STOP AUTHORITARIAN DIALOGUES
THE ABC FOR A DEMOCRATIC DIALOGUE IN SOVEREIGN STATES
From Haz, February 8, 2011
Introduction.
In a recent statement to the nation President Obama said that “the Mubarak regime is gone”. Meaning: The CIA is in charge; the rulers now are Frank Wisner (the new chief of the CIA in Egypt) and Omar Suleiman (now a subordinated CIA agent). They both convened a conversation meeting with selected opposition leaders with the following hidden agenda:
A) legitimize the VP (transitional rule that implies a mocking on people demand for immediate resignation of Mubarak regime).
B) legitimize the official media so far totally discredited. They are presenting Suleiman as obedient servant of the people, a one that concedes in words everything the opposition want . They cover up the tactic of agenda setting : no word about the immediate renunciation of Mubarak , instead the media says every day that “the nation” is losing too much money because of the uprising.
C) the implementation of low intensive war : more Al Jazeera journalists are abused, Muslim leaders are chased and excluded from the meeting, later on what?.
D) Legitimize Mubarak political power, so Suleiman once legitimized can call anticipated elections and win them. In short: the restoration of Mubarak regimen with CIA puppet in power is in process and the army will be ready to cover order to this transition.
On top, the content of the conversation was intentionally distorted: they were talking about agreements reach by consensus. So, apparently this was a piece of cake for Wisner. Is that really so easy?. Let’s see what happens on Tuesday. Meanwhile check one people mistake and read some experience on “democratic dialogue”, then counter attack: agarrar el toro por las astas y al conejo por las orejas y los dos afuera.
REAL PRE CONDITIONS FOR A DEMOCRATIC DIALOGUE in a SOVERIGN STATE
We will refer here the conditions for a democratic dialogue inside nations that are NOT under political-military occupation by foreign states. Assuming that Egypt is not an occupied territory, that instead it is a politically and military independent and sovereign State-Nation, then the presence of well-known CIA agent Frank Wisner with dismal record of HR abuses on other nations, invalidates de facto the nature of a democratic dialogue in Egypt. So, the first pre-condition for a democratic dialogue in this country is the immediate get off of the Wisner team from Egypt. The alternative media should provide as much info as possible on the record of this criminal agent.
In sovereign State-Nations of Latino America there are some cannons for democratic dialogues to achieve peaceful resolution of conflicts that may be of interest in Egypt. We had similar situations in Peru, Chile, Ecuador, Venezuela, Argentina and other Latino nations in which corrupt autocrats were removed by their people uprising. Peru is the nation who still has a former President and his CIA advisor in jail for crimes against humanity, corruption and establishing an autocratic regime. Peru is also the country who is still fighting against big international corporations whose damage to the nation have created similar conflicts and dialogue process to reach the demands of the nation. I will adapt these experiences to the current case in Egypt. I hope it will serve for internal debates in Egypt.
Dialogue main goal and pre-conditions for a democratic dialogue.
1.MAIN GOAL: Set up an interim government in Egypt to achieve the basic context for building peace, a united nation and the calling of immediate election.
2. Ensure democratic context for dialogue. To ensure full respect of civil and political rights stated in the UN universal declaration of HR (freedom of association, expression and participation, access to TV and press, alternative information, reparation to the families affected in State-society confrontation..) are the necessary and primary condition for the existence of democratic dialogue. Nobody owes obedience to a dictator regime, is a statement written in all constitutions of the world. This obligates us to remove from power all corrupt and autocratic state officials like Mubarak and the CIA agent Omar Suleiman, their staying in power delegitimize any democratic dialogue. This should be the point of departure that will define the post-processing of democracy in Egypt.
Dialogues can occur in three types of contexts:
a. dialogue when the tension starts (initial clashes between state authorities & citizens)
b. in the midst of a conflict (when interest of State & society are irreconcilable and violent), and
c. after a violent conflict (when State HR violations breaks down the structure of the system and the society is at the point of internal war) .
In a, b situations the condition for dialogue and peace restoration depends on the removal of corrupt and autocratic official and the State compensation to the families plus the restoring of UN civil and political rights. Otherwise there will not be a democratic dialogue. In c situation, the dialogue may need a third party to mediate the conflict (Regional or international HR organizations, and a Truth Committee for reconciliation with church delegates in it). If this dialogue don’t work, regional or UN legal bodies may intervene to avoid the danger of war conflict and/or regional separatism under ILO law on the right to self-determination for the part of the society that has been genocide or excluded.
3. Types of dialogue:
a. Faked: To sustain-confirm conflicting positions on key issues in debate. This dialogue is not a real dialogue. It is either a debate between deaf or a simulation-manipulation game in which both parts hide their real agendas by conceding little –info + legitimation on each part- to keep the essence or the bulk of the problem alive for further confrontation, while preserving the status quo. This is the nature of today dialogue in Egypt. The attendants went there to get some info for the coming elections while the state aim was to legitimate their designed “order” to leave untouched the main problem. Winner: the CIA agent acting as VP. Losers: the political opportunists.
b. Pre-problem-solving dialogue. To reflect, and evaluate the damage cause by tate intransigence in supporting autocracy and corruption and the same with people uprising (if any) to the future of society as a whole . The aim is to advance possible solution. This dialogue is deliberative in content; it does not resolve nothing nor carry abiding agreements.
c. Partial problem-solving dialogue to generate signed minimal agreement on main topic of conflict (quasi-decisive, but not helpful). None of the above represent real advance to solve the main problem
d. Democratic dialogue: Is a win-win situation that departs from full respect to civil and political rights and freedoms stated by the UN as a pre-condition for dialogue, then comes the cut of key knot or solution to the main people demand. This is a face-to-face, State-society dialogue with not under-the-table agendas and closing doors. If this proceeding is adopted at the beginning, then we save human life, time, and material resources. Otherwise we will have autocratic or pro autocratic dialogues; meaning: a waste of time and pure sham and farce.
4. The dynamics of dialogue.
A. Parts involve. There should be three parties in any pro conflict-resolution dialogue: the two parties in conflict and the mediator team (in odd number). The State rulers, the chamber of commerce u other entrepreneurial sector who benefit or is supported by the government will be one party. The pro-democracy labor unions (independent from state control ) plus the elected members of the social organizations who organize and lead the social movement (including the Al Jazeera Egyptian reporters and active Muslim organization) should conform the second party. Both parties (I suggest no more than 10 members at all, 5 in each part) will decide -by consensus- who will be the members of the mediator party.
B. The agenda setting for the talks (problems that go to the dialogue) is defined by consensus between both parties (State and society organizations in conflict).
C. Mediator (s). I suggest 3 lawyers from regional-international legal agencies, HR organizations or UN commissions. Their function is to provide a balanced proposal for the parties in conflict when they did not get an agreement by consensus (or 2/3 plus 1 vote). If two of mediator proposals are rejected they will decide by consensus a balanced one. Mediators are like judges of a court with the difference that they can be removed at the petition of one of the bodies in conflict. Who is and who is not member of a mediation team is defined by consensus by two parties in conflict. If one mediator is removed at the petitions of one party, the dialogue is postponed until an alternate takes charge as mediator.
D. The dynamics, stages and rules. The number of representatives for each party to the dialogue and the place of dialogue should be agreed by consensus (not defined by the government nor the mediators, but for both sides in conflict.). All rules of the process will be defined by consensus of both parties.
E. Place. Given the macro-regional context of this conflict, the should start in a neutral state nation (we suggest any country from the BRIC or in either Chile, Peru or Argentine). This dialogue should be televised live and worldwide, and it will conclude in the capital, and major cities of the uprising in Egypt, unless we want to pay tribute to the obsolete centralized presidential system and its autocratic and corrupted regimen. No tribute either to the political manipulators of the corporate mass-media.
5. Not improvisation. To avoid distortions as happens recently with the preliminary conversation with the VP, neither party should improvised their participation in a dialogue that -from now on- should be televised and broadcasted live to the national/ international public opinion. The aim is that the entire nation be informed fair in their own language -translated to other s- in order for them to judge the participation of their representatives and be abided by their agreements. This is the only way to prevent press distortions and bias in the process of making National Accords. As stated above: Pace, a united nation and immediate election plus set the interim government are the main goals of these dialogues.
6. Supervisory Commissions agreed. The implementation of the agreements of the dialogue should be monitored by both, state and society parties in conflict plus a third one, a regional court for human rights like the one that Latinos have in Costa Rica. In the part of the society should be included the pro-democracy unions and the organizations mentioned above (muslim organizations). Representing the state there will be kind of Ombudsman or general attorney team to protect de rights of the people, (bar associations can provide a team if the State constitution don’t have one). I should be an entity independent from the political system. This committee must receive budget and facilities (information and per diem at least) from the State for their independent investigation and processing before legal instances different type of people grievances. They should be members of the supervisory committee.
7. Information on progress. The three vigilance committees should inform regularly to the nation via TV and the national media –with total independence from the political regime- on a regular and ongoing advances in the process dialogue and conflict resolution.
martes, 8 de febrero de 2011
sábado, 5 de febrero de 2011
EGYPT UNA REVOLUCION ANUNCIADA IN SPANGLISH
EGYPT UNA REVOLUCION ANUNCIADA IN SPANGLISH
http://www.leap2020.eu/
GEAB wrote it in June 2008: "Arab world: Pro-Western regimes go adrift / 60 percent risk of socio-political explosion on Egypt-Morocco axis"
- Excerpt GEAB N°26 (June 16, 2008) -
According to LEAP/E2020, the global systemic crisis contributes to weaken Arab states’ pro-Western regimes confronted to hunger riots, religious fundamentalism fuelled by the growing influence of Iran, Syria, Hezbollah and Hamas, and the incapacity of Washington and its European allies to answer by anything else than securitarian stances (1). Day after day Egypt loses in stability because of the political deadlock created by the end of Moubarak’s reign combined with the regime’s incapacity to address the economic and social expectations of a growing part of the population (2). According to our analysts, Egypt will be politically hit by the outcome of the plunge into the heart of the global systemic crisis (3). Social instability will be stronger than the securitarian nature of the regime.
According to our team, this country is the last wall against an implosion of Maghreb under the strain of the anti-American forces now dominating the whole Middle-East. If, like we believe, Egypt becomes very unstable by the beginning of 2009, Tunisia, Algeria and Morocco will soon be swept away. In any event, they will have to cope with growing domestic unrest for socio-economic reasons, at the very moment when their great European partner sees its economy slow down.
----------
Notes:
(1) The French president’s unrealistic project of Union for the Mediterranean will not change anything to the situation.
(2) Hunger riots have not finished shaking up the region. Indeed, on the global food issue, the situation is worsening. For instance, the US department of Agriculture is expecting a 10% drop in US corn production this year. Source: Bloomberg, 06/10/2008
(3) Even American aid, largely granted to the region, as a result of the US currency slump.
ANTICIPATIONS FOR 2011
Political instability in the US, Pro-Western Arab regimes, Obama, Sarkozy and Berlusconi, UK rescue and the Cameron/Clegg duet, The Greens in Germany and the National Front in France, The rationale of « geopolitical blocs », The role of gold in the international monetary system, Real estate prices, Internationalisation of the Yuan, US Treasuries and Western public debt, The value of financial investments, Interest rates, « Quantitative Easing » as a solution to the crisis, Exchange control regulations and other forms of financial, monetary and commercial protection, US leadership, US interventionism in Latin America, NATO cohesion in Afghanistan, The recovery, The G20 capacity to reform the international monetary system, Inflation, The Fed’s « attacks » (and the Dollar wall), The international role of BRIC countries, US States’ and Municipal bankruptcies, The Chinese and German economic miracles, The fiscal, economic and financial integration of Euroland, The Euro crisis, Multiculturalism in Europe, The value of banks, Earnings and pensions in developed countries, Unemployment and social violence, Social protection systems
IN SPANISH
http://www.leap2020.eu/Lo-escribio-en-junio-de-2008-Mundo-arabe-los-regimenes-pro-occidentales-a-la-deriva-60-de-riesgos-de-explosion-politico_a5853.html
GEAB Lo escribió en junio de 2008: "Mundo árabe: los regímenes pro-occidentales a la deriva / 60 % de riesgos de explosión político-social en el eje Egipto-Marruecos"
- Fragmento de GEAB N°26 (17 de junio de 2008) -
Para el LEAP/E2020, la crisis sistémica global ya contribuye a debilitar fuertemente a los estados árabes pro-occidentales que se enfrentan a una mezcla de motines del hambre, ascenso del integrismo, impulsado por el creciente poder de Irán, Siria, Hezbollah y Hamas, y la incapacidad de Washington y sus aliados europeos para tener un discursos que no sea el de de la seguridad (1). Egipto está cada día más inestable a causa del estancamiento político en que lo coloca el final del reinado de Mubarak, mientras que el régimen es incapaz de satisfacer las esperanzas económicas y sociales radicalizadas de una proporción creciente de la población (2). Para nuestros investigadores, Egipto será políticamente arrastrado por las consecuencias de la entrada en el núcleo de la crisis sistémica global (3). La inestabilidad social prevalecerá sobre la naturaleza de seguridad pública de régimen.
Según nuestro equipo, este país es la última muralla que impide la implosión del Magreb bajo la presión de las fuerzas anti-estadounidenses que en lo sucesivo dominarán Medio Oriente. Si, como pensamos, Egipto entra en situación de gran inestabilidad a principios de 2009, entonces Túnez, Argelia y Marruecos serán arrastrados a la tormenta muy rápidamente. Quienes de todos modos tienen que también enfrentarse a un creciente desafío interno por razones socioeconómicas, al mismo tiempo que su gran socio europeo verá su economía desacelerarse.
---------
Notas:
(1) Y este no es el virtualismo de la Unión Mediterránea del Presidente francés que no va a cambiar nada en absoluto.
