With Libya now moving to a Sharia-based system that will impose religious values on the population, Egypt is also rapidly moving toward an extreme Sharia based system. Indeed, Hesham al Ashry (the leader of the Salafists) announced this week that “I am the enemy of democracy.”
Businessman Naguib Sawiris now calls Egypt’s future “dim … bad.”
Al Ashry put the reality into perspective: “This is a big opportunity and it’s not going to go back. This was mentioned by the Prophet Mohammed. Peace be upon him. He said this was going to happen.” Thus, the freedom that led to the overthrow of Mubarak regime will now be extinguished to embrace a new form of oppression — just faith-based rather than tyrant-based repression.
One of the objections made to the intervention of the United States in Libya was that, in addition to the absence of any declaration from Congress, President Obama could bring bring about a more radical regime. Even at the time, Libyan rebels were known to have extremist elements, including some linked to Al Qaeda. Some of the same concerns were heard in our Egyptian policies. I am less critical of the Obama policy on Libya. Indeed, I thought the Administration struck the right tone — without military intervention. However, there is a general misconception that the “Arab Spring” necessarily means a triumph of democracy and human rights. Movements in both Libya and Egypt show the powerful pull of theocratic oppression. The denial of the separation of mosque and state (as well as religious freedom) undermines a host of other rights from free speech to free association. The Obama Administration undermined those rights further with its shocking support of a United Nation’s resolution that embraced the concept of blasphemy prosecutions.
With the move to Sharia law, Egypt is showing other signs of extremism. Sectarian violence, particularly against Christians, has increased with little intervention from the military.
The loss of Egypt to religious extremism would be extremely destabilizing for the regime. It will also raise a question of our continued massive support for the country. Even though we have cities and states breaking under economic pressures, we are still pouring billions in aid to both Israel and Egypt.
Sorry sb alot like Christmas.
and it’s not this one they should be worried about but the one coming next weekend. The sounds of howling can already be heard.
Somewhere in another thread I said the protest in New York is not going to last much longer. Ma Nature is fixing to blow. The winds of change is coming as winter sets in. I believe this was3 to four days ago. Well before any of the main stream weather guys started talking about it.
It’s beginning to look alike like Christmas.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NEW YORK NY
954 AM EDT FRI OCT 28 2011
GFS/SREF/ECMWF IN GOOD AGREEMENT ON A CLASSIC LOW TRACK
FROM CAPE HATTERAS NE TO NEAR OR JUST INSIDE 40N 70W TOWARD
MIDNIGHT SAT NIGHT. NAM WITH ITS MORE OFFSHORE TRACK AND THEREFORE
COLDER SOLN WAS CONSIDERED AN OUTLIER…BUT DID NUDGE THE FORECAST
SLIGHTLY IN ITS DIRECTION TO BRING POTENTIAL FOR ACCUMULATING SNOW
CLOSER TO THE COAST.
ENOUGH COLD LOW LEVEL AIR WILL BE PRESENT AT THE ONSET TO KEEP
P-TYPE ALL SNOW ACROSS AREAS WELL NORTH/WEST OF NYC AS PRECIP
BEGINS VERY LATE TONIGHT OR EARLY SAT MORNING. P-TYPE IS LESS
CLEAR CUT ACROSS THE NRN SUBURBS OF NYC INTO INTERIOR SW
CT…WHERE A SNOW/RAIN MIX MAY PERSIST FOR A GOOD PART OF SAT
UNTIL HEAVIER PRECIP ENSUES BY LATE DAY/EVENING VIA STRONG MID
LEVEL FRONTOGENETIC FORCING. HAVE ISSUED AN IMPACT-BASED WINTER
STORM WATCH FOR MUCH OF THE INTERIOR…USING A LOWER THRESHOLD
OF 4 INCHES SINCE THIS IS THE FIRST EVENT OF THE SEASON AND A VERY
EARLY ONE AT THAT.
