Newsgroup: it.politica.internazionale
Titolo: A Conversation with a Neo-Conservative about Egypt

http://sultanknish.blogspot.com/2011/02/conversation-with-neo-conservative.html
1. "Egypt has undergone a democratic revolution"
Egypt has not undergone anything of the sort. Street protests by a few
percent of the population is not a democratic revolution. The majority
of Egypt's 80 million people have not made their feelings known. Nor
can they make their feelings known except through a democratic
election. Protests by different groups with widely varying agendas are
not a substitute for elections. Anyone calling for Mubarak to step
down, rather than to hold free and open elections, is not endorsing a
democratic revolution-- just a revolution led by leftists and
Islamists.
2. "This is a struggle for freedom and democracy."
Freedom and democracy are not synonymous except in political speeches.
Polls show that most Egyptians are less committed to freedom, than
that they are to Islamic law. If that is the case, then democratic
elections will lead to less freedom, not more. Democracy is not the
same thing as freedom, and conflating the two is empty rhetoric. It
sounds good in a speech, but fails as an argument.
3. "Mubarak is a dictator"
Mubarak is certainly not your Uncle Fred, but Egypt is still one of
the more freer and open societies in the region. Especially when
compared to Iran, Syria, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, the UAE and many
others. The fate of Christians and women is not likely to improve in a
parliament with a strong Muslim Brotherhood presence. Removing Mubarak
will strengthen the position of groups who are far more totalitarian
than Mubarak.
4. "As Americans we should support democracy in Egypt"
Kefaya, the National Movement for Change, is an anti-American
organization. It is already allied with the Muslim Brotherhood. The
Egyptians may do as they please, but why should we support the removal
of a pro-American leader by a coalition of lefitsts and Islamists?
Shouldn't our national security take precedence over perpetrating
another Iran in the name of "democracy".
5. "It's in our ideals to support a people's struggle for self-
determination"
It's not in our ideals to support people who bomb churches and murder
little girls. Most Egyptians want to see Muslims who leave Islam
executed. Mubarak doesn't. Most Jordanians want the right to kill
their daughters or sisters when they dishonor them. King Hussein
doesn't. Do our ideals really call on us to support church bombings
and the murder of little girls in the name of democracy? And isn't
placing democracy above human rights ideological fanaticism?
6. "How can we support a dictator over a democratic movement?"
Why do we have to support either one? Why can't we let the Egyptians
work it out themselves. It is their country after all. We're not the
rulers of the planet. We could just stand on the sidelines and worry
about our own problems. Like that massive deficit.
7. "We have to take the chance that everything will work out!"
Is that how we make policy now by hoping for change? Tossing a coin
and betting with our national security and the lives of 80 million
people
8. "It's in our interest to remove Mubarak because dictatorships breed
terrorism"
Then how do you explain all the Islamic terrorists who were born in
the United States and the UK. Or why  Lebanon is overrun with
terrorists, but Turkmenistan isn't. Why are English Muslims more
radicalized than some Muslims in the Middle-East?
9. "Many revolutions have worked out well"
How many of them were in Muslim countries?
10. "Fear is an unworthy reason to oppose change"
Irrational fear is an unworthy reason. Fact based fear is not.
Pretending that the changes you want will not empower the Islamists is
irrational. And an irrational argument that appeals to emotion is
unworthy.
11. "If we don't support the revolution, that will inspire anti-
Americanism"
Now who's using the fear based argument. Besides isn't this kind of
thinking how we ended up with the Islamic Republic of Iran? Helping
anti-American governments to avoid being hated is almost as smart as
punching yourself in the face to avoid being bullied. Besides is there
any possible course of action we could take that won't lead to us
being hated?
12. "The longer Mubarak holds on, the worse it will get"
How do you know? Isn't that just repeating ElBaradei's talking points.
Egypt has faced food riots before. And the riots already seem to be
dying down. The big crowds are disappearing. Coalitions are conducting
their own talks with Egypt's government.
13. "We should have faith in the Egyptian people's capacity for self-
government"
What have they ever done that justifies such a faith? And why do Iran
and Turkey seem to have far more faith in their capacity for self-
government. Maybe they know something we don't. The Turkish people
brought terrorist supporting Islamists to power. The overthrow of the
Shah brought the Ayatollah Khomeni to power. Elections in the
Palestinian Authority brought Hamas to power. Thanks to its elections,
Hezbollah is now running the table in Lebanon. Having faith in people
doesn't mean standing around a bad neighborhood while waving your
wallet in the air.
14. "President Bush's freedom agenda has been vindicated"
Kefaya is the backbone of the protests, a group that formed partly in
response to the Iraq War. Kefaya is as indicative of his agenda as
Code Pink was. Bush never sought to overthrow Mubarak.
15. "Not all of the protesters are Kefaya and the Islamists"
That's true, but mostly irrelevant. It's the organized groups that
will dictate a settlement, not the individuals. Kingmakers will emerge
from this, and it won't be the faces in the crowd. It will be their
leaders.
16. "If the Muslim Brotherhood wants to participate in elections, who
are we to say no"
We are the people they are at war with. It is not in our interest to
help our enemies come to power. It may even be in our interest to
obstruct them from coming to power.
17. "If we wait any longer, the Muslim Brotherhood will take over
anyway"
That might happen. But why move up the timetable?
18. "This is Egypt's last chance at a liberal democratic government"
How do you know? Why is it the last chance in 2011, rather than 2015
or 2025? Where is the proof behind all these scare tactics. How do we
know that a more gradual transition won't better pave the way for
that. Why are we being panicked into taking a gamble here and now?
19. "If freedom wins in Egypt, it will win around the world."
So far the targets of this "freedom movement" have been somewhat
moderate countries allied with the United States. I wouldn't count on
it spreading anywhere beyond that. And once those countries are
Islamist, then freedom really will be over and done with.
20. "The spirit of freedom is in the air"
Is that what that is. I was wondering.

 Islamists.
Mamma mia, che ritardato: sembra B. tradotto in inglese. Chissà se 
questa reliquia del mondo che fu si è mai posto il problema di come 
togliere il potere a qualcuno che semplicemente non vuole lasciarlo e 
semplicemente ignora qualunque forma di "democrazia"? Si ingaggia un 
Demostene a lame rotanti? Ci si accontenta di essere un protettorato e 
si va in cerca di un fdp pagato da altri?
-- 
Namib
"Lo spirito della valle non muore" (“Tao Tê Ching”, VI, 1)

 Si ingaggia un Demostene a lame rotanti?
LOL, mi fai morire
F.
-- 
"Parliamo di Gnech. Che la sua doppiezza sia studiata ne
dubito, ma che si tratti di doppiezza è riscontrabile
da ciò che scrive." (Persio su it.politica.internazionale)
http://flaneurotic.wordpress.com/


molto semplice. Si aspetta il cadavere di questi ritardati lungo il
fiume.