making the lives of the Iranian people difficult, the US hatched a coup plot. Does this sound familiar? This is how we roll; if a leader does anything to care for their people and in turn subordinate American interests for the welfare of their country, they will be killed and replaced by a dictator who will do what the American government and its corporations want.
After the Iranian coup, Reza Shah was placed in charge of Iran. We know him as the Shah of Iran. Prior to his return to Iran, he was in exile mostly because he sucked as a leader but also because he was not really interested in governing. There was an opposition to his return and to the removal of the Mosaddegh. However with the help of the west the opposition was squelched. So from 1953-1979 the Iranian people had a leader that they did not choose or want, who was a pawn of another country. The Western oil companies where happy but the people were not happy with his autocratic rule. The Shah of Iran was a despot and did not let any other political parties but his exist. This meant that the only way for the people to revolt was through religious organizations. Religion was their only outlet. So in 1979, America was surprised about the overthrow of the Shah; just like we were surprised about recent eventsTunisia and Egypt. Which shows what Western governments and corporate powers really think about the people of the Middle East: The people are too stupid to want freedom. If we had left Iran alone, they probably would not be governed by fundamentalist Islamic clerics, they would be a democracy. As we saw by the attempted revolution in 2010, the people of Iran want to be free and live in a democracy.
Egypt does not have to be like Iran and I don’t think it will be. The forces of fundamental Islam in Egypt are weak. However if we worry too much about our interests and prop up a dictator for the sake of stability, we could drive them into creating a fundamentalist country. The time of Mubarak is over, he just needs accept it. Like any good dictator he wanted his son to take over but he needs to forget about that too. He needs to let his son be free to choose his own path and let the people of Egypt be free to choose their national path.
Egyptians will not choose to go to war with Israel because unlike in America war is not an abstract concept. Any war that takes place in the region would involve their houses, their families, their lives. They have been at peace for over 30 years and they most likely don’t want to experience war again. As in Western Europe there are people still alive that remember what war is like when it is in your country and will not be eager to have happen again. Egypt has a huge tourist industry and no matter who is in charge of the country people will want to preserve it. Tourism is a $12 billion industry, war and regional instability would disrupt Egyptian economic interests. The same with the Suez Canal; services will not be disrupted because they want the money.
Mubarak supporters have instigated violent acts and turned a peaceful revolution in to a literal fight for freedom. It seems having to fight for freedom has not deterred the people of Egypt from their quest to be free. It anything it has hardened their resolve. The violent response of the government makes it impossible for those who crave freedom to back down because the government has turned it into a life and death struggle. And now it seems the Mubarak government is planning to crack down on the pro-democracy protesters. As I wrote earlier, a dictator only works to preserve his power even at the expense of the lives of the people in the country. President Obama needs to make Mubarak stop this violence and step down. America has the power to do this and live up to our ideals, liberty and justice for all.
America and Israel and their supporters need to let go of their fears and support the deposition of a dictator. A free Egypt = A free America. None of us will be free or safe as long as there is oppression in the world. I am not a utopianist, I am realist. No justice, No Peace.
Power to the Brave People of Egypt,
Fobbsie
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