(2) Los motines del hambre no terminaron de agitar la región ya que, sobre el frente alimenticio mundial, la situación continúa degradándose. Así, por ejemplo, el ministerio estadounidense de Agricultura espera una baja del 10 % de la producción de EE.UU. de maíz este año. Fuente: Bloomberg, 10/06/2008
(3) Incluso la ayuda estadounidense, de la que es uno de los principales beneficiarios, se reduce como piel de zapa a causa de la baja continua del Dólar ollar.
OTHER LEAP2020 docts:
The Great Global Debt Prison
Caída del Muro “Dólar”, un fenómeno análogo al de la caída del Muro de Berlín. In GEAB N°51
Crisis sistémica global - 2011: El año despiadado, en la encrucijada de los tres caminos del caos mundial - 16/01/2011
ANTICIPACIONES 2011
Inestabilidad política en Estados Unidos, La caída de los regímenes árabes pro-occidentales, Obama, Sarkozy y Berlusconi, El salvataje del Reino Unido y del tándem Cameron/Clegg, El asenso de los Verdes en Alemania y del Frente Nacional en Francia, Fortalecimiento de la tendencia a los « bloques geopolíticos », Continúa el retorno del oro al sistema monetario internacional, Los precios inmobiliarios, Aceleración de la internacionalización del Yuán, Explosión de la burbuja de los Bonos del Tesoro de EEUU y de las deudas públicas occidentales, El interés de las colocaciones financieras, Tasas de interés, « Quantitative Easing » como solución a la crisis, Control de cambio y otras formas de protecciones financieras, monetarias y comerciales en marco de una guerra monetaria, El liderazgo estadounidense, El intervencionismo de EEUU en América Latina, La cohesión de la OTAN en Afganistán, La reactivación mundial, La capacidad del G20 para reformar el sistema monetario internacional, La inflación, Los « ataques » de la FED (y la Caída del Muro del Dólar), Importancia internacional del BRIC, Quiebras de Estados y administraciones locales estadounidenses, Los milagros económicos chino y alemán, La integración fiscal, económica y financiera de Eurolandia, La « crisis del Euro », El multiculturalismo en Europa, El valor de los bancos, Las alzas de salarios y de las jubilaciones en los países desarrollados, Desempleo y violencia social, Los sistemas de protección social: desafío político clave para todo el mundo, El consumo familiar occidental
http://www.leap2020.eu/
GEAB wrote it in June 2008: "Arab world: Pro-Western regimes go adrift / 60 percent risk of socio-political explosion on Egypt-Morocco axis"
- Excerpt GEAB N°26 (June 16, 2008) -
According to LEAP/E2020, the global systemic crisis contributes to weaken Arab states’ pro-Western regimes confronted to hunger riots, religious fundamentalism fuelled by the growing influence of Iran, Syria, Hezbollah and Hamas, and the incapacity of Washington and its European allies to answer by anything else than securitarian stances (1). Day after day Egypt loses in stability because of the political deadlock created by the end of Moubarak’s reign combined with the regime’s incapacity to address the economic and social expectations of a growing part of the population (2). According to our analysts, Egypt will be politically hit by the outcome of the plunge into the heart of the global systemic crisis (3). Social instability will be stronger than the securitarian nature of the regime.
According to our team, this country is the last wall against an implosion of Maghreb under the strain of the anti-American forces now dominating the whole Middle-East. If, like we believe, Egypt becomes very unstable by the beginning of 2009, Tunisia, Algeria and Morocco will soon be swept away. In any event, they will have to cope with growing domestic unrest for socio-economic reasons, at the very moment when their great European partner sees its economy slow down.
----------
Notes:
(1) The French president’s unrealistic project of Union for the Mediterranean will not change anything to the situation.
(2) Hunger riots have not finished shaking up the region. Indeed, on the global food issue, the situation is worsening. For instance, the US department of Agriculture is expecting a 10% drop in US corn production this year. Source: Bloomberg, 06/10/2008
(3) Even American aid, largely granted to the region, as a result of the US currency slump.
ANTICIPATIONS FOR 2011
Political instability in the US, Pro-Western Arab regimes, Obama, Sarkozy and Berlusconi, UK rescue and the Cameron/Clegg duet, The Greens in Germany and the National Front in France, The rationale of « geopolitical blocs », The role of gold in the international monetary system, Real estate prices, Internationalisation of the Yuan, US Treasuries and Western public debt, The value of financial investments, Interest rates, « Quantitative Easing » as a solution to the crisis, Exchange control regulations and other forms of financial, monetary and commercial protection, US leadership, US interventionism in Latin America, NATO cohesion in Afghanistan, The recovery, The G20 capacity to reform the international monetary system, Inflation, The Fed’s « attacks » (and the Dollar wall), The international role of BRIC countries, US States’ and Municipal bankruptcies, The Chinese and German economic miracles, The fiscal, economic and financial integration of Euroland, The Euro crisis, Multiculturalism in Europe, The value of banks, Earnings and pensions in developed countries, Unemployment and social violence, Social protection systems
IN SPANISH
http://www.leap2020.eu/Lo-escribio-en-junio-de-2008-Mundo-arabe-los-regimenes-pro-occidentales-a-la-deriva-60-de-riesgos-de-explosion-politico_a5853.html
GEAB Lo escribió en junio de 2008: "Mundo árabe: los regímenes pro-occidentales a la deriva / 60 % de riesgos de explosión político-social en el eje Egipto-Marruecos"
- Fragmento de GEAB N°26 (17 de junio de 2008) -
Para el LEAP/E2020, la crisis sistémica global ya contribuye a debilitar fuertemente a los estados árabes pro-occidentales que se enfrentan a una mezcla de motines del hambre, ascenso del integrismo, impulsado por el creciente poder de Irán, Siria, Hezbollah y Hamas, y la incapacidad de Washington y sus aliados europeos para tener un discursos que no sea el de de la seguridad (1). Egipto está cada día más inestable a causa del estancamiento político en que lo coloca el final del reinado de Mubarak, mientras que el régimen es incapaz de satisfacer las esperanzas económicas y sociales radicalizadas de una proporción creciente de la población (2). Para nuestros investigadores, Egipto será políticamente arrastrado por las consecuencias de la entrada en el núcleo de la crisis sistémica global (3). La inestabilidad social prevalecerá sobre la naturaleza de seguridad pública de régimen.
Según nuestro equipo, este país es la última muralla que impide la implosión del Magreb bajo la presión de las fuerzas anti-estadounidenses que en lo sucesivo dominarán Medio Oriente. Si, como pensamos, Egipto entra en situación de gran inestabilidad a principios de 2009, entonces Túnez, Argelia y Marruecos serán arrastrados a la tormenta muy rápidamente. Quienes de todos modos tienen que también enfrentarse a un creciente desafío interno por razones socioeconómicas, al mismo tiempo que su gran socio europeo verá su economía desacelerarse.
---------
Notas:
(1) Y este no es el virtualismo de la Unión Mediterránea del Presidente francés que no va a cambiar nada en absoluto.
(2) Los motines del hambre no terminaron de agitar la región ya que, sobre el frente alimenticio mundial, la situación continúa degradándose. Así, por ejemplo, el ministerio estadounidense de Agricultura espera una baja del 10 % de la producción de EE.UU. de maíz este año. Fuente: Bloomberg, 10/06/2008
(3) Incluso la ayuda estadounidense, de la que es uno de los principales beneficiarios, se reduce como piel de zapa a causa de la baja continua del Dólar ollar.
OTHER LEAP2020 docts:
The Great Global Debt Prison
Caída del Muro “Dólar”, un fenómeno análogo al de la caída del Muro de Berlín. In GEAB N°51
Crisis sistémica global - 2011: El año despiadado, en la encrucijada de los tres caminos del caos mundial - 16/01/2011
ANTICIPACIONES 2011
Inestabilidad política en Estados Unidos, La caída de los regímenes árabes pro-occidentales, Obama, Sarkozy y Berlusconi, El salvataje del Reino Unido y del tándem Cameron/Clegg, El asenso de los Verdes en Alemania y del Frente Nacional en Francia, Fortalecimiento de la tendencia a los « bloques geopolíticos », Continúa el retorno del oro al sistema monetario internacional, Los precios inmobiliarios, Aceleración de la internacionalización del Yuán, Explosión de la burbuja de los Bonos del Tesoro de EEUU y de las deudas públicas occidentales, El interés de las colocaciones financieras, Tasas de interés, « Quantitative Easing » como solución a la crisis, Control de cambio y otras formas de protecciones financieras, monetarias y comerciales en marco de una guerra monetaria, El liderazgo estadounidense, El intervencionismo de EEUU en América Latina, La cohesión de la OTAN en Afganistán, La reactivación mundial, La capacidad del G20 para reformar el sistema monetario internacional, La inflación, Los « ataques » de la FED (y la Caída del Muro del Dólar), Importancia internacional del BRIC, Quiebras de Estados y administraciones locales estadounidenses, Los milagros económicos chino y alemán, La integración fiscal, económica y financiera de Eurolandia, La « crisis del Euro », El multiculturalismo en Europa, El valor de los bancos, Las alzas de salarios y de las jubilaciones en los países desarrollados, Desempleo y violencia social, Los sistemas de protección social: desafío político clave para todo el mundo, El consumo familiar occidental
The Great Global Debt Prison
The Great Global Debt Prison
http://www.zerohedge.com/article/guest-post-great-global-debt-prison
By Giordano Bruno
Neithercorp Press – 2/4/2011
TO SEE graphics open the website above
Tense and terrible times inevitably summon an odd coupling of two very different and difficult human conditions; honesty, and brutality. Certain painful truths are revealed, and often, a palpable fury erupts. Being that times today are particularly tense, and on the verge of being spectacularly terrible, perhaps we should embrace both conditions in a constructive manner, and become brutally honest with ourselves. This begins by admitting to that which most ails us. It begins by admitting how far we have fallen…
Our economy, our culture, our entire world, is built upon debt. No one ever asked us if that’s how we wanted it, it is simply how the system was designed when we came into it. Many of us have lived our entire lives under the assumption that debt is a necessary function of daily commerce and a valuable driver of successful society. Most households in America operate at a steep loss, trapped in constantly building cycles of liability and interest. There are even widely held schools of economic thought that are centered completely on the production and utilization of nothing but debt. Only recently have many people begun to ask themselves what the tangible benefits are (if any) in being dependent on debt based finance.
After careful examination, it becomes evident that debt does not fuel economy, it suffocates it. It does not nurture growth, it stunts and poisons it. Extreme debt is not a fundamental organ in a body of commerce; it is an aberration, a spreading cancer which disrupts the circulation of healthy trade. Debt is, in large part, unnecessary.
Of course, debt can be very useful if you are the controller or determining overseer of a system, especially if you wish to centralize and maintain power over that system. The tactical wielding of debt has been used by elites for centuries as a means to imprison the masses, or to create an atmosphere of endless dependency. Let’s take a look at what debt really is, and how it is being used against the average American today…
Understanding Debt
The Charles Dickens classic ‘Little Dorrit’ is commonly misinterpreted as a “love story”, however, the primary character in the book is not Little Dorrit, or the kindly Arthur Clennam, but the debt system of Britain itself, and its effects on every social class from the street beggar to the elitist socialite. Dickens despised the idea of debt and debtors prisons, being that his father was thrown into one for a good portion of his life, forcing young Charles to work just to support his parents. Dickens understood well the evil intent behind the debt system, and railed against it often in his writings.
One figure in ‘Little Dorrit’ which fascinated me was the character of Mr. Merdle, a national banking superstar who dominates the investment world with the help of British treasury officials and various political deviants. Merdle is referred to by merchant circles as “the man of the age”, a financial marvel who seems to make fortunes in every endeavor he touches. Little does anyone realize that Merdle is a fraud, a Ponzi scheme artist who takes money from unwary speculators and sinks it into increasingly more tenuous investments. In order to continue hiding the fact that all his financial ventures are ending in ruin, he lures more and more depositors to pay off previous debts. The problem is that Merdle is creating debt to chase debt. Eventually, his insolvency, and that of all those who trusted him, will catch up and overtake the lie he has carefully projected. All economic instability is invariably revealed, no matter how expertly it is hidden.
Mr. Merdle, in my mind, is an almost perfect literary representation of today’s private Federal Reserve and the global banking syndicates of JP Morgan, Goldman Sachs, Citigroup, etc. The Federal Reserve, with the help of politicians on both sides of the aisle, created a series of illusory incentives (through interest rate cuts) which allowed banks to begin lending almost unlimited fiat at rock bottom prices. America was awash in credit, to the point that it was nearly impossible for the average person to avoid the temptation of borrowing. What we didn’t understand then, but are beginning to grasp now, is that credit derived from fiat is not “capital”, it is NOT wealth. Credit is the creation of an obligation, to be paid at a later date, if it is paid at all, and because there are no rules to tie the debt to any legitimate collateral (at least for banks), there is nothing to back the obligation if it falters. Therefore, fiat induced credit is not the creation of wealth (as Keynesians seem to believe), but the destruction of wealth!
Because of its lack of tangibility, debt can be packaged and repackaged into whatever form banks like. Derivatives are a perfect example of the phantom nature of debt; securities which have no real value whatsoever yet are rated and traded as if they are a solid commodity. This brand of commerce is, at its very root, a kind of fiscal time bomb. Just as in the literary world of ‘Little Dorrit’, the Ponzi scheme in our very literal world had to reach a tipping point, and in 2008, it did.
One glaring difference between our troubles and those of Dickens’ fiction is that Merdle actually feels guilt over what he has done (or he at least fears the justice that will be dealt him), causing him to commit suicide towards the end of the novel. In the real world, the Merdles of our era appear fully content to watch this country crumble due to their intrigues, and rarely suffer any consequences for what they pursue. In fact, the modern banking elite are more liable to revel in the searing shockwave of a credit detonation, rather than feel any “remorse”. The point is, Dickens saw clearly over 150 years ago what many Americans today still do not; debt is an abstract idea, an absurd game which confuses and ensnares innocent people. Debt based systems con the citizenry into trading away their tangible wealth and labor for the promise of future settlements that will never come. Debt serves only to weaken the masses, and empower creditors.
