Fighter planes and pyramids

So, another bit of civil unrest spikes in the Middle East. A government, often supported by this country, missteps against its own people. Egypt. A delightful land, so I am told. Turmoil rages, it seems, without abandon. Surprised? I guess I am always surprised. Disappointed? I guess I am, but I think that if I cared enough to think about it, I should have expected this sort of the thing to happen. A single, supposedly freely-elected man has run the country since the last president of Egypt, Sadat, lost his life by an assassins many bullets in 1981. Thirty years. One man. One party. Shocking.

Today, another interesting event took place in Egypt amongst the bloodshed and show of repudiation. Several fighter jets, F-16's I believe, provided by our country flew over Cairo, allegedly as a show of force by the military. Interesting bit of irony, isn't it? We sell arms to our friends around the world who then use it against their own people. I wonder what is next. A coup d'etat? A final separation from liberal, pro-democratic (with a single man in charge for thirty years, one can easily debate whether it is a democracy) method of governance and slow retreat into theocracy? Have you read this script before?

We must stop interfering with other nations. Arms, advice, and money - all of it must stop. Just as we argue that our own people should not be fed the fish but instead allowed to find it and catch it for themselves, so too must we argue for sovereignty for all nations and fair and equitable trade. I know it's a long shot. But what we have now is not...I repeat...not working.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace. The preceding blog entry once again points out the need for term limits. It certainly applies for Egypt. It needs to apply in the United States. Please call your representative or senator and ask that they introduce measures in Congress to limit the terms of elected officials.