“To ask a dictator to implement democratic measures
after thirty years in power is an oxymoron. It will not
end until he leaves."
-----------Mohamed ElBaradei.
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Expecting time to peacefully usher in meaningful reforms while
an autocrat clings to his throne is exemplary of either extreme
naivete or blithe calculation.
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Knowing US policy in the Middle East hinges on Israeli concerns
one would choose the latter. As I have written before, the US is
publicly extending and pretending bland support for "the people"
while secretly hoping Mubarak or his chief torturer, Suleiman,
remains and the world's attention span decamps.
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Incremental reform is an insult to people who have lived under
oppression for three decades wholly financed by US leadership.
The longer this crisis goes the worse the outcome will be for
US interests in the Middle East. By dithering and riding the fence
to look "correct" the world sees fumbling calculation. Obama's
administration is being too clever by more than half. Mubarak
is openly defying US demands with their own "stability"
rhetoric. He has learned well from Netanyahu. You can openly
insult the hypocritical and corrupt US government with impunity.
Look at the War Criminals of our previous and present
administration. Our leaders mouth fine phrases and endorse
the rule of law but grant implicit pardon for all crimes with the
bromides "looking forward" and "change we can believe in".
How do the empty phrases "peaceful transition" and "stability"
sound any different to Mubarak? He hears, much like the Bankers
did when Obama vowed "to allow markets to sort out results" in
foreclosure fraud, carte blanche permission to crack down on the
people regardless of tough rhetoric. Obama's policy is an inverted
form of Theodore Roosevelt's:
He speaks harshly but carries no stick.
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President Obama and the US State Department clearly show
more concern about Public Relations than the Egyptian
people and, ironically, their own interests. All easily see
post festum palliatives of a bankrupt empire straining to be
meaningful and "stately" in all the official announcements of
Obama, Biden and Clinton. Like a surprised autocrat they
miss a clear and present truth by seeking shelter from the
fear of being on the wrong side of a popular movement.
Power is always terrified of change and over-promotes
stability and peace in defense.
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Mubarak and his US paymasters are caught colluding openly
to save face by attempting to maintain previous conditions
under a new name. This rebranding of oppression is doomed.
The Egyptian people, and every sane person on this planet,
sees through the comical disconnect of rhetoric from action.
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