The Consequences Of Debt
How has debt based economics served us so far?
The credit card debt of the average American household ranges from $8000 to $15,000. Total household debt including mortgage and home equity loans has hit an average of 136% of annual household income:
http://www.creditcards.com/credit-card-news/credit-card-industry-facts-personal-debt-statistics-1276.php
http://blogs.forbes.com/moneybuilder/2010/06/24/one-big-difference-between-chinese-and-american-households-debt/
Approximately 80% of mortgage loans issued to subprime borrowers over the past decade were Adjustable Rate Mortgages (ARM), meaning 80% of mortgages in the U.S. have reset or are ready to reset at much higher interest rates. There were approximately 1.4 million bankruptcy filings in 2009, and 1.5 million in 2010. One in every 45 homes in America received a foreclosure filing in 2010:
http://www.marketwatch.com/story/top-10-cities-where-foreclosure-rates-are-highest-2011-01-27
http://www.uscourts.gov/Statistics/BankruptcyStatistics.aspx
Keep in mind that in 2005, new government regulations were implemented making filing for bankruptcy much more difficult. In 2006, filings collapsed. Now, despite stringent obstacles, filings are up again over 100%.
The “official” national debt now stands at over $14 trillion, which is around 100% of U.S. GDP (with entitlement programs like social security included, this number is probably closer to 400% of GDP) . The 100% mark is often cited as the breaking point for most countries struggling to sustain liabilities. Greece’s national debt stood at 108% – 113% of GDP when it collapsed into austerity. From 2004, to 2010 (a span of only six years) our national debt has doubled. To put this in perspective, it took the U.S. over 200 years to reach its first trillion dollars of debt. Now, we are looking at the accumulation of at least a trillion every year. This is unsustainable.
The much talked about debt ceiling has been raised six times in the past three years. This frequency is unprecedented. International ratings agencies are now openly suggesting an end to America’s AAA credit rating:
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-01-28/moody-s-says-time-shortens-for-u-s-rating-outlook-as-s-p-downgrades-japan.html
A credit rating downgrade would be devastating to what little foreign interest is left in the U.S. Treasury bond investment.
On the local front, cities and states are on the verge of folding due to the evaporation of municipal bond markets. Cities depend greatly on two sources of revenue in order to continue operations; property taxes, and municipal investment. Property taxes, obviously, are disappearing as property values continue to spiral downwards. This leaves only municipals, which have also unfortunately fallen off the map:
Wall Street analyst, Meredith Witney, recently stated in an interview with 60 Minutes that she believed 50 to 100 American cities would default in the midst of a municipal crisis in 2011. She was promptly lambasted by the rest of the MSM for her prediction. In my opinion, she was rather minimalist in her estimates, especially if the Federal Reserve does not commit to another round of quantitative easing (QE3) for the states (Bernanke denies this policy would be enacted by the Fed, though, which means there is a good chance it will be).
To summarize, the U.S. is swimming in debt. Absolutely nothing has been changed for the better in terms of wealth destruction and liabilities since the credit crisis began, and the situation only looks more precarious with each passing quarter.
Where Is The Debt Roller Coaster Taking Us?
What is the most likely outcome of the conditions described above? The vital factor will be the continued Federal Reserve policy of fiat bailouts as a “counterbalance” to the evolving debt crisis.
As is clearly explored in the Dickens novel we discussed earlier, staving off the effects of debt by creating more debt is a temporary solution that only leads to greater calamity down the road. Anyone who believes that fiat inflation actually “cancels out” debt instability is going to find themselves sorely disappointed. At bottom, government created stimulus is not a solution to corporate engineered debt burdens, but a reallocation of debt away from banks and into the laps of the American taxpayer. The Federal Reserve and our own Treasury have not paid off anything. They merely shifted the responsibility of payment away from the banks that created the problem, and handed that responsibility to us. On top of this, they have also set the dollar up for a crushing blow of devaluation. Here is where the prison bars enclose…
If our historic debt is not being diminished, but only moved around while it expands, then this means that eventually our credit worthiness will come into question. In fact, it already has. Foreign investment in long term Treasuries has dwindled. Our own central bank is now the largest holder of U.S. debt, surpassing even China (Note: this news has so far been ignored by almost all mainstream outlets):
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/120372fc-2e48-…
So, the question of debt default turns from theoretical to quite imperative. If the Federal Reserve continues buying our debt with fiat, it means that the effects of the debt will only be delayed, the dollar will be dropped as the world reserve currency, and hyperinflation is a certainty. If they do not continue buying, then our government defaults, the country’s financial infrastructure ceases to exist, the dollar loses its world reserve status, and hyperinflation is a certainty. The banking elites haven’t just erected a prison, they’ve tossed us in Alcatraz!
The battle over yet another increase of the debt ceiling has obscured the fact that the debt has already done all the damage it needs to do. Freezing the ceiling in place becomes a battle of principle, and an important one, but it would in no way stop the dysfunction and chaos to come. At best, it might shorten the duration of the disaster by a few years. The important thing to remember is that government intervention will only incur greater loss. There is no easy way out, no magic shortcut, no last minute brilliant idea that will wrap up this mess. Years of hard work, determination, honesty, and sacrifice are ahead of us.
Inflation will be the buzzword of 2011. Endless debt facilitates endless Keynesian liquidity. Expect to see commodities double once again this year.
Household debt will probably level off through 2011, as more Americans abandon their credit habits and make more concerted efforts to save. In 2009, Visa lost 11% of its credit use, while MasterCard lost 22%. Over 8 million consumers have stopped using credit cards altogether since the end of 2009:
http://abcnews.go.com/Business/holiday-shopping-americans-cut-back-credit-card/story?id=12367547
Bank lending is still tight as creditors raise the requirements necessary to receive FHA (Federal Housing Administration) mortgages:
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-11-17/home-ownership-gets-harder-for-americans-as-lenders-restrict-fha-mortgages.html
Will credit use and debt based consumption ever return to levels similar to 2006?
Not a chance. One might predict then that savings will rise dramatically as credit use falls, but this too is unlikely. Why? Because over the next year Americans will be spending far more on essential goods due to inflation than they ever have before. Whatever savings they would have accrued will be eaten up by the relentless spike in commodity prices. The term used for the combination of chronic debt, low job growth, and burgeoning inflation, is “stagflation”. I honestly can’t think of a worse situation than being subject to exploding costs in light of a dilapidated standard of living. As Dickens points out plainly in ‘Little Dorrit’, how can a man be expected to settle his obligations when he is imprisoned for them?
Breaking The Cycle In The Midst Of Global Strife
Why after thirty years under the despotic rule of the Hosni Mubarak regime did the Egyptian people suddenly decide to revolt? Why now? The MSM will field a number of political tales, but the key to most popular uprisings, especially in the Middle East, has been the lack of necessities. The last time Egypt saw an uprising of this magnitude was during the Bread Riots of 1977, when the IMF terminated state subsidies of basic foodstuffs. Is it any wonder that turmoil has developed so quickly in the region as grain prices double? This is the devastating power of debt, and the so called “solutions” which merely perpetuate debt.
Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen, are only the beginning.
The sting of inflation will be unbearable as austerity measures take hold in Europe, and the potential for riots in Greece, Spain, Portugal, and Italy looms large. The most volatile environment on the planet to date, however, is the United States, which, as we have shown in previous articles, is being dismantled deliberately and viciously in preparation for IMF regulation and centralization. Today, the IMF is stalking Egypt, ready to pounce as the nation goes mad. Tomorrow, it will be us. I will be very surprised if we are not hearing about IMF intervention in the U.S. economy and the dollar by the end of this year, offering more debt, and more unaccountable governance.
The secret to breaking the circle of debt is to adopt a policy of decentralization, and self sufficiency.
To take back control of our local commerce and to establish micro-economies with self contained methods of trade. Debt must be removed from the equation altogether, and systems protected by flexibility and redundancy must be applied. Savings and meaningful production would have to take the place of endless spending and outsourcing. The claustrophobic nurse-maid philosophies of globalism would have to be cast aside and replaced with goals of independence and self reliance. By cutting our dependency on the corrupt establishment, we sever its ability to feed off of us. By building a better system, we make the faulty one obsolete. Whether or not we throw off the trappings of the debt machine is entirely up to us.
Two very important steps are required; the realization that debt is not the only way, and, the realization that debt is the worst way. Prosperity is not achieved at the expense of the future. The society that finally takes this fact to heart will accomplish incredible things indeed…
COMMENT
Why the Fed Can't (And Won't) Raise Interest Rates
It has been clear for a longtime that the wrong course of action was taken in September 2008, when the US public voted against TARP and the bailouts, but Congress voted for it. Corporations that took excessive risks should have either been regulated properly to start with, or should have been punished for their risks; the very definition of capitalism. Instead the public took on private debts, which did nothing but reward bankers for failure (they ran their companies into the ground, but got another chance thanks to the US taxpayers, a 2nd chance every small business owner is dying to have) . It is time to face the facts, and realize those debts will never (and should never) be paid off, and certainly not by the US taxpayers, who had these debts foisted on them by politicians and central bankers. It is time for the central banks of the world to be held accountable, and removed from power. It is time for a grand debt restructuring, or as it used to be called, a jubilee.
Or, we could just continue with currency devaluation (which is in essence stealing from people who save their money), record food inflation (worldwide) and debt slavery.
http://www.zerohedge.com/article/guest-post-great-global-debt-prison
By Giordano Bruno
Neithercorp Press – 2/4/2011
TO SEE graphics open the website above
Tense and terrible times inevitably summon an odd coupling of two very different and difficult human conditions; honesty, and brutality. Certain painful truths are revealed, and often, a palpable fury erupts. Being that times today are particularly tense, and on the verge of being spectacularly terrible, perhaps we should embrace both conditions in a constructive manner, and become brutally honest with ourselves. This begins by admitting to that which most ails us. It begins by admitting how far we have fallen…
Our economy, our culture, our entire world, is built upon debt. No one ever asked us if that’s how we wanted it, it is simply how the system was designed when we came into it. Many of us have lived our entire lives under the assumption that debt is a necessary function of daily commerce and a valuable driver of successful society. Most households in America operate at a steep loss, trapped in constantly building cycles of liability and interest. There are even widely held schools of economic thought that are centered completely on the production and utilization of nothing but debt. Only recently have many people begun to ask themselves what the tangible benefits are (if any) in being dependent on debt based finance.
After careful examination, it becomes evident that debt does not fuel economy, it suffocates it. It does not nurture growth, it stunts and poisons it. Extreme debt is not a fundamental organ in a body of commerce; it is an aberration, a spreading cancer which disrupts the circulation of healthy trade. Debt is, in large part, unnecessary.
Of course, debt can be very useful if you are the controller or determining overseer of a system, especially if you wish to centralize and maintain power over that system. The tactical wielding of debt has been used by elites for centuries as a means to imprison the masses, or to create an atmosphere of endless dependency. Let’s take a look at what debt really is, and how it is being used against the average American today…
Understanding Debt
The Charles Dickens classic ‘Little Dorrit’ is commonly misinterpreted as a “love story”, however, the primary character in the book is not Little Dorrit, or the kindly Arthur Clennam, but the debt system of Britain itself, and its effects on every social class from the street beggar to the elitist socialite. Dickens despised the idea of debt and debtors prisons, being that his father was thrown into one for a good portion of his life, forcing young Charles to work just to support his parents. Dickens understood well the evil intent behind the debt system, and railed against it often in his writings.
One figure in ‘Little Dorrit’ which fascinated me was the character of Mr. Merdle, a national banking superstar who dominates the investment world with the help of British treasury officials and various political deviants. Merdle is referred to by merchant circles as “the man of the age”, a financial marvel who seems to make fortunes in every endeavor he touches. Little does anyone realize that Merdle is a fraud, a Ponzi scheme artist who takes money from unwary speculators and sinks it into increasingly more tenuous investments. In order to continue hiding the fact that all his financial ventures are ending in ruin, he lures more and more depositors to pay off previous debts. The problem is that Merdle is creating debt to chase debt. Eventually, his insolvency, and that of all those who trusted him, will catch up and overtake the lie he has carefully projected. All economic instability is invariably revealed, no matter how expertly it is hidden.
Mr. Merdle, in my mind, is an almost perfect literary representation of today’s private Federal Reserve and the global banking syndicates of JP Morgan, Goldman Sachs, Citigroup, etc. The Federal Reserve, with the help of politicians on both sides of the aisle, created a series of illusory incentives (through interest rate cuts) which allowed banks to begin lending almost unlimited fiat at rock bottom prices. America was awash in credit, to the point that it was nearly impossible for the average person to avoid the temptation of borrowing. What we didn’t understand then, but are beginning to grasp now, is that credit derived from fiat is not “capital”, it is NOT wealth. Credit is the creation of an obligation, to be paid at a later date, if it is paid at all, and because there are no rules to tie the debt to any legitimate collateral (at least for banks), there is nothing to back the obligation if it falters. Therefore, fiat induced credit is not the creation of wealth (as Keynesians seem to believe), but the destruction of wealth!
Because of its lack of tangibility, debt can be packaged and repackaged into whatever form banks like. Derivatives are a perfect example of the phantom nature of debt; securities which have no real value whatsoever yet are rated and traded as if they are a solid commodity. This brand of commerce is, at its very root, a kind of fiscal time bomb. Just as in the literary world of ‘Little Dorrit’, the Ponzi scheme in our very literal world had to reach a tipping point, and in 2008, it did.
