Egypt Becoming Free In Real Time

[filkertom]

You can see the current situation and a summary of what's happened on the news, but going through a long series of bit-by-bit updates is compelling as hell.

Comments

[mouser.livejournal.com]

Broken link.

[filkertom.livejournal.com]

Thanks - fixed.

[bryanp.livejournal.com]

It's been fascinating to watch. The one time I visited Egypt I heard plenty of people saying bad things about Mubarak, but very much of the off-the-record, please-don't-repeat-this-or-I'm-in-trouble stripe. And this was from people who were well off by the local standards.

[darthgm.livejournal.com]

That's some very interesting political change they got going on over there...

[antinomic.livejournal.com]

You have greater faith in people than I do. I suspect that they are changing one dictator for another, after they joy of civil war.

Not just Egypt..

[louisadkins.livejournal.com]

"UPDATE Syria Al Arabia reports that Syria has blocked all internet access. Tunisia, Egypt, Lebanon, Jordan, Yemen and now Syria."

[shsilver.livejournal.com]

Seems like we were just watching a rebellion in real time in Iran not too long ago, although it didn't end particularly well.

[cathain.livejournal.com]

There is apparently some real argument over how much Wikileaks has spurred all of this change.

[capplor.livejournal.com]

I posted the Daily Kos link to a thread on Egypt which was full of Right Wingers on FB & managed to get most of them actually reading Daily Kos.

It helped that one of their own popped in & called the link legit - but last I checked even the trolls are sounding more interested than snarky.

Re: Not just Egypt..

[capplor.livejournal.com]

Read this: http://themoderatevoice.com/99606/on-the-communications-shutdown-in-egypt/

Then meditate on how blocking net access will backfire.

[redneckgaijin.livejournal.com]

I'd feel more confident if Obama hadn't just made a speech calling on Mubarak to keep his promises of reform...

... which, implicitly, says that the United States will continue to support his regime so long as he makes some empty gestures.

Our president should just have kept his big mouth SHUT.

[emiofbrie.livejournal.com]

I fear that in reality, they are becoming 'free' to be Sharia....

[realinterrobang.livejournal.com]

Okay, I'll bite. Hypothetically speaking, if a country democratically elected to form a government based on an extreme interpretation of Islamic jurisprudence, would you have an issue with that, and why? Which do you prioritise -- western-style "freedoms" (which may or may not be compatible with a Muslim's worldview), or self-determination?

I ask because I'm heavily into the idea that people should be able to determine for themselves what forms of government are appropriate for them, an idea which seems to be anathema to most modern Americans (and certainly is a long-standing general rule in American foreign policy). Since I'm a Canadian, and I resent the hell out of American influences on our government (if it weren't for you guys, we'd probably have legalised marijuana and have a considerably more socialist environment than we do now, for instance, both of which I consider to be excellent outcomes), self-determination is a big deal for me.

[randwolf.livejournal.com]

Al-Jazeera live English-language stream (http://english.aljazeera.net/watch_now/).

Coverage of the Egyptian internet shutdown: <http://www.renesys.com/blog/2011/01/egypt-leaves-the-internet.shtml>

No confirmations of the reports of internet shutdowns from the rest of the region.

And Anonymous, lacking an internet presence to target, is resorting to faxing (http://www.fastcompany.com/1721846/anonymous-goes-old-school-attacks-egypt-with-faxes).

[emiofbrie.livejournal.com]

Honestly, I can't complain too much if they actually do democratically-elect Sharia law. I would just feel sorry for the women who would have voted their rights away, for they would never be allowed to vote again... -.-

[stdharma.livejournal.com]

One wonders if good things will come of this.

[stevemb.livejournal.com]

"One man, one vote -- ONCE" is not self-determination in any meaningful sense.

[unclelumpy.livejournal.com]

Violence is never the answer... But there are times one must prolong the question.

[stevemb.livejournal.com]

Hence the saying "Democracy is three wolves and a lamb voting on the menu". That's why any form of stable popular government has strong institutional firewalls and buffers against unrestrained majority rule.

[writer-jack.livejournal.com]

Tunisia was interesting, Yemen was interesting, but I really sat up glued to the set for Egypt. IMHO, this is the Berlin Wall of the Middle East. I am really hoping for the sake of the Egyptians the wall falls (Mubarak steps down) and doesn't land on them instead of around them.