If you have something to say...
Say it on the Huffington Post
If you have something to say...
Say it on the Huffington Post
The Blog
Jordanians living outside of Amman return to their homes feeling discouraged. They understand what they don't have. They continue to believe that where they are born defines who they are.
The citizens of the Middle East and elsewhere should be careful what they wish for. Democracy sometimes delivers regimes that are distasteful, because they are the will of the majority of the people.
There is a global culture present in the Arab world populated by citizens that are worldly, informed, speak perfect English and know what's happening around the world, from Brazil to China. We have a responsibility to these people.
Our recommendation to the American administration for dealing with Egypt going forward is simple: Learn from history and do no harm.
In an age when most of America recognizes the need to better understand this interconnected world, our media's greatest shortcoming may be its lack of consistent international reporting.
Israel championing Arab aspirations to democracy, thought a must in its own right, is vital to Israel's image and ancient Biblical mandate. Israel is not another country but one built on the dream of an ancient people being allowed to live freely in its land.
There is a lot of work to do to continue educating the American public on our steep learning curve about the Muslim world in general and Pakistan in particular.
Secular democrats' next challenge is the Muslim Brotherhood. They must waste no time in persuading the Egyptian electorate why a Sharia-based government would be bad for them.
The liberation of Egypt seems to be just the start. Who will be next? If Jordan and Yemen follow, so will Saudi Arabia and Riyadh would be in a critical position, with no choice but to evolve towards a more open political system.
Ghada El-Khafagy fled Iraq four years ago with her two young children, in a journey that took her to Jordan, back to Baghdad and then finally to Egypt, but after two weeks of an often violent uprising, this second homeland is no longer a refuge.
America cannot go on riding the tiger forever in the Middle East. We cannot expect to have "pro-American" forces in power in the Middle East when the publics don't like our policies. We cannot continue our endless interventions.
With chaos still roiling Egypt, it's hard to tell if this uprising is Iran 1979, China 1989, or East Germany 1989. We'll have to wait and watch before we can know. But it's not too early to know that if America had done more to nurture a moderate opposition for the last 30 years, instead of choosing a strongman who sided with us over uncertain democracy, we might have some better choices right now. More importantly, so would the Egyptian people. Social media is once again playing an integral role in a popular uprising. Mubarak and his saber-wielding thugs have desperately tried to shut down the Internet and the press in a frantic attempt to keep the whole world from watching. But that's so much harder to do in the age of Twitter, Facebook, cell phone cameras, and YouTube uploads. These new media tools will play a key role in determining whether Tahrir Square 2011 is more Berlin Wall or more Tiananmen Square.
Why should we care about this distant group of people and what they are going through when it has no perceived direct connection to our lives?
Calls in Washington to suspend military aid to Egypt are fueling an already blazing fire. Although a serious review of the $1.3 billion in U.S. military aid to Egypt is long overdue, raising the threat in the midst of a burning crisis is dangerous.
Let's not repeat the failure of nerve we showed in the past with Tiananmen Square as we respond to the democratic aspirations of those in Tahrir Square. As the world watches, the administration's window of opportunity is closing quickly.
