Arab Spring is a name given to the revolutionary wave of demonstrations and protests occurring throughout the Arab world that began on 18 December 2010. Also known as the Arab Revolution; some Arabs just call it Intifada which is translated to mean “shaking off, uprising, or insurrection” in the English language. Some folks of recent date (late summer 2012) are calling the “movement” Arab Winter, and for good reason.
Thus far rulers have been forced from power in Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, and Yemen; civil uprisings have erupted in Bahrain and in a big way in Syria; major protests have broken out in Algeria, Jordan, Kuwait, Morocco, Sudan, and surprise, surprise Iraq and more recently in Iran, where nearly all large protests must get government approval, witnesses and news reports say approximately 500 Iranians screaming “Death to America!” converged outside the Swiss Embassy, which handles American diplomatic interests their; the protesters were restrained by hundreds of police officers; this comes from a report published 13 September 2012 in the New York Times.
Some observers have drawn comparisons between the Arab Spring movements and the pro-democratic, anti-Communist Revolutions of 1989; they were occasionally called or known as “the Autumn of Nations”. In the eyes of the West, that long awaited movement that swept through Europe’s Eastern Bloc Communist world is perhaps best known as “Glasnost” which called for openness and transparency in government institutions and activities. You might say it was the step-child of the former USSR, remnants of which established modern day Russia.
Although most anyone will agree that the results of the Glasnost movement has been a welcomed success, that is if you exempt the place of its birth, Russia, wherein newly elected President Vladimir Putin has “transformed” into the federation’s very own supper man of a sort.
You see, his actions only raises eyebrows if you know that Putin previously served as President from 2000 to 2008 and as Prime Minister of Russia from 1999 to 2000, and again from 2008 to 2012. Putin also served as chairman of United Russia and Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Union of Russia and Belarus from 2008 to 2012.
Recently, President Putin has developed a condition some might call a profound fondness for the ‘days of old’ (surely you recall that Putin began his career in the good ol’ KGB). But then in his defense, until of late, his leadership has mostly enjoyed a good bit of popularity, with relatively high approval ratings. However, many of his actions have been characterized by the domestic opposition as un-democratic. Some critics even describe him as a dictator, assertions which Putin consistently denies.
In any event, even if social equality eventually does find a home in places like Saudi Arabia, Syria, Libya, Iran and elsewhere in such troubled nations; you should be aware that democracy in its infancy is a lodestone for instability and extremism. If there has ever been an extremist environment, the Arab Muslim world seems to be a perfect fit; some folks are quick to say that a good Muslim will sooner fight than eat (to paraphrase my late & former mother-in-law MJ). In other words these folks seem to love a good fight.
The mind set of today’s ‘violent’ Muslim population (as compared to those who are non-violent) may best be compared to that of the Christian’s throughout the several hundred years of the Crusades; history tells us that they thought violence was the right approach too.
Un-like the situation (remember the folly of the Cold War) the democratic west experienced with the Communist Governments of the Eastern Bloc nations such as the USSR, East Germany and others, there is a reasonable formula for avoiding the afore mentioned violence we in the west seem to witness most days of the week.
With the exception of perhaps the Suez Canal in Egypt, which is undoubtedly a huge benefit to world trade, what other commodity is located in those volatile and explosive regions that is required in the Western Nations like the United States and the United Kingdom (who coincidentally are detested above all others) except oil?
Rather than spend Billions of Dollars on Military aid and Wars, why not initiate a better energy program that will eliminate the need for, yep you guessed it, foreign oil, at least oil from countries who are likely to be as stubborn as the ill witted Christians in days of old, who waged war via the Crusades for hundreds of years. Think about it, today's bitter Muslim that’s brimming with hate for the ‘West’ is very likely to continue with that mindset and intensity for another century or two.
Such a plan is not beyond out capability by the way, but we’ve gotta think clean coal technology, biodiesel production, ethanol production, improved drilling techniques not only for oil but natural gas as well and expanded drilling programs already in-place; not to mention the necessity for solar energy and conservation efforts via electric and hybrid cars, while upgrading and improving our infrastructure during the process, to make sure everything ‘clicks’ the way it should. The result could be that the current generation achieves the loftiest of goals: The establishment of a better world.
To some, such actions might sound far-fetched at best, but we have the know-how today for most of the above referenced projects, in fact only the burning of our most abundant fossil fuel, coal is lacking in technological capability, specifically the desire to prevent the polluting of our upper atmosphere with excessive carbon deposits, thus warranting further research and development. What would you rather see in our future? More senseless killings of civilians and soldiers, or less?
Sources: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arab_Spring http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/the_rumble/2012/09/the-true-meaning-of-the-arab-spring http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/14/world/middleeast/mideast-turmoil-spreads-to-us-embassy-in-yemen.html http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Puttin
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