One glaring difference between our troubles and those of Dickens’ fiction is that Merdle actually feels guilt over what he has done (or he at least fears the justice that will be dealt him), causing him to commit suicide towards the end of the novel. In the real world, the Merdles of our era appear fully content to watch this country crumble due to their intrigues, and rarely suffer any consequences for what they pursue. In fact, the modern banking elite are more liable to revel in the searing shockwave of a credit detonation, rather than feel any “remorse”. The point is, Dickens saw clearly over 150 years ago what many Americans today still do not; debt is an abstract idea, an absurd game which confuses and ensnares innocent people. Debt based systems con the citizenry into trading away their tangible wealth and labor for the promise of future settlements that will never come. Debt serves only to weaken the masses, and empower creditors.
The Consequences Of Debt
How has debt based economics served us so far?
The credit card debt of the average American household ranges from $8000 to $15,000. Total household debt including mortgage and home equity loans has hit an average of 136% of annual household income:
http://www.creditcards.com/credit-card-news/credit-card-industry-facts-personal-debt-statistics-1276.php
http://blogs.forbes.com/moneybuilder/2010/06/24/one-big-difference-between-chinese-and-american-households-debt/
Approximately 80% of mortgage loans issued to subprime borrowers over the past decade were Adjustable Rate Mortgages (ARM), meaning 80% of mortgages in the U.S. have reset or are ready to reset at much higher interest rates. There were approximately 1.4 million bankruptcy filings in 2009, and 1.5 million in 2010. One in every 45 homes in America received a foreclosure filing in 2010:
http://www.marketwatch.com/story/top-10-cities-where-foreclosure-rates-are-highest-2011-01-27
http://www.uscourts.gov/Statistics/BankruptcyStatistics.aspx
Keep in mind that in 2005, new government regulations were implemented making filing for bankruptcy much more difficult. In 2006, filings collapsed. Now, despite stringent obstacles, filings are up again over 100%.
The “official” national debt now stands at over $14 trillion, which is around 100% of U.S. GDP (with entitlement programs like social security included, this number is probably closer to 400% of GDP) . The 100% mark is often cited as the breaking point for most countries struggling to sustain liabilities. Greece’s national debt stood at 108% – 113% of GDP when it collapsed into austerity. From 2004, to 2010 (a span of only six years) our national debt has doubled. To put this in perspective, it took the U.S. over 200 years to reach its first trillion dollars of debt. Now, we are looking at the accumulation of at least a trillion every year. This is unsustainable.
The much talked about debt ceiling has been raised six times in the past three years. This frequency is unprecedented. International ratings agencies are now openly suggesting an end to America’s AAA credit rating:
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-01-28/moody-s-says-time-shortens-for-u-s-rating-outlook-as-s-p-downgrades-japan.html
A credit rating downgrade would be devastating to what little foreign interest is left in the U.S. Treasury bond investment.
On the local front, cities and states are on the verge of folding due to the evaporation of municipal bond markets. Cities depend greatly on two sources of revenue in order to continue operations; property taxes, and municipal investment. Property taxes, obviously, are disappearing as property values continue to spiral downwards. This leaves only municipals, which have also unfortunately fallen off the map:
Wall Street analyst, Meredith Witney, recently stated in an interview with 60 Minutes that she believed 50 to 100 American cities would default in the midst of a municipal crisis in 2011. She was promptly lambasted by the rest of the MSM for her prediction. In my opinion, she was rather minimalist in her estimates, especially if the Federal Reserve does not commit to another round of quantitative easing (QE3) for the states (Bernanke denies this policy would be enacted by the Fed, though, which means there is a good chance it will be).
To summarize, the U.S. is swimming in debt. Absolutely nothing has been changed for the better in terms of wealth destruction and liabilities since the credit crisis began, and the situation only looks more precarious with each passing quarter.
Where Is The Debt Roller Coaster Taking Us?
What is the most likely outcome of the conditions described above? The vital factor will be the continued Federal Reserve policy of fiat bailouts as a “counterbalance” to the evolving debt crisis.
As is clearly explored in the Dickens novel we discussed earlier, staving off the effects of debt by creating more debt is a temporary solution that only leads to greater calamity down the road. Anyone who believes that fiat inflation actually “cancels out” debt instability is going to find themselves sorely disappointed. At bottom, government created stimulus is not a solution to corporate engineered debt burdens, but a reallocation of debt away from banks and into the laps of the American taxpayer. The Federal Reserve and our own Treasury have not paid off anything. They merely shifted the responsibility of payment away from the banks that created the problem, and handed that responsibility to us. On top of this, they have also set the dollar up for a crushing blow of devaluation. Here is where the prison bars enclose…
If our historic debt is not being diminished, but only moved around while it expands, then this means that eventually our credit worthiness will come into question. In fact, it already has. Foreign investment in long term Treasuries has dwindled. Our own central bank is now the largest holder of U.S. debt, surpassing even China (Note: this news has so far been ignored by almost all mainstream outlets):
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/120372fc-2e48-…
So, the question of debt default turns from theoretical to quite imperative. If the Federal Reserve continues buying our debt with fiat, it means that the effects of the debt will only be delayed, the dollar will be dropped as the world reserve currency, and hyperinflation is a certainty. If they do not continue buying, then our government defaults, the country’s financial infrastructure ceases to exist, the dollar loses its world reserve status, and hyperinflation is a certainty. The banking elites haven’t just erected a prison, they’ve tossed us in Alcatraz!
The battle over yet another increase of the debt ceiling has obscured the fact that the debt has already done all the damage it needs to do. Freezing the ceiling in place becomes a battle of principle, and an important one, but it would in no way stop the dysfunction and chaos to come. At best, it might shorten the duration of the disaster by a few years. The important thing to remember is that government intervention will only incur greater loss. There is no easy way out, no magic shortcut, no last minute brilliant idea that will wrap up this mess. Years of hard work, determination, honesty, and sacrifice are ahead of us.
Inflation will be the buzzword of 2011. Endless debt facilitates endless Keynesian liquidity. Expect to see commodities double once again this year.
Household debt will probably level off through 2011, as more Americans abandon their credit habits and make more concerted efforts to save. In 2009, Visa lost 11% of its credit use, while MasterCard lost 22%. Over 8 million consumers have stopped using credit cards altogether since the end of 2009:
http://abcnews.go.com/Business/holiday-shopping-americans-cut-back-credit-card/story?id=12367547
Bank lending is still tight as creditors raise the requirements necessary to receive FHA (Federal Housing Administration) mortgages:
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-11-17/home-ownership-gets-harder-for-americans-as-lenders-restrict-fha-mortgages.html
Will credit use and debt based consumption ever return to levels similar to 2006?
Not a chance. One might predict then that savings will rise dramatically as credit use falls, but this too is unlikely. Why? Because over the next year Americans will be spending far more on essential goods due to inflation than they ever have before. Whatever savings they would have accrued will be eaten up by the relentless spike in commodity prices. The term used for the combination of chronic debt, low job growth, and burgeoning inflation, is “stagflation”. I honestly can’t think of a worse situation than being subject to exploding costs in light of a dilapidated standard of living. As Dickens points out plainly in ‘Little Dorrit’, how can a man be expected to settle his obligations when he is imprisoned for them?
Breaking The Cycle In The Midst Of Global Strife
Why after thirty years under the despotic rule of the Hosni Mubarak regime did the Egyptian people suddenly decide to revolt? Why now? The MSM will field a number of political tales, but the key to most popular uprisings, especially in the Middle East, has been the lack of necessities. The last time Egypt saw an uprising of this magnitude was during the Bread Riots of 1977, when the IMF terminated state subsidies of basic foodstuffs. Is it any wonder that turmoil has developed so quickly in the region as grain prices double? This is the devastating power of debt, and the so called “solutions” which merely perpetuate debt.
Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen, are only the beginning.
The sting of inflation will be unbearable as austerity measures take hold in Europe, and the potential for riots in Greece, Spain, Portugal, and Italy looms large. The most volatile environment on the planet to date, however, is the United States, which, as we have shown in previous articles, is being dismantled deliberately and viciously in preparation for IMF regulation and centralization. Today, the IMF is stalking Egypt, ready to pounce as the nation goes mad. Tomorrow, it will be us. I will be very surprised if we are not hearing about IMF intervention in the U.S. economy and the dollar by the end of this year, offering more debt, and more unaccountable governance.
The secret to breaking the circle of debt is to adopt a policy of decentralization, and self sufficiency.
To take back control of our local commerce and to establish micro-economies with self contained methods of trade. Debt must be removed from the equation altogether, and systems protected by flexibility and redundancy must be applied. Savings and meaningful production would have to take the place of endless spending and outsourcing. The claustrophobic nurse-maid philosophies of globalism would have to be cast aside and replaced with goals of independence and self reliance. By cutting our dependency on the corrupt establishment, we sever its ability to feed off of us. By building a better system, we make the faulty one obsolete. Whether or not we throw off the trappings of the debt machine is entirely up to us.
Two very important steps are required; the realization that debt is not the only way, and, the realization that debt is the worst way. Prosperity is not achieved at the expense of the future. The society that finally takes this fact to heart will accomplish incredible things indeed…
COMMENT
Why the Fed Can't (And Won't) Raise Interest Rates
It has been clear for a longtime that the wrong course of action was taken in September 2008, when the US public voted against TARP and the bailouts, but Congress voted for it. Corporations that took excessive risks should have either been regulated properly to start with, or should have been punished for their risks; the very definition of capitalism. Instead the public took on private debts, which did nothing but reward bankers for failure (they ran their companies into the ground, but got another chance thanks to the US taxpayers, a 2nd chance every small business owner is dying to have) . It is time to face the facts, and realize those debts will never (and should never) be paid off, and certainly not by the US taxpayers, who had these debts foisted on them by politicians and central bankers. It is time for the central banks of the world to be held accountable, and removed from power. It is time for a grand debt restructuring, or as it used to be called, a jubilee.
Or, we could just continue with currency devaluation (which is in essence stealing from people who save their money), record food inflation (worldwide) and debt slavery.
viernes, 4 de febrero de 2011
WHAT IS NEXT? and TO WHOM?
WHAT IS NEXT?
HAZ, February 4, 2011
Point one:
WHAT IS NEXT?: Next to whom.. is the real question. For Egyptian –since the liberation has not reach its main goal yet- what is next Is to complete it. Meaning: remove the dirty couple from power (President and the VP-CIA agent). Remember, the essence of this revolution is liberation. From whom? .. from a puppet-dictator regime sponsored by foreign states and private corporations.
The Qt “what is next” for Americans and Israelites, and some European countries –if they want to help liberation and democracy in Egypt- is just help to put their dogs (Pdt & VP) in the cage they should be, in jail. So, OB & Hillary, don’t pretend you can do nothing to remove the dirty rats you have in your hands and stop playing with the tale of “transition to democracy” to favor continuism. Don’t think that Egyptian are stupid and it will be easy conceal the fact that the VP is a CIA agent, & advisor and key actor in all crimes against humanity of Mubarak regime? They had better choices, but they thought and move at the speed of elephant and the revolution at the speed of gazelle. “Transition” for them means : give me the time to set up a new puppet. That is what the Egyptian people do not want it.
They don’t even believe now the story-tell that “American rulers will respect people will”. Egyptian believes that change in their country is at their discretion, will and imagination. There is not more secular revolution than this one. Egyptians do not expect that Americans will give up their love for those animals? . Egyptians fell in each mobilization that they are taking their destiny in their hands.
They are not afraid of the western bogymen “Al Qaeda, Taliban or the Muslim brotherhood”. This story is for stupid or naïve people, not for Egyptians. In this country they go hand on hand with the Muslims. They are now building a new sense of national unity, a new nation and from the bottom up. This is the spirit of this revolution and one of its main achievements.
Anyone who tries to exclude the Muslims will be considered pro-Israel (meaning: supporting the atroicities their rulers comit in Palestine and neighboring countries)and so, anti-revolution. Muslims are essential part of this nation and this unity is unbreakable. You can see this fact in front of you via TV and honest and brave journalists’ reports. This is why the puppet dictator hates them. At the beginning this rebellion were like two salmons against the current. They are not alone anymore. Most American are in favor of Egyptian’s cause and most nations in the world are also en favor of pro-democracy Egyptians. They are breaking the wall of stereotypes against the Muslim world. Nothing to lose or to be afraid of, maybe the ideological callous in the corporate media. When the media was closed it did not affect the revolution, but it makes useless the cacophony of American news makers.
Point 2.
HAZ, updated in february 5, 2011
PARLAMENTARIAN INSTEAD OF PRESIDENTIAL DEMOCRACY?.
Change the whole system, change part of their institutions, or change the people, are the options of change available in history. The revolution is changing the people and what is coming is the change of the whole system at political and economic level. This is a process of transition that start from the bottom up, this has nothing to do with the fake transition of accommodating the equivalent of Montesinos instead of Fujimori, both of them should be forever in jail. Peruvians put these puppets in jail and with much more reasons Egyptians can do it too. (It won’t matter the temporal political love-affaire of Mrs Clinton with Mubarak. This lady has potential to be the 1st President of America but is waisting her time manipulating rats in the palaces of the Middle East. Americans need her more than ever since Obama is unable to continue the fight for the best health for all. Now is the right time to Unite all americans in favor of "single payer option" promised before. Vermont is taking the initiative in this cause and many people need a tiger like her in this movement. Why the system is using a tractor to cut flowers in a front yard? Why parroting the messages of the CIA and the Pentagon? What a tiger has to do with the rats in the palace of Egypt?). For Egyptians, all their job in this second parts of the revolution starts in collecting evidences and signatures to process both Mubarak and his VP in whatever international court for crimes against humanity and corruption (stealing money from the nation, among others). That in addition to continue the Tahrir Square demonstrations and the local job of taking control of basic institutions like like the electoral one. This is part of the peaceful tactic of civic disobedience and the firt advance in the contruction of a new political power.
