January 27, 2011
THE rEALIST rIGHT:
Mubarak Should Go — But Not Yet (National Review, 1/27/11)
We don’t know where the protests of the last few days will lead. They may fizzle, or Egyptian security forces — not known for their squeamishness — may succeed in stomping them out. We also shouldn’t fool ourselves about our ability to influence events on the ground. To the extent we can, though, we should support Mubarak so long as he agrees to open Egypt’s political system; it is best that change come gradually through the democratic process rather than all at once in the streets.
Because, really, the Muslims just aren't ready to govern themselves...
MORE:
Popular sovereignty in the Middle East: The real story of the Tunisian revolution is the restoration of collective dignity (Dina Jadallah, 1/27/11, Al-Ahram Weekly)
The reality is that most Middle Eastern governments exist in a state of symbiosis with the Western hegemonic powers. This symbiotic congruence of hegemonic interests practices parasitic forms of extraction, oppression and subjugation for the benefit of external beneficiaries. Some of these beneficiaries may be of the local variety. Nevertheless, their parasitism and externality reside in their roles, not in their "nationality". This is similar to the Philippines model of American imperialism that was practiced through a circumscribed ruling cabal. (Notice that the Philippines is the only country in East Asia that has not experienced the Asian economic "miracle" -- even if we contest how a "miracle" ought to be socio- economically defined).The Philippines model was exported and is practised in many parts of the world today, especially the Middle East. Tunisia had its Trabelsi and Bin Ali clans and their cohorts. Yet, there are still today replica Trabelsis and Bin- Alis all over.
The opposite of this state of parasitic symbiosis, also known as (fake) sovereignty, in the Middle East is al-karama. Fundamentally, it is in each individual. But it needs the collective to reach its full potential. Herein lies its power: it has the ability to connect the practice of sovereignty at the level of the people with its actualisation at the level of the state.
Al-karama is a word that is rich in meaning. It has far-reaching semantic, intellectual, socio-cultural and political dimensions. Simply put, it means dignity. Its Arabic root is karam, which means magnanimity and generosity. The two concepts are related at many levels. A person's dignity is naturally multi-faceted. It implies that one has basic needs such as life, food, health, intellectual, associational, political, and expressive freedoms, the capacity to have meaningful and fulfilling work, and so forth.
This is not to say that a person who lacks these things does not have dignity, because that is clearly (and fortunately) not the case. Many maintain their dignity despite living under conditions of political and economic deprivation and oppression. Nevertheless, such systemic subtractions of individual dignity necessarily mean a violation and a degradation of a quality that humans possess.