By the way, Bron, if you’re starting to get the impression that your ideology is precisely what the 99% are demonstrating against, you’d be correct.
Bron,
You can try to pigeon-hole me as a statist all you like. It’s really funny from someone who doesn’t know the meanings of the words he uses in his Randian proselytizing. Apparently you can’t distinguish a democratic humanist who favors a blended and well regulated but predominately free market economy like the Scandinavian models (which is what I am) from a socialist or a statist (which, by the way, are not necessarily the same thing) any more than you can distinguish socialism from fascism (which are not the same thing at all).
But if you just want to play the pigeon-hole game?
If you want to be a selfish greedy myopic egotistical money worshiping jackass, then you should just embrace it . . . oh, wait . . . you already have.
Never mind.
The difference between your statements and mine is 1) I actually know the meanings of the words I use and 2) your assertion is based on name calling in the face of the critical failure to get others here to adopt your religion (again, Objectivism) and economics (again, the nonsensical and non-scientific von Mises apologetic for fascism under the guise of laissez faire capitalism) whereas mine is simply an accurate description of the net result of your behavior and espoused albeit irrational beliefs.
Gene H:
a socialist is a statist. It is all the same, centralized control.
Hey if that is what you like, embrace it dont run from it.
Elaine:
sure you do, you believe in all manner of Marxist ideas. Just go read a couple of his books.
Nice try again, Bron, but I’m neither a Marxist, a statist nor a Nazi.
Tsk, tsk, tsk.
Your desperation at the failure under critical scrutiny of your manifestly selfish and greedy ideology is showing.
Gene H:
my “religion” may be the individual but your “religion” is the state. Deutchland uber alles.
History tells me when the individual is revered life is good, when the state is revered life is bad.
Oooo. Now Bron calls us Marxists.
If you had demonstrated an understanding of the economic terms you use instead of regurgitating the von Mises spoon-fed nonsense made up definitions that you use, that might mean something.
Bron,
FYI: I don’t have a Marxist philosophy. Nice try.
“re: socialism/fascism
It is rather hard to tell them apart.”
Only if you’re stupid or brainwashed.
Elaine/Gene/Otteray Scribe:
Just because a person doesn’t agree with your Marxist philosophy, doesn’t mean he is dumb or ignorant.
Gene H:
re: socialism/fascism
It is rather hard to tell them apart. On the one hand you have Mussollini’s brand of National Socialism (Fascism) and then you have Trotsky’s brand of International Socialism.
Do you even know where the word Fascism comes from? Mussollini coined the term but it was hardly original and just means a group. Also think about that bundle of sticks the Romans used to carry around.
I think we will just have to agree to disagree. They are pretty much the same thing.
Central planning is central planning whatever you call it.
Elaine, I vote for selective memory and tunnel vision.
Bron,
Taibbi has been writing about the bailout and Wall Street shenanigans for a couple of years now. He was criticized by a lot of “financial” writers and reporters for some of the things he wrote about Goldman Sachs et al.
*****
“About time you figured it out.”
It’s evident you haven’t been reading the comments that I’ve made on this subject matter over the past couple of years at this blog…or maybe you have a selective memory.
*****
Just because a person doesn’t agree with your Randian philosophy, doesn’t mean she is dumb or ignorant.
Seemed like both guilty of bad plays….errors abound….and to think I was wondering what the ERA was….
And on an unrelated topic: Yay, Cardinals! Go in Game 7!
*lead to a
Close enough, AY. The fact some people just don’t understand is that laissez faire capitalism and crony capitalism are synonymous and both lead to an criminal corporate culture. Like all organized crime, it will seek to co-opt and corrupt government – the only power capable of reigning in their criminal actions – in a effort to protect and maximize their profits. There must be rational rules even for free markets. Free in the term “free market” doesn’t mean free to do whatever you damn well please. It’s that kind of thinking that led to the Wall Street we have today.
Well Gene seems like we are on the same page…