Are you watching?

Do you even know what's going on?

Do you even care?

http://english.aljazeera.net/watch_now/

I thought this generation's Berlin Wall moment was the creation of this site. At least back when it was Freehuddle and therefore still cool.

Yes,

Yes.

Yes.

I'll start caring more when/if it's announced they'll be holding free and open elections.

I dated an Egyptian-American, and have many Egyptian friends. I am caring via their updates on the situation more than anything.

If anyone doubts the power and importance of social media just needs to look at what is going on in Egypt right now. The primary ways that these rallies have been organized and the main way that info is being disseminated is through Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube. Also, since the country has shut down the Internet Twitter and Google have teamed up to allow people to call in and tweet via voice and also hear what others are saying.

http://twitter.com/#!/speak2tweet

As long as the country isn't ruled by people who want us dead, good for them.

The Equalizer;660554 wrote:As long as the country isn't ruled by people who want us dead, good for them.

+1

I hope this turns out as well as the wall coming down.

Can someone who can provide a nice summary of the situation in Egypt please PM me. I hate to admit this, but I really have no clue as to what is going on over there and what this is all about; and I feel like I'm not doing my civil duty by being ignorant on this situation.

Thanks

Some differences:

1) The Berlin wall was a bit less violent

2) Women participated in that revolution.

I hope this works out well, but this could be a "be careful what you wish for" moment.

Turned to CNN to watch but of course they are talking about Halle Barry's custody battle or some shit.

Essentially their President who has been in power since the last leader got shot 30 years ago is being protested against. He's been elected for 6 year terms but my understanding is the younger generation is seeing him more along the lines of how Hussein was always "elected" and they want more freedoms which he's not been real quick to act on. So a bunch of smaller groups and parties (including reportedly a group called muslim brotherhood which is bad news) want to unify behind the former IAEA director (the one Hussein told to go fuck off when it came time for inspections in iraq) and he's seen as the face of the protesting movement. One of the most interesting things is the army will not get aggressive with the protestors so it looks like Mubarak's days are numbered.

Really not quite as big of a deal as the Berlin Wall.

Breaking News on Yahoo!

Murbarak will not seek reelection.

Manhattan Buckeye;660583 wrote:Some differences:

1) The Berlin wall was a bit less violent

2) Women participated in that revolution.

I hope this works out well, but this could be a "be careful what you wish for" moment.

Umm, I see lots of women in the crowd and one of the original organizers is a single mom.

ccrunner609;661035 wrote:What is going on here isnt even close to what the fall of the Berlin wall meant. OP needs to study his history a little more.

What we have here is a phony government with a guy that has won the last 4-5 elections by 99%. THe only reason why this has happened is that governments like the US keep propping this fool up.

It has the potential to be.
Protests are going on in Tunisia, Egypt, Jordan, Yemen and depending on the day Lebanon. Other states like Algeria, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Kuwait, etc are feeling the pressure and trying to get ahead of the curve by offering reform.

The region has had ruthless dictators since the Brits left after WWII, much like behind the Iron Curtain in 1989 with Soviet puppets.
Also, much like 1989, this is taking weeks, with Tunisia the spark over 2 weeks ago. The Berlin wall fell, overnight, but it took weeks of smaller reforms and uprising in the Soviet Union and then Czech that forced East Germany's hand. Also, the fall of the wall resulted in many more peaceful uprisings in Eastern Europe. Egypt could be that "wall" that leads to other states deposing their leaders.

So, it could turn into 1989. Or, it could be 2005, where some protests occurred, mainly in Lebanon, but nothing really came from it.

Oh, and we have a thread in politics on this too btw.

Bigred1995;660502 wrote:I'll start caring more when/if it's announced they'll be holding free and open elections.

Supposedly this starts in September. The protesters want him out now though.

I guess its pretty sweet for them

Potentially, this could be a "Overthrow of the Shah of Iran" moment. That hasn't turned out so well for the US. With Mubarak gone, the potential for a more conservative (fundamental/radical) Islamic government is real. Bad for US and especially bad for Israel.

If muslim brotherhood have anything to do with the new gov't we're in trouble.

Very ugly scenes from Egypt now. Egyptian military sitting by and watching as people are clubbing one another in the head.

The Equalizer;661701 wrote:If muslim brotherhood have anything to do with the new gov't we're in trouble.

Not necessarily.
The Brotherhood is not what it once was. Sure, they are not a fan of the U.S., but it is not like Hamas or even Hezbollah.

And how stable will the Israeli-Eqyptian relationship be with them in charge?

The Equalizer;661875 wrote:And how stable will the Israeli-Eqyptian relationship be with them in charge?

Depends on how much influence they have.
There is no way the Brotherhood would have total control of the government, other parties (Elbaradei-more secular, Coptic Christians, etc.) are involved. The rallies are not even Brotherhood focused or sponsored.

No other party is willing to throw away the peace treaty with Israel. The Israelis are nervous, as they have that right. But, I don't how even if the Brotherhood has partial control of the government, it throws away the peace treaty. There are too many reasons (economic aid, stability, they have instead support Hamas, etc) than to void it.

Let's just say I think it is more likely that Hamas and Hezbollah will fight against the Israelis than the Egyptian Brotherhood.
Finally, as long as the Egyptian Army, a secular organization, wants to keep the treaty-it stays in place.

september63;661715 wrote:Very ugly scenes from Egypt now. Egyptian military sitting by and watching as people are clubbing one another in the head.

I think it's a good sign that the military is staying out of it.