Regarding changing the political system, Egiptians have to decide between the two above choices. Parlamentarian regimes open more chances for fair representation in power and much more direct accountability of elected people. Decision making could be more slow, but in context like this, a simple majority will speed up its processes. This will represent a real break up with traditional authoritarian servilism, its lashes and camels. Above all, it will break with the corrupted lobbyism, bribing and buying elections from big evil corporations. All this implies constitution amendments and explicit rules so as the corrupted parliamentarian sentenced in court will be immediately removed from its post without affecting the whole system. This also implies removing all the servants of power inside the judicial system and give to the new ones absolute autonomy from the political system.
HAZ, February 4, 2011
Point one:
WHAT IS NEXT?: Next to whom.. is the real question. For Egyptian –since the liberation has not reach its main goal yet- what is next Is to complete it. Meaning: remove the dirty couple from power (President and the VP-CIA agent). Remember, the essence of this revolution is liberation. From whom? .. from a puppet-dictator regime sponsored by foreign states and private corporations.
The Qt “what is next” for Americans and Israelites, and some European countries –if they want to help liberation and democracy in Egypt- is just help to put their dogs (Pdt & VP) in the cage they should be, in jail. So, OB & Hillary, don’t pretend you can do nothing to remove the dirty rats you have in your hands and stop playing with the tale of “transition to democracy” to favor continuism. Don’t think that Egyptian are stupid and it will be easy conceal the fact that the VP is a CIA agent, & advisor and key actor in all crimes against humanity of Mubarak regime? They had better choices, but they thought and move at the speed of elephant and the revolution at the speed of gazelle. “Transition” for them means : give me the time to set up a new puppet. That is what the Egyptian people do not want it.
They don’t even believe now the story-tell that “American rulers will respect people will”. Egyptian believes that change in their country is at their discretion, will and imagination. There is not more secular revolution than this one. Egyptians do not expect that Americans will give up their love for those animals? . Egyptians fell in each mobilization that they are taking their destiny in their hands.
They are not afraid of the western bogymen “Al Qaeda, Taliban or the Muslim brotherhood”. This story is for stupid or naïve people, not for Egyptians. In this country they go hand on hand with the Muslims. They are now building a new sense of national unity, a new nation and from the bottom up. This is the spirit of this revolution and one of its main achievements.
Anyone who tries to exclude the Muslims will be considered pro-Israel (meaning: supporting the atroicities their rulers comit in Palestine and neighboring countries)and so, anti-revolution. Muslims are essential part of this nation and this unity is unbreakable. You can see this fact in front of you via TV and honest and brave journalists’ reports. This is why the puppet dictator hates them. At the beginning this rebellion were like two salmons against the current. They are not alone anymore. Most American are in favor of Egyptian’s cause and most nations in the world are also en favor of pro-democracy Egyptians. They are breaking the wall of stereotypes against the Muslim world. Nothing to lose or to be afraid of, maybe the ideological callous in the corporate media. When the media was closed it did not affect the revolution, but it makes useless the cacophony of American news makers.
Point 2.
HAZ, updated in february 5, 2011
PARLAMENTARIAN INSTEAD OF PRESIDENTIAL DEMOCRACY?.
Change the whole system, change part of their institutions, or change the people, are the options of change available in history. The revolution is changing the people and what is coming is the change of the whole system at political and economic level. This is a process of transition that start from the bottom up, this has nothing to do with the fake transition of accommodating the equivalent of Montesinos instead of Fujimori, both of them should be forever in jail. Peruvians put these puppets in jail and with much more reasons Egyptians can do it too. (It won’t matter the temporal political love-affaire of Mrs Clinton with Mubarak. This lady has potential to be the 1st President of America but is waisting her time manipulating rats in the palaces of the Middle East. Americans need her more than ever since Obama is unable to continue the fight for the best health for all. Now is the right time to Unite all americans in favor of "single payer option" promised before. Vermont is taking the initiative in this cause and many people need a tiger like her in this movement. Why the system is using a tractor to cut flowers in a front yard? Why parroting the messages of the CIA and the Pentagon? What a tiger has to do with the rats in the palace of Egypt?). For Egyptians, all their job in this second parts of the revolution starts in collecting evidences and signatures to process both Mubarak and his VP in whatever international court for crimes against humanity and corruption (stealing money from the nation, among others). That in addition to continue the Tahrir Square demonstrations and the local job of taking control of basic institutions like like the electoral one. This is part of the peaceful tactic of civic disobedience and the firt advance in the contruction of a new political power.
Regarding changing the political system, Egiptians have to decide between the two above choices. Parlamentarian regimes open more chances for fair representation in power and much more direct accountability of elected people. Decision making could be more slow, but in context like this, a simple majority will speed up its processes. This will represent a real break up with traditional authoritarian servilism, its lashes and camels. Above all, it will break with the corrupted lobbyism, bribing and buying elections from big evil corporations. All this implies constitution amendments and explicit rules so as the corrupted parliamentarian sentenced in court will be immediately removed from its post without affecting the whole system. This also implies removing all the servants of power inside the judicial system and give to the new ones absolute autonomy from the political system.
EGYPT DAY 4 THE REVOLUTION IS ON. NEW SENSE OF UNITY EMERGED. THE RELIGIOUS ONE
EGYPT DAY 4 THE REVOLUTION IS ON. NEW SENSE OF UNITY EMERGED. THE RELIGIOUS ONE
HUGE CROWDS IN THE DAY OF DEPARTURE IN TAHRIR SQUARE. FEB 4-11
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/blog/2011/feb/04/egypt-protests-day-departure-live#block-51
Here some extract from The Guardian
3.38pm: Detailed news on the attack on “Al-Jazeera office attacked in Egypt”
Cairo office of Arabic language news channel ransacked as intimidation of journalists continues.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2011/feb/04/al-jazeera-office-attacked-egypt-protests
3.11pm A video of the huge crowds in Tahrir Square today.
2.52PM: European Union 1ST STATEMENT . The EU's 27 leaders issued this joint statement during a summit in Brussels: “The European council is following with utmost concern the deteriorating situation in Egypt. All parties should show restraint and avoid further violence and begin an orderly transition to a broad-based government. The European council underlined that this transition process must start now”.
[[My view: more of the same: they do not request the immediate resignation of Mubarak]]
2.22pm: A video of Egyptians in London protesting against Hosni Mubarak.
2.13pm: Alexandria pro-democracy. There are hundreds of thousands of people on the streets of Alexandria, according to Channel 4's Lindsey Hilsum: @lindseyhilsum: Alexandria protestors singing 'there's an end to every dictator' to the tune of the national anthem
2.03pm: No foreigners in Tahrir Square?. Simon Hardy, a British man who we spoke to yesterday, called in to say he too has failed to get entrance to Tahrir Square: “We tried to get through various checkpoints but it's very intimidating....Literally just down the road there is probably a million people protesting against the regime but around the area if you're not Egyptian getting anywhere is very difficult at the moment.”
1.49pm: The Muslim Brotherhood has said it would not field a presidential candidate or seek ministers in a new cabinet, ABC reports.
1.43pm: There are reports of skirmishes in Talaat Harb Square in Cairo
@evanchill, an al-Jazeera producer, tweets
1.34pm: Mubarak thugs hit Al Jazeera. Is reported that their Cairo office has been stormed by "gangs of thugs". The news channel says its office and the equipment inside has been set fire.
1.25pm: Egypt likely short term scenarios. Ian Black, the Guardian's middle east editor, writes that President Hosni Mubarak faces four possible scenarios in the short-term future: See: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/feb/04/hosni-mubarak-day-departure-impact
Short-term scenarios include:
Climbdown The Obama administration arm-twists Mubarak into quitting immediately and handing over power to a transitional government headed by his deputy, Omar Suleiman.
Protests subside The Egyptian government plays the stability card, arguing that an "orderly transition" is already under way, that constitutional changes will take time, and that Mubarak's sudden departure will only make matters worse.
Violence escalates Large-scale bloodshed today or on subsequent days hardens the mood in the US, which suspends or halts its annual $1.3bn (£808m) in military aid to Egypt – a grave and likely game-changing blow to the position of the military. Likely to be accompanied by warnings about crimes against humanity so that continued repression carries a personal price tag for key regime figures.
Standoff Protests continue without either serious violence or Mubarak's formal departure while dialogue between government and opposition gathers momentum and constitutional changes start to look convincing, leading to splits in an already divided and largely leaderless protest movement. The opposition has only a negative platform – that the president leave. Negotiations over a transition would be complex.
1.14pm: Another candidate? Amr Moussa's presence in Tahrir Square today. Brian Whitaker provides some context: He served Mubarak for many years as Egypt's foreign minister before becoming head of the Arab League. There were suggestions at the time that Mubarak had kicked him sideways because the president was becoming jealous of Moussa's popularity (he was generally regarded as adopting a fairly tough position regarding Israel). In 2009, Moussa hinted that he might run for the Egyptian presidency in the 2011 election. In February last year, he also had a meeting with Mohamed ElBaradei which aroused a good deal of speculation.
1.10pm: Today, religious leaders have stressed their unity. We told at 12.41pm how at Friday prayers in Tahrir square, the Catholic cardinal in Egypt reportedly linked hands with a Muslim cleric. Al-Jazeera English now reports that Christians in Alexandria formed a security cordon around the Muslims while they knelt for Friday prayers.
1.01pm: Damascus pro-democracy. Al Jazeera is reporting that more than 100,000 protesters have gathered in Damanhour, about 100 miles north west of Cairo, to demand that Mubarak resigns.
12.55pm: Beirut view on Egypt, Guardian correspondent, has sent this analysis of how the events this week in Egypt are playing out across the region: “One Egyptian embassy official put his hands on his knees and said with a shy smile: "You know the president thinks he is like a big father. He treats the people like they are his children: 'go to sleep', and they all sleep, 'wake up', and they all wake up. Things have changed: the people are no more children, and you can't boss them around. If you don't talk to them in the language of democracy you will be swept away."
Arab kings and presidents are scrambling to appease their people: Jordan's king dismissed his government, Algeria's president said he will end emergency laws, the Yemeni president pledged not to run again. But for us Arabs, the biggest change has already happened. The holy image of deity for rulers, has been shattered.
12.41pm: Egypt new national sense of unity emerged, the religious one. The Catholic Cardinal in Egypt was witnessed hand in hand with a Muslim cleric, both in their religious dress with the pro-democracy demonstrators. He was speaking about national unity, stating that the myth of sectarian strife is only made by the failing government security apparatus and urge people to unite as Egyptians. The Muslim cleric also stated the same.
12.35pm: In the name of their security foreign journalists are humiliated. I've just spoken to Peter Beaumont, whose efforts to get into Tahrir Square have been frustrated by both the army and armed vigilantes. He and Jack Shenker were picked up by the army, made to kneel facing a wall and interrogated. “We were taken at a checkpoint and led to the ministry of the interior … We were held for two hours … and we were both warned that if we came anywhere near the square again, things wouldn't go so nicely for us.”
12.21pm: Al-Jazeera is investigating the hacking of its news website and other dirty attacks: “For two hours this morning (from 6.30am–8.30am Doha time), a banner advertisement was taken over and replaced with a slogan of "Together for the collapse of Egypt" which was linked to Al Jazeera.” A spokesman for Al Jazeera said that their engineers "moved quickly to solve the problem".
12.19pm: Two pro-democracy leaders emerge. The putative opposition figurehead Mohamad ElBaradei and another prominent opposition figure, Amr Moussa, secretary general of the Arab League, have both been seen either in or on their way to Tahrir Square, according to a number of accounts.
12.11pm: The Guardian lunch time summary:
• Hundreds of thousands of anti-Mubarak protesters have gathered in Cairo's Tahrir Square. Protesters are calling today the "day of departure", as they continue to demand the Egyptian president step down. The Egyptian army is manning checkpoints at all entrances to the square, searching people for weapons before allowing them in. No pro-Mubarak protesters are being allowed into the square, following days of clashes between the two groups.
• After Friday prayers in the square this morning, protesters have now begun to call for Mubarak to leave, but there is a relaxed atmosphere so far, in contrast to the scenes from previous days. Protesters are listening to speeches and prayers, while others are playing music. Many are engaged in preparing rudimentary shields and helmets, mindful of the violence seen in the square yesterday.
• EU leaders are meeting in Brussels for the first time since the Middle East unrest began. The summit is to charge Lady Ashton, the Labour peer and EU's foreign policy chief, with coming up with a policy package for promoting and entrenching democracy in Egypt. Going into the summit David Cameron said the Mubarak regime would lose all credibility if it cracked down forcefully on today's protests, while Silvio Berlusconi faced criticism after he said he hoped for "continuity in government", describing Mubarak as "the wisest of men".
• The US and senior Egyptian officials are reportedly in talks over replacing Mubarak. The New York Times reported that the White House, the state department and the Pentagon have been involved in discussions that include an option in which Mubarak would given way to a transitional government headed by the Egyptian vice-president, Omar Suleiman.
• However Mubarak has warned that "if I resign today, there will be chaos". In his first major interview since protests began, the embattled Egyptian told ABC news last night: "I am fed up. After 62 years in public service, I have had enough. I want to go." He said Barack Obama, by calling for Egypt to begin the transition to democracy "now", did not understand Egyptian culture, warning that trouble would ensue if he left office immediately.
12.06pm: Mohamed ElBaradei statement. The Egyptian opposition figurehead who some see as a potential next president, has just been on al-Jazeera. “It is time for Mubarak to leave now. It is time that you listen to your people's demands. Leave with dignity … We will secure your exit. The whole world wants Mubarak to step down. He has no legitimacy … No Egyptian wants what's happening to continue. He served his country, made mistakes, but now it is time to leave … Mubarak is a military man; he should be able to tell when it's time to leave”.
