Weekend Sober Thread: Shit's Gettin' Real in Egypt

Frankly, if Egypt were still awash in riots and Mubarak had stayed around, I doubt we'd still be paying attention. It's a miracle that a news cycle actually managed to last for a whole 18 days and stayed focused around the protests and Mubarak.

 

We watched the whole speech today. It was batshit insane.

My favorite part: he started screaming "THIS IS MY COUNTRY! THIS IS MY COUNTRY!" before going off to talk about the war in Iraq.

 

I think it's more an attention span thing. People struggle to focus on an issue for more than a short period of time. Libya's been a cluster fuck for so long that the fact that the clusterfuck is shifting isn't really interesting. It's more of an 'oh, call me when something changes' thing. Egypt has been much less visibly a clusterfucked until recently - so it was interesting how hard the shit hit the fan and kept everyone's attention focused for a while.

 

It's amazing to me that no one's gotten close enough to the man to put bullets in him. Diplomats, air force colonels, and entire warships are defecting, and there's not one officer who's managed to hide his true feelings long enough to get a shot off?

 

Maybe they got distracted by his personal escort of 50 female bodyguards.

 

Speaks worlds about Virgin Amazonians, doesn't it?

 

I think a big reason is western (see: American) fear.

Egypt was a US ally, even if it was being run by an asshole dictator. When we see one of our few allies in a volatile area like the middle east going through this, it scares the shit out of us. These were some of the common threads on the 24 hour news networks regarding Egypt:

--"What if they put in someone worse?"

--"What if they put in someone who hates us?"

--"They seemed so stable, what if this happened to us?"

--"What if this is creating a new world order?" (granted, this came from Glen Beck)

--"How can I continue to use this to scare the fuck out of people so they have to tune in and we can make some money?" (okay, so this was implied)

In the case of Libya, however, the fear isn't there, or at least it isn't nearly as strong. I mean, really, who could possibly be worse for American than Gaddafi? He has hated us since he took over, and Libyan terrorists used to be the "terrorists to fear" before Bin Laden came along. When the US thinks of countries with governments that absolutely hate us, Libya is right at the top of that list. Really, almost any government that gets installed in Libya at this point would be a step up for Americans. Therefore, I think, the (American) news outlets will have less ability to create and stoke that fear of change that gets their viewers to tune in so fervently.

Look, I'm not going to come into this thread professing to be an expert in what is going on over there. All I can comment on is how we, as Americans, are reacting, and honestly we're reacting exactly how I thought we would.

Oppressive government that supports and is an ally of the United States gets over thrown? It could bring about new wars, higher oil prices, loss of allies, an *GASP* Islamic government, and whatever other boogey men causes Americans to shit their pants and tune in

Oppressive government that hates America and actively works against the United States is getting overthrown? Meh, its not like it can get worse for us.

Sadly, this is how a lot of Americans think. We don't give a fuck how things are or could be getting better. How are things getting worse? What should I be afraid of?

 

This is a short, funny/interesting read on Libya.

If they all are really "laughing at him," this is going to be really interesting when he gets overthrown. I know you can't use one article as a consensus (understatement), but if people are already talking like he's gone.... well, can we get a poll on when someone puts a bullet in his ass?

 

The man taught Berlusconi to Bunga Bunga. Surely that is worth something.

 

NPR had a reporter on last night who said that in Free Libya (fka East Libya) they are claiming to have legit military assets, including anti-aircraft missiles.

There was a report earlier than a plane has crashed outside of Benghazi. But, it doesn't appear to be from missile strike. Word on the street is that the pilots bailed out after refusing orders. They may not of had the fuel or information to find a friendly place to land.

 

Gadafi's son has a PhD in Democracy from a British university. Fucking embarrassing.

 

What does it say about someone who assumes dictatorial authority, and only makes himself a colonel?

 

7 MPs have quit the Yemeni parliament in protest of violence perpetrated by the state against demonstrators.

 

Not surprising but still appalling:

<a class="postlink" href="http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5i0X45epDTN00yRYdjS3YvgWKlaxA?docId=CNG.867dcb3d94702f9df32e0fdbe6185a98.141" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/ar ... 185a98.141</a>

 

I find the comparisons being drawn between the Wisconsin protests and the MENA protests beyond insulting. It took American media less than 48 hours to connect those ridiculous dots, and I wanted to put my foot through the television when I saw it. Pathetic.

 

No, it registered quite clearly. I couldn't resist registering my disgust. I saw it coming, too. The minute I heard about Wisconsin, I knew they were going to pull that crap. It was infuriating, to say the least.

 

It looks like the US has been quiet because we have no pull in Libya. We don't give them much aid (as opposed to Egypt), so unless we're going to threaten invading (which we won't), what else can we do but issue toothless press releases?

Personally, as much as I am opposed to the US getting involved in shit that isn't our business, I wish we'd step our rhetoric up a notch. We can say we do not plan to intervene directly, but will hold no ill will against a new government born out of the scattered brains of Gaddafi. We're too afraid of looking weak, and I think the Middle East is giving us an important lesson: better to appear as you actually are, or risk deluding yourself.

 

Chinese citizens in Libya have been fleeing into Tunisia.

One can only hope they go home and tell their countrymen what the Chinese government has been trying to hide from its people.

Anyone think that the Saudi government's $60 Billion+ "stimulus plan" will keep things calm over there? People who are well fed don't tend to rebel. But, they also get used to being well fed.