So President Obama is slapping his buddies in the ruling Egyptian military junta, who deposed the democratically elected president in a coup d’etat, by canceling joint military exercises. But not to worry, the $1.3 billion in weapons a year the US sends Egypt will continue to flow.
Listening to a so-called “liberal” Egyptian on NPR this morning, I was struck by his — and by extension, NPR, and by extension to them, the US mainstream media — absurd message to the Muslim Brotherhood who are falling victims by the hundreds to soldiers’ bullets in Cairo. “Please participate in the political system,” he essentially said. But if you manage to win a presidential election, we will overthrow him in a coup. And if you protest his overthrow using exactly the same means we used to take power initially, we will gun you down.
Pardon me, buy why should the Islamists in Egypt do anything other than resort to armed struggle?
3 Comments.
I hate supporting armed struggle but in this case you are right. If I were in the MB’s shoes and I actually wanted political power than I would join the armed struggle.
Logically, that is what they must do.
I’m hoping that the secular liberal pro-US forces out number the MB forces in Egypt and are able to prevail in this fight, and create a secular liberal democracy that is aligned with the USA.
I’m not holding my breath though. I think Egypt will be an old school Turkey style country when the dust settles.
Most of them are idiot assholes. Yes – they would like some peace, but not at the expense of peace – get it? They don’t think like you, don’t really want what you want, and don’t care if you are dead or alive. If they saw on TV or the Internet that you had a problem, they wouldn’t care. I say let them kill each other until there are none left. My opinion is to just let them fight and kill each other. I don’t care what religion or reason – just let them kill each other as they want. Sell both sides as much weapons as they need to make a few bucks. It’s called ‘natural selection” – Darwin would understand.
Paraphrasing the arms dealer in Far Cry 2…(I love it. It’s of a generic African conflict. Yes, I’m talking about a video game character.) They want to fight each other and are going to do it and are going to get the weapons from someone. Might as well be me making the money…
I’m unsure of whether rikster is being facetious or not but I mainly agree. Problem is, innocents are caught in the middle.
Andy, I do not support anyone who is “pro-US.” (How could I?!) Moreover, those who supposedly are “secular liberals” have resorted to unquestionably repressive tactics and proved themselves nothing of the sort. People who go against the results of democracy are in no position to create democracy! If one has a problem with a possible outcome of an election to the point where that person would support violence, that person does not really support democracy!