11.50am: Khamanei does not understand what is going on in Egypt. Tsalem, who identifies him/herself as an Egyptian, says he/she is "dismayed" by Ayatollah Khamanei's comments (see 11.03am). “I do not think he understands what is going on in Egypt - and that these kinds of statements just inflame things further. No major political entity (including the Muslim Brotherhood) are advocating for the setting up of an "Islamic" regime in the style of Iran. No one I know personally or online or have heard in the media has mentioned anything resembling this. This is just the Iranian establishment kicking the secular regime that supported the Shah in Sadat's days.
Also as a Muslim - I do not agree with his comments at all. I believe we have the necessary institutions that keeps Islamic thought alive and pervasive in society, whilst embracing a range of views and our Coptic brothers and sisters. I do not believe we need an Islamic leadership (which incidentally is against my personal Islamic beliefs).
The entire episode in Egypt is centered around corruption, cronyism, free speech, and social injustices that exist in Egypt. And the uprising is about forcing the government of the day to deal with these issues, and asking them to step down to make way for future politicians that advocate and espouse the ideas that will address these issues.”
11.37am: Pro Mubara supporters out of Tahrir Square. The Guardian's Mustafa Khalili is in Tahrir Square, where he says there is a much more relaxed atmosphere than in the previous few days. Mustafa reports that there are "hundreds of thousands" of protesters there waiting to pass the checkpoints, and says the army checkpoints leading to the square are so far succeeding in keeping pro-Mubarak supporters out, meaning this is why there have been no clashes so far.Inside the square demonstrators are listening to prayers and speeches, while others are playing musical instruments in what Mustafa describes as a "carnival atmosphere".
11.25am: Day 4 PEACE succeed says AP news. The Associated Press news agency has more detail of the protests going on today in Cairo: “Protesters demanding President Hosni Mubarak's ouster packed Cairo's central square in huge numbers Friday, waving Egyptian flags, singing the national anthem and cheering, appearing undaunted and determined after their camp withstood two days of street battles with regime supporters trying to dislodge them.
Thousands more flowed over bridges across the Nile into Tahrir Square, a sign that they were not intimidated after fending off everything thrown at the protesters by pro-Mubarak attackers stones, firebombs, fighters on horses and camels and automatic gunfire. The protesters passed through a series of beefed-up checkpoints by the military and the protesters themselves guarding the square.
The crowd, well over 10,000, was the biggest since Tuesday, when a quarter-million turned out. They chanted, prayed and unfurled a long banner in the national colors of red, black and white. A man sitting in a wheelchair was lifted wheelchair and all over the heads of the crowd and he pumped his arms in the air. The atmosphere is peaceful, the news agency reports.”
11.03am: Ayatollah Khamenei statement on Egypt: Mubarak betrayed his people. At Friday prayers in Tehran, Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei told worshippers Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak betrayed his people and the uprising against his rule is the appropriate response.
Khamenei accused Mubarak of making Egypt, a close US ally, do America's bidding, particularly in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
"America's control over Egypt's leaders has ... turned Egypt into the biggest enemy of Palestine and turned it into the greatest refuge for Zionists," Khamenei said.
"This explosion we see among the people of Egypt is the appropriate response to this great betrayal that the traitor dictator committed against his people," Khamenei said, without mentioning Mubarak by name.
10.54am: European Union too weak position on Egypt. My colleague Ian Traynor in Brussels sends this report on the EU's reaction to the upheaval in Cairo: Martin Schulz, the leader of the centre-left in the European parliament, lambasted the EU for its perceived weakness.
"On foreign policy issues, the EU too often behaves like a frightened rabbit in the headlights of a car," he said. "The EU summit should make a clear statement that Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak's time is up. They need to be much tougher and make it clear that Europe will not tolerate Mubarak clinging desperately to office."Going into the summit, David Cameron said the Mubarak regime would lose all credibility if it cracked down forcefully on today's protests. Angela Merkel, the German chancellor, made similar comments.
10.50am: ELBaradei said piecemeal transition won’t add trust to this regime. Trust is gone. He suggested that a transition starts with his resignation and a temporary Presidential Council . Mohamed ElBaradei (left), the Egyptian opposition figurehead who some see as a potential next president, has said Hosni Mubarak should now step down with dignity. Mubarak "should hear the clear voice coming from the people and leave in dignity", the former UN International Atomic Energy Agency chief said.
ElBaradei dismissed concessions so far by Mubarak, calling them "piecemeal", adding "it's a question of trust, and the trust is gone."
He told reporters that there should be a year-long transition to democracy under a temporary constitution with a presidential council of several people, including a military representative.
10.39 am. Anti-Mubarak protesters who remain in Tahrir Square overnight are heroes. The Daily News Egypt is reporting that the numbers flocking to Cairo's Tahrir Square exceed those attending last Tuesday's "million man march". Protesters claimed over a million people attended that protest in the square. See video.
HUGE CROWDS IN THE DAY OF DEPARTURE IN TAHRIR SQUARE. FEB 4-11
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/blog/2011/feb/04/egypt-protests-day-departure-live#block-51
Here some extract from The Guardian
3.38pm: Detailed news on the attack on “Al-Jazeera office attacked in Egypt”
Cairo office of Arabic language news channel ransacked as intimidation of journalists continues.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2011/feb/04/al-jazeera-office-attacked-egypt-protests
3.11pm A video of the huge crowds in Tahrir Square today.
2.52PM: European Union 1ST STATEMENT . The EU's 27 leaders issued this joint statement during a summit in Brussels: “The European council is following with utmost concern the deteriorating situation in Egypt. All parties should show restraint and avoid further violence and begin an orderly transition to a broad-based government. The European council underlined that this transition process must start now”.
[[My view: more of the same: they do not request the immediate resignation of Mubarak]]
2.22pm: A video of Egyptians in London protesting against Hosni Mubarak.
2.13pm: Alexandria pro-democracy. There are hundreds of thousands of people on the streets of Alexandria, according to Channel 4's Lindsey Hilsum: @lindseyhilsum: Alexandria protestors singing 'there's an end to every dictator' to the tune of the national anthem
2.03pm: No foreigners in Tahrir Square?. Simon Hardy, a British man who we spoke to yesterday, called in to say he too has failed to get entrance to Tahrir Square: “We tried to get through various checkpoints but it's very intimidating....Literally just down the road there is probably a million people protesting against the regime but around the area if you're not Egyptian getting anywhere is very difficult at the moment.”
1.49pm: The Muslim Brotherhood has said it would not field a presidential candidate or seek ministers in a new cabinet, ABC reports.
1.43pm: There are reports of skirmishes in Talaat Harb Square in Cairo
@evanchill, an al-Jazeera producer, tweets
1.34pm: Mubarak thugs hit Al Jazeera. Is reported that their Cairo office has been stormed by "gangs of thugs". The news channel says its office and the equipment inside has been set fire.
1.25pm: Egypt likely short term scenarios. Ian Black, the Guardian's middle east editor, writes that President Hosni Mubarak faces four possible scenarios in the short-term future: See: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/feb/04/hosni-mubarak-day-departure-impact
Short-term scenarios include:
Climbdown The Obama administration arm-twists Mubarak into quitting immediately and handing over power to a transitional government headed by his deputy, Omar Suleiman.
Protests subside The Egyptian government plays the stability card, arguing that an "orderly transition" is already under way, that constitutional changes will take time, and that Mubarak's sudden departure will only make matters worse.
Violence escalates Large-scale bloodshed today or on subsequent days hardens the mood in the US, which suspends or halts its annual $1.3bn (£808m) in military aid to Egypt – a grave and likely game-changing blow to the position of the military. Likely to be accompanied by warnings about crimes against humanity so that continued repression carries a personal price tag for key regime figures.
Standoff Protests continue without either serious violence or Mubarak's formal departure while dialogue between government and opposition gathers momentum and constitutional changes start to look convincing, leading to splits in an already divided and largely leaderless protest movement. The opposition has only a negative platform – that the president leave. Negotiations over a transition would be complex.
1.14pm: Another candidate? Amr Moussa's presence in Tahrir Square today. Brian Whitaker provides some context: He served Mubarak for many years as Egypt's foreign minister before becoming head of the Arab League. There were suggestions at the time that Mubarak had kicked him sideways because the president was becoming jealous of Moussa's popularity (he was generally regarded as adopting a fairly tough position regarding Israel). In 2009, Moussa hinted that he might run for the Egyptian presidency in the 2011 election. In February last year, he also had a meeting with Mohamed ElBaradei which aroused a good deal of speculation.
1.10pm: Today, religious leaders have stressed their unity. We told at 12.41pm how at Friday prayers in Tahrir square, the Catholic cardinal in Egypt reportedly linked hands with a Muslim cleric. Al-Jazeera English now reports that Christians in Alexandria formed a security cordon around the Muslims while they knelt for Friday prayers.
1.01pm: Damascus pro-democracy. Al Jazeera is reporting that more than 100,000 protesters have gathered in Damanhour, about 100 miles north west of Cairo, to demand that Mubarak resigns.
12.55pm: Beirut view on Egypt, Guardian correspondent, has sent this analysis of how the events this week in Egypt are playing out across the region: “One Egyptian embassy official put his hands on his knees and said with a shy smile: "You know the president thinks he is like a big father. He treats the people like they are his children: 'go to sleep', and they all sleep, 'wake up', and they all wake up. Things have changed: the people are no more children, and you can't boss them around. If you don't talk to them in the language of democracy you will be swept away."
Arab kings and presidents are scrambling to appease their people: Jordan's king dismissed his government, Algeria's president said he will end emergency laws, the Yemeni president pledged not to run again. But for us Arabs, the biggest change has already happened. The holy image of deity for rulers, has been shattered.
12.41pm: Egypt new national sense of unity emerged, the religious one. The Catholic Cardinal in Egypt was witnessed hand in hand with a Muslim cleric, both in their religious dress with the pro-democracy demonstrators. He was speaking about national unity, stating that the myth of sectarian strife is only made by the failing government security apparatus and urge people to unite as Egyptians. The Muslim cleric also stated the same.
12.35pm: In the name of their security foreign journalists are humiliated. I've just spoken to Peter Beaumont, whose efforts to get into Tahrir Square have been frustrated by both the army and armed vigilantes. He and Jack Shenker were picked up by the army, made to kneel facing a wall and interrogated. “We were taken at a checkpoint and led to the ministry of the interior … We were held for two hours … and we were both warned that if we came anywhere near the square again, things wouldn't go so nicely for us.”
12.21pm: Al-Jazeera is investigating the hacking of its news website and other dirty attacks: “For two hours this morning (from 6.30am–8.30am Doha time), a banner advertisement was taken over and replaced with a slogan of "Together for the collapse of Egypt" which was linked to Al Jazeera.” A spokesman for Al Jazeera said that their engineers "moved quickly to solve the problem".
12.19pm: Two pro-democracy leaders emerge. The putative opposition figurehead Mohamad ElBaradei and another prominent opposition figure, Amr Moussa, secretary general of the Arab League, have both been seen either in or on their way to Tahrir Square, according to a number of accounts.
12.11pm: The Guardian lunch time summary:
• Hundreds of thousands of anti-Mubarak protesters have gathered in Cairo's Tahrir Square. Protesters are calling today the "day of departure", as they continue to demand the Egyptian president step down. The Egyptian army is manning checkpoints at all entrances to the square, searching people for weapons before allowing them in. No pro-Mubarak protesters are being allowed into the square, following days of clashes between the two groups.
• After Friday prayers in the square this morning, protesters have now begun to call for Mubarak to leave, but there is a relaxed atmosphere so far, in contrast to the scenes from previous days. Protesters are listening to speeches and prayers, while others are playing music. Many are engaged in preparing rudimentary shields and helmets, mindful of the violence seen in the square yesterday.
• EU leaders are meeting in Brussels for the first time since the Middle East unrest began. The summit is to charge Lady Ashton, the Labour peer and EU's foreign policy chief, with coming up with a policy package for promoting and entrenching democracy in Egypt. Going into the summit David Cameron said the Mubarak regime would lose all credibility if it cracked down forcefully on today's protests, while Silvio Berlusconi faced criticism after he said he hoped for "continuity in government", describing Mubarak as "the wisest of men".
• The US and senior Egyptian officials are reportedly in talks over replacing Mubarak. The New York Times reported that the White House, the state department and the Pentagon have been involved in discussions that include an option in which Mubarak would given way to a transitional government headed by the Egyptian vice-president, Omar Suleiman.
• However Mubarak has warned that "if I resign today, there will be chaos". In his first major interview since protests began, the embattled Egyptian told ABC news last night: "I am fed up. After 62 years in public service, I have had enough. I want to go." He said Barack Obama, by calling for Egypt to begin the transition to democracy "now", did not understand Egyptian culture, warning that trouble would ensue if he left office immediately.
12.06pm: Mohamed ElBaradei statement. The Egyptian opposition figurehead who some see as a potential next president, has just been on al-Jazeera. “It is time for Mubarak to leave now. It is time that you listen to your people's demands. Leave with dignity … We will secure your exit. The whole world wants Mubarak to step down. He has no legitimacy … No Egyptian wants what's happening to continue. He served his country, made mistakes, but now it is time to leave … Mubarak is a military man; he should be able to tell when it's time to leave”.
11.50am: Khamanei does not understand what is going on in Egypt. Tsalem, who identifies him/herself as an Egyptian, says he/she is "dismayed" by Ayatollah Khamanei's comments (see 11.03am). “I do not think he understands what is going on in Egypt - and that these kinds of statements just inflame things further. No major political entity (including the Muslim Brotherhood) are advocating for the setting up of an "Islamic" regime in the style of Iran. No one I know personally or online or have heard in the media has mentioned anything resembling this. This is just the Iranian establishment kicking the secular regime that supported the Shah in Sadat's days.
Also as a Muslim - I do not agree with his comments at all. I believe we have the necessary institutions that keeps Islamic thought alive and pervasive in society, whilst embracing a range of views and our Coptic brothers and sisters. I do not believe we need an Islamic leadership (which incidentally is against my personal Islamic beliefs).
