If you're reading this, clearly you're following developments to some degree. I have to laugh at a few things I've heard from some commentators in the last few days. From being called "our greatest ally" to "a bastion of democracy" the ignorance of the press overwhelms me. The worst, and most ridiculous of these claims is that the Muslim Brotherhood, granddaddy and founding entity of virtually every terrorist group in the world today, has "forsworn" violence.
There are two separate things going on in the demonstrations in Egypt.
The first, is good. A genuine grass roots, democratic movement, not much different than Tunisia, or even Iran. However, this is small in number and unorganized. They respect the army and it is why they seemed to back off when the army came out yesterday.
This will peter out, as it has over the years (Mubarak has faced these types of demonstrations before).
But, as a result of the demonstrations the Egyptian Army has been removed from the Rafah crossing in Gaza. Hamas operatives are pouring into Egypt to team with the Muslim Brotherhood, which is organized, directed, and leading the new wave of demonstrations.
This is the dangerous aspect and it is due totally to our failure to demand of the Egyptians, over the years, true movement toward greater institutional freedoms, and civil freedom.
The Egyptian population is highly radicalized. Worse, the Egyptian press, print and TV, all of it state run, has proffered the most vile anti western, anti American, and most of all, anti semitic messages continuously for the entire length of Mubarak's reign. It is one of our greatest failures - the refusal to address this radicalizing of their own citizenship in an attempt to distract from the failures of Mubarak to improve the lot of his people.
This situation is incredibly dangerous.
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