The entire episode in Egypt is centered around corruption, cronyism, free speech, and social injustices that exist in Egypt. And the uprising is about forcing the government of the day to deal with these issues, and asking them to step down to make way for future politicians that advocate and espouse the ideas that will address these issues.”
11.37am: Pro Mubara supporters out of Tahrir Square. The Guardian's Mustafa Khalili is in Tahrir Square, where he says there is a much more relaxed atmosphere than in the previous few days. Mustafa reports that there are "hundreds of thousands" of protesters there waiting to pass the checkpoints, and says the army checkpoints leading to the square are so far succeeding in keeping pro-Mubarak supporters out, meaning this is why there have been no clashes so far.Inside the square demonstrators are listening to prayers and speeches, while others are playing musical instruments in what Mustafa describes as a "carnival atmosphere".
11.25am: Day 4 PEACE succeed says AP news. The Associated Press news agency has more detail of the protests going on today in Cairo: “Protesters demanding President Hosni Mubarak's ouster packed Cairo's central square in huge numbers Friday, waving Egyptian flags, singing the national anthem and cheering, appearing undaunted and determined after their camp withstood two days of street battles with regime supporters trying to dislodge them.
Thousands more flowed over bridges across the Nile into Tahrir Square, a sign that they were not intimidated after fending off everything thrown at the protesters by pro-Mubarak attackers stones, firebombs, fighters on horses and camels and automatic gunfire. The protesters passed through a series of beefed-up checkpoints by the military and the protesters themselves guarding the square.
The crowd, well over 10,000, was the biggest since Tuesday, when a quarter-million turned out. They chanted, prayed and unfurled a long banner in the national colors of red, black and white. A man sitting in a wheelchair was lifted wheelchair and all over the heads of the crowd and he pumped his arms in the air. The atmosphere is peaceful, the news agency reports.”
11.03am: Ayatollah Khamenei statement on Egypt: Mubarak betrayed his people. At Friday prayers in Tehran, Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei told worshippers Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak betrayed his people and the uprising against his rule is the appropriate response.
Khamenei accused Mubarak of making Egypt, a close US ally, do America's bidding, particularly in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
"America's control over Egypt's leaders has ... turned Egypt into the biggest enemy of Palestine and turned it into the greatest refuge for Zionists," Khamenei said.
"This explosion we see among the people of Egypt is the appropriate response to this great betrayal that the traitor dictator committed against his people," Khamenei said, without mentioning Mubarak by name.
10.54am: European Union too weak position on Egypt. My colleague Ian Traynor in Brussels sends this report on the EU's reaction to the upheaval in Cairo: Martin Schulz, the leader of the centre-left in the European parliament, lambasted the EU for its perceived weakness.
"On foreign policy issues, the EU too often behaves like a frightened rabbit in the headlights of a car," he said. "The EU summit should make a clear statement that Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak's time is up. They need to be much tougher and make it clear that Europe will not tolerate Mubarak clinging desperately to office."Going into the summit, David Cameron said the Mubarak regime would lose all credibility if it cracked down forcefully on today's protests. Angela Merkel, the German chancellor, made similar comments.
10.50am: ELBaradei said piecemeal transition won’t add trust to this regime. Trust is gone. He suggested that a transition starts with his resignation and a temporary Presidential Council . Mohamed ElBaradei (left), the Egyptian opposition figurehead who some see as a potential next president, has said Hosni Mubarak should now step down with dignity. Mubarak "should hear the clear voice coming from the people and leave in dignity", the former UN International Atomic Energy Agency chief said.
ElBaradei dismissed concessions so far by Mubarak, calling them "piecemeal", adding "it's a question of trust, and the trust is gone."
He told reporters that there should be a year-long transition to democracy under a temporary constitution with a presidential council of several people, including a military representative.
10.39 am. Anti-Mubarak protesters who remain in Tahrir Square overnight are heroes. The Daily News Egypt is reporting that the numbers flocking to Cairo's Tahrir Square exceed those attending last Tuesday's "million man march". Protesters claimed over a million people attended that protest in the square. See video.
IS THE CIA INVOLVE IN THE REPRESSION OF PRO-DEMOCRACY DEMONSTRATORS?
IS THE CIA INVOLVE IN THE REPRESSION OF PRO-DEMOCRACY DEMONSTRATORS?CHECK THESE TWO NEWS:
1.
Ambassador Frank G. Wisner II, CIA’s Hatchet Man Takes Control of Egypt -
By Matthias Chang (3/2/11)
By Matthias Chang
Thursday, 03 February 2011 23:04
http://futurefastforward.com/feature-articles
FOR IMMEDIATE DISSEMINATION
The people of Egypt must now prepare for a violent Counter-revolution ordered by President Obama and to be implemented by CIA’s top hatchet man, under the guise of Ambassador Frank G. Wisner II, whose father was the mastermind behind the bloody overthrow of Iranian prime minister Mohammed Mossadegh in 1953.
The so-called supporters of Mubarak are in fact security officers in plainclothes and have been unleashed to cause confusion, violence and to create fear and instability so as to justify a brutal military response under the pretext of restoring order. The call by El Baradei for a military intervention is most suspicious in the circumstances and the people should be wary.
The people must not be fearful and be prepared to defend themselves and the revolution, so that the moribund and corrupt regime of Mubarak is got rid once and for all.
Expose this insidious plot.
ALSO SEE IN THE SAME WEBSITE:
MUST-WATCH VIDEOS: A Voice From A Young Girl That Sparked The Egyptian Revolution (4/2/11)
Friday, 04 February 2011 10:10
http://futurefastforward.com/feature-articles
The Voice of the Future Arab Middle East and the Oppressed World.
Muslims and Christians Unite.
Spread these two videos far and wide.
------------------------
2.
Top CIA Spy Takes Over Deadly Egyptian Protests
By: Sorcha Faal
http://www.whatdoesitmean.com/index1444.htm
Russian Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) reports circulating in the Kremlin today state that Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak has agreed to allow the United States Central Intelligence Agency’s top spy to take over his countries military and police forces in order to stamp out the growing threat to America’s most vital Arab ally in the Middle East.
According to these reports, US President Barack Obama phoned Mubarak on February 1st( http://content.usatoday.com/communities/theoval/post/2011/02/obamas-day--message-to-mubarak/1) ordering the Egyptian dictator to allow this CIA takeover of Egyptian military and police forces or face “immediate and permanent removal”, a term this report says is a euphemism for “assassination”.
Upon Mubarak’s agreeing to Obama’s harsh order, these reports continue, the American President put in charge of Egypt the United States most feared spy, Ambassador Frank G. Wisner II, who the SVR says has been the Egyptian dictators CIA “handler” and best friend for decades (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/02/01/AR2011020106550.html ) […]
Wisner II, in carrying on his fathers “tradition”, these reports continue, engineered the 1981 assassination of Egyptian President Muhammad Anwar El Sadat (1918-1981) thus successfully installing the CIA controlled Mubarak as president-for-life over Egypt. Even worse for the Egyptian people was Wisner II’s first “order” for Mubarak to make another of the CIA’s Egyptian agents, General Omar Suleiman (http://www.infowars.com/omar-suleiman-cias-point-man-in-egypt/) his vice president.
The next actions taken against the Egyptian people by their new defacto leader Wisner II have been both brutal and predictable as mobs of what are described as government thugs (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/41402303/ns/world_news-mideastn_africa/)descended yesterday upon thousands of peaceful protesters, and with the death toll in this revolution estimated to be over 300, (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1352923/Egypt-crisis-Riots-death-toll-300-Hosni-Mubarak-mob-moves-8th-day.html) and just like the 1953 Wisner I-backed overthrow of Iran, Egypt’s Army has “stepped in” to restore calm and order.
To the eventual outcome of these events it is not in our knowing, other than to point out the obvious fact, that when the CIA moves in, thousands of innocent human beings will lose their lives so that the dictators and tyrants supported and propped up by the US can continue to rule their Nations with an iron fist.
ALSO SEE: http://live.reuters.com/Event/Unrest_in_Egypt
1.
Ambassador Frank G. Wisner II, CIA’s Hatchet Man Takes Control of Egypt -
By Matthias Chang (3/2/11)
By Matthias Chang
Thursday, 03 February 2011 23:04
http://futurefastforward.com/feature-articles
FOR IMMEDIATE DISSEMINATION
The people of Egypt must now prepare for a violent Counter-revolution ordered by President Obama and to be implemented by CIA’s top hatchet man, under the guise of Ambassador Frank G. Wisner II, whose father was the mastermind behind the bloody overthrow of Iranian prime minister Mohammed Mossadegh in 1953.
The so-called supporters of Mubarak are in fact security officers in plainclothes and have been unleashed to cause confusion, violence and to create fear and instability so as to justify a brutal military response under the pretext of restoring order. The call by El Baradei for a military intervention is most suspicious in the circumstances and the people should be wary.
The people must not be fearful and be prepared to defend themselves and the revolution, so that the moribund and corrupt regime of Mubarak is got rid once and for all.
Expose this insidious plot.
ALSO SEE IN THE SAME WEBSITE:
MUST-WATCH VIDEOS: A Voice From A Young Girl That Sparked The Egyptian Revolution (4/2/11)
Friday, 04 February 2011 10:10
http://futurefastforward.com/feature-articles
The Voice of the Future Arab Middle East and the Oppressed World.
Muslims and Christians Unite.
Spread these two videos far and wide.
------------------------
2.
Top CIA Spy Takes Over Deadly Egyptian Protests
By: Sorcha Faal
http://www.whatdoesitmean.com/index1444.htm
Russian Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) reports circulating in the Kremlin today state that Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak has agreed to allow the United States Central Intelligence Agency’s top spy to take over his countries military and police forces in order to stamp out the growing threat to America’s most vital Arab ally in the Middle East.
According to these reports, US President Barack Obama phoned Mubarak on February 1st( http://content.usatoday.com/communities/theoval/post/2011/02/obamas-day--message-to-mubarak/1) ordering the Egyptian dictator to allow this CIA takeover of Egyptian military and police forces or face “immediate and permanent removal”, a term this report says is a euphemism for “assassination”.
Upon Mubarak’s agreeing to Obama’s harsh order, these reports continue, the American President put in charge of Egypt the United States most feared spy, Ambassador Frank G. Wisner II, who the SVR says has been the Egyptian dictators CIA “handler” and best friend for decades (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/02/01/AR2011020106550.html ) […]
Wisner II, in carrying on his fathers “tradition”, these reports continue, engineered the 1981 assassination of Egyptian President Muhammad Anwar El Sadat (1918-1981) thus successfully installing the CIA controlled Mubarak as president-for-life over Egypt. Even worse for the Egyptian people was Wisner II’s first “order” for Mubarak to make another of the CIA’s Egyptian agents, General Omar Suleiman (http://www.infowars.com/omar-suleiman-cias-point-man-in-egypt/) his vice president.
The next actions taken against the Egyptian people by their new defacto leader Wisner II have been both brutal and predictable as mobs of what are described as government thugs (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/41402303/ns/world_news-mideastn_africa/)descended yesterday upon thousands of peaceful protesters, and with the death toll in this revolution estimated to be over 300, (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1352923/Egypt-crisis-Riots-death-toll-300-Hosni-Mubarak-mob-moves-8th-day.html) and just like the 1953 Wisner I-backed overthrow of Iran, Egypt’s Army has “stepped in” to restore calm and order.
To the eventual outcome of these events it is not in our knowing, other than to point out the obvious fact, that when the CIA moves in, thousands of innocent human beings will lose their lives so that the dictators and tyrants supported and propped up by the US can continue to rule their Nations with an iron fist.
ALSO SEE: http://live.reuters.com/Event/Unrest_in_Egypt
jueves, 3 de febrero de 2011
SHARIF KOUDDOUS n Prof. NOHA RADWAN CAUGHT IN THE EYE OF THE REVOLUTION STORM Feb 3-11
SHARIF KOUDDOUS n Prof. NOHA RADWAN CAUGHT IN THE EYE OF THE REVOLUTION STORM
Democracy now, Feb. 3, 2011
A Battle for Democracy: Sharif Abdel Kouddous Reports on How Anti-Government Protesters Are Resisting the Mubarak’s Regime Crackdown
http://www.democracynow.org/2011/2/3/a_battle_for_democracy_sharif_abdel
Egyptians vowing to oust President Hosni Mubarak continue to occupy the streets in Cairo today as pro-democracy crowds stand up to violent Mubarak forces. Reporting from a rooftop, Democracy Now! senior producer Sharif Abdel Kouddous describes the scene on the 6th October Bridge, where he reports pro-democracy activists are standing their ground on the “frontline of the struggle” for democracy.
AMY GOODMAN: We just got this message, from our guest yesterday on Democracy Now!, Noha Radwan. She said, "I wanted your show to know that as I left the studio to go back to Tahrir, I got attacked by the mob and beaten half to death by the Mubarak thugs, who were happy to snatch my necklaces off my neck and to rip my shirt open. I am now fine, but the big thug must go. Wish us the best. Our Internet comes and goes."
AMY GOODMAN: We’re live on the ground in Cairo in Tahrir Square with our senior producer, Democracy Now!'s Sharif Abdel Kouddous. We're also joined by Noha Radwan, assistant professor of comparative literature at the University of California, Davis, who is currently taking part in the protests in Tahrir Square. She joined us yesterday with Sharif in studio. Noha, describe what happened when you left the studio.
NOHA RADWAN: Hi, Amy. What happened is I left the studio with Sharif and your cameraperson Jacquie, and they were stopped at the Ramsis Hilton and had to stay inside the hotel. Then I moved towards the square. And as I approached, I could see the thugs, the Mubarak mob, but I totally underestimated what they’re capable of doing.
They asked me why I was trying to get into the square. I said I had friends and relatives who are injured, and I’m just checking on them. But then the big question came: "Are you pro-Mubarak or anti-Mubarak?" And I didn’t want to answer the question. I just left the person who was asking the question and tried to get in.
Two, three meters later, somebody caught on to the fact that I was trying to get in anyway, and then they yelled to the mob, "She’s with them! She’s with them! Get her!" And I found two big guys who came and held onto my arms and took me out, and they kind of handed me on to a mob that started beating me and pulling my hair. They ripped my shirt off. They ripped a gold necklace. If you see the recording from yesterday, you’ll see that I was wearing a very close-to-the-neck kind of big necklace. So, in ripping this, they actually injured the neck. And through all the beating, I had to get a couple of stitches to the head yesterday.
I’m fine now, and I actually really wanted to give this report as a minor, you know, firsthand testimony to what is happening. What has happened to others is a lot more. We have seen people get hit by the stones thrown in by the mobs, and they have lost their eyes. There are people with concussions. I was taken in an ambulance much, much later to a hospital, where I had to spend most of the night, because there was no way of getting out. The mob is really singling us out.
The worst part of it is that the Egyptian media has been broadcasting nonstop that we are infiltrators, that we are foreign-paid, that most of the people in Tahrir are not actually real Egyptians, they are, you know, paid by foreigners outside. There have been reports about a Belgian who was caught and turned out to be a spy, Israelis, who were caught in the demonstration, and so on and so forth.
JUAN GONZALEZ: And Noha Radwan, I’d like to ask you about what I asked Sharif, the role of the military, because obviously many of the protesters at first felt that the military was on their side. Your assessment now, after what happened in the past 24 hours?
NOHA RADWAN: I was actually saved by the military. I was going to practically die on the street, had it not been for the fact that some very low-ranking army officer—and I cannot give any more details than that—actually asked his soldiers to pick me up and put me inside the tank, and where I stayed until it got dark. And then they called an ambulance for me to get out in the ambulance and go straight to a hospital. The mob outside were really calling for my head, as a traitor, an American-paid Baradei supporter.
AMY GOODMAN: Sharif, describe the whole scene in Tahrir Square right now.
SHARIF ABDEL KOUDDOUS: Amy, I’m talking to you—I’m standing on a rooftop near the 6 of October Bridge, just a few hundred yards from where the studio is. It’s impossible to get across. I’m standing basically on the frontlines of the battle between the pro-democracy uprising and the Mubarak regime. There is a lot of rock throwing that is happening back and forth. There are army tanks that are stationed on the bridge. And there’s the crackle of gunfire, and it’s unclear who is firing.
The people in Tahrir that I met throughout the day today were very proud of the fact that they held the square, that they—despite this brutal assault that they came under, that they managed to hold Tahrir. You know, "Tahrir" means "liberation." And what the people say now is that they’re going to stay in Liberation Square until liberation.
Right now—the pro-democracy forces seem to have pushed back and keep on pushing back the Mubarak thugs. Right now, it’s unclear what is going to happen in the evening.
Tomorrow, Friday, is going to be a decisive day. Of course, Friday is the day for Muslim prayer, and they expect hundreds of thousands to come to Tahrir. And they want the ouster of the Mubarak regime, and they demand nothing less.
[Pro-democracy forces] held the square, but they suffered terribly. There are people—many, many hundreds wounded. I’ve seen broken legs and arms. I’ve seen many people bandaged. They’ve shown me bullets that were fired. There’s a man right now trying to give me bread. We went to a makeshift hospital, where people have been—the doctors have been up for more than 48 hours, tending to the wounded. The numbers of the dead vary, but there’s somewhere between five and 10 people, they say were shot in the head, people hit by rocks, who died. They said they weren’t allowed to leave the square yesterday and that they were trapped inside.
Another thing is that the army—people are very angry at the army, because they say they were complicit in all of this. You know, in my earlier reports, I said that the Egyptian army—people were convinced that the army wouldn’t harm them. But what they didn’t imagine was that they would just stand by and allow these pro-Mubarak thugs to come in on horseback and camel, to attack them with rocks, Molotov cocktails and to lay siege to Tahrir to try and make them leave.
But the people here are defiant, and they refuse to leave. And there’s more coming into Tahrir, as I speak. But right now, I’m on the very edge of it, and the battle continues to rage. I can see more Mubarak forces continuing to gather at the foot of one of the bridges. It’s unclear what will happen next. There are rocks absolutely everywhere on the ground, rocks that were thrown from both sides, mostly from the baltaguia, from the thugs.
JUAN GONZALEZ: Sharif, you mentioned the role of the military. We did get some reports that when the pro-Mubarak forces started shooting machine guns, that the army did intervene and tried to confiscate those. Are you getting any sense that there’s an increase in the military presence, or does this represent basically conflicting orders that are coming in to the military about what to do in this situation?
SHARIF ABDEL KOUDDOUS: Well, Juan, they certainly did let in the pro-Mubarak thugs to come in on horseback and camel, which people are very shocked at. You know, they say, "What are we living in? Barbarian times?" I have heard the same reports, that when machine gun fire started, that the army did come in and pushed back Mubarak’s forces. So, it appears that at a certain point they intervened, but people don’t understand why they let it come to that point. Many were wounded here, hundreds were wounded, and some were killed. And they want the army to do more to protect Tahrir. Tahrir has become the epicenter in all of Egypt for this struggle for democracy.
AMY GOODMAN: Speaking of being caught, Sharif, the reports of the number of pro-Mubarak forces that have been captured by anti-Mubarak forces, the protesters in the square, The Guardian has something like 120 IDs of police. What do you know about this? And as you were reporting, Juan, the busloads of these pro-Mubarak forces being shipped—shipping them in.
JUAN GONZALEZ: Yeah, the New York Times, Sharif, is reporting that they were bused in systematically throughout the day, apparently, obviously by the government. Who else would pay for all those buses?
SHARIF ABDEL KOUDDOUS: That’s right. I mean, there’s no question who these people were who attacked last night. I have seen, myself, at least four police IDs. People say they grabbed—as you know, on the ground, it’s difficult to get numbers. I get between dozens and hundreds of them. And they say that 90 percent of them had some sort of ID that linked them to the police or state and Central Security forces. They say many of them are baltaguias, just these kind of—these thugs that the Mubarak regime has used for many years.
And let me just add, I was devastated to hear that Professor Radwan came under attack. We left the hotel maybe 20 minutes after her. We tried to re-enter Tahrir Square. These mobs are very intimidating. They’re very hostile. They’re men, mostly, that range from about 20 to 45 years old. They wear sweaters and thick leather jackets. And they were basically holding a mini riot at every entrance into Tahrir, preventing anyone from going in. We tried to force our way in, Hany, Jacquie and I. We held each other and tried to go through. But we were on the verge of being beaten ourselves, and we backed off and then had to go home, and we were unable to go inside. It was a very dark day in this struggle, but the people are very proud here in Tahrir that they held their ground under this brutal assault. And to this day they remain defiant. And it remains to be seen what will happen tomorrow, but I think it will be a decisive day in this struggle.
AMY GOODMAN: Sharif, where are you in relation—in Tahrir Square, what area are you looking on it from? And be very careful. Don’t be on the phone if you’re in any danger.
SHARIF ABDEL KOUDDOUS: Amy, I’m on a rooftop. I’m on a rooftop that is near the museum, that is overlooking near the Hilton hotel and where we were staying, near the studio. And I can see—it’s right on the 6 of October Bridge. Clashes are breaking out right on the 6 of October Bridge. There’s a lot of rock throwing. People are advancing forward now. This is really the frontline of the struggle between the pro-democracy movement and the Mubarak regime. And it remains to be seen what will happen next, but right now the battle is raging.
AMY GOODMAN: Sharif, we have unconfirmed reports, but tweeted by various journalists on Twitter, that Shahira Amin resigned from Nile TV, citing her inability to lie any longer. Nile TV is state TV. The significance? And describe what you’re seeing now. Just tell us what’s happening.
SHARIF ABDEL KOUDDOUS: Amy, I don’t know about her resignation. I know a lot of people have come up to me, [when] filming, they say, "Make sure you film the reality of this." They’re very aware of the propaganda of the state TV. And the state TV is filming Tahrir Square, just filming these empty spaces, to try and show that there’s hardly anyone there, when in fact there are tens of thousands there, that they do not show the brutal assault that they came under. And so, they know the state TV and the bias that it has. If someone resigned—and I’ve heard of other resignations, not sure if it’s from Nile TV.
But right now, again, I’m standing on this roof, and basically what it is is, from the main square, there’s a big street that runs next to the museum. And the people have created three lines of barricades, with burnt-up trucks to form barriers. They’ve also torn corrugated iron from a construction site, and they’re using that to barricade themselves, as well, and use it as shields under the shower of rocks that keep flying over. And so, they have fortified themselves here after the assault yesterday, and they’re ready to defend Tahrir Square, Liberation Square, they say, until liberation.
JUAN GONZALEZ: Sharif, I know it’s difficult with the events you’re seeing right now unfold before you, but I’d like to ask you a little bit in terms of—have you seen any evidence of involvement of the Egyptian labor movement in any of these protests? I’m not talking about the official labor organizations that the government basically sponsors. But there has been, over the last few years, a very strong labor—independent labor movement in Egypt. And one report that I saw recently said that there have been over 3,000 actions by Egyptian workers since 2004, involving more than two million people. One historian called it the largest social movement in the Arab world, and it’s gone largely unreported. Do you have any sense of whether the masses of Egyptian workers, in one way or another, are poised maybe to act on Friday or in the coming days in any kind of organized form?
SHARIF ABDEL KOUDDOUS: Well, Juan, I would say that the labor movement has been extremely important in this struggle. I think this popular uprising really started to gain strength a few years ago during the strike in Mahalla, which is the site of the biggest textile factory in the Middle East. I think it’s something like 30,000 to 40,000 workers. They held a strike, and they were brutally cracked down upon by the Mubarak regime. And after that, the uprising—many believe that’s when it started. Demonstrations started in bigger, bigger and bigger numbers. And, you know, what is—this uprising that started a week ago was really led by the youth movement, and one of the youth movements that helped organize it on Facebook calls itself the April 6 Youth Movement. That is the date of that strike. And so, the labor movement is very important to this. It’s hard to say how many of them are here in Tahrir, but, you know, many of them—many of the people here are the youth. And so—but labor, indeed, has been very important in this uprising.
Democracy now, Feb. 3, 2011
A Battle for Democracy: Sharif Abdel Kouddous Reports on How Anti-Government Protesters Are Resisting the Mubarak’s Regime Crackdown
http://www.democracynow.org/2011/2/3/a_battle_for_democracy_sharif_abdel
Egyptians vowing to oust President Hosni Mubarak continue to occupy the streets in Cairo today as pro-democracy crowds stand up to violent Mubarak forces. Reporting from a rooftop, Democracy Now! senior producer Sharif Abdel Kouddous describes the scene on the 6th October Bridge, where he reports pro-democracy activists are standing their ground on the “frontline of the struggle” for democracy.
AMY GOODMAN: We just got this message, from our guest yesterday on Democracy Now!, Noha Radwan. She said, "I wanted your show to know that as I left the studio to go back to Tahrir, I got attacked by the mob and beaten half to death by the Mubarak thugs, who were happy to snatch my necklaces off my neck and to rip my shirt open. I am now fine, but the big thug must go. Wish us the best. Our Internet comes and goes."
AMY GOODMAN: We’re live on the ground in Cairo in Tahrir Square with our senior producer, Democracy Now!'s Sharif Abdel Kouddous. We're also joined by Noha Radwan, assistant professor of comparative literature at the University of California, Davis, who is currently taking part in the protests in Tahrir Square. She joined us yesterday with Sharif in studio. Noha, describe what happened when you left the studio.
NOHA RADWAN: Hi, Amy. What happened is I left the studio with Sharif and your cameraperson Jacquie, and they were stopped at the Ramsis Hilton and had to stay inside the hotel. Then I moved towards the square. And as I approached, I could see the thugs, the Mubarak mob, but I totally underestimated what they’re capable of doing.
They asked me why I was trying to get into the square. I said I had friends and relatives who are injured, and I’m just checking on them. But then the big question came: "Are you pro-Mubarak or anti-Mubarak?" And I didn’t want to answer the question. I just left the person who was asking the question and tried to get in.
Two, three meters later, somebody caught on to the fact that I was trying to get in anyway, and then they yelled to the mob, "She’s with them! She’s with them! Get her!" And I found two big guys who came and held onto my arms and took me out, and they kind of handed me on to a mob that started beating me and pulling my hair. They ripped my shirt off. They ripped a gold necklace. If you see the recording from yesterday, you’ll see that I was wearing a very close-to-the-neck kind of big necklace. So, in ripping this, they actually injured the neck. And through all the beating, I had to get a couple of stitches to the head yesterday.
I’m fine now, and I actually really wanted to give this report as a minor, you know, firsthand testimony to what is happening. What has happened to others is a lot more. We have seen people get hit by the stones thrown in by the mobs, and they have lost their eyes. There are people with concussions. I was taken in an ambulance much, much later to a hospital, where I had to spend most of the night, because there was no way of getting out. The mob is really singling us out.
The worst part of it is that the Egyptian media has been broadcasting nonstop that we are infiltrators, that we are foreign-paid, that most of the people in Tahrir are not actually real Egyptians, they are, you know, paid by foreigners outside. There have been reports about a Belgian who was caught and turned out to be a spy, Israelis, who were caught in the demonstration, and so on and so forth.
JUAN GONZALEZ: And Noha Radwan, I’d like to ask you about what I asked Sharif, the role of the military, because obviously many of the protesters at first felt that the military was on their side. Your assessment now, after what happened in the past 24 hours?
NOHA RADWAN: I was actually saved by the military. I was going to practically die on the street, had it not been for the fact that some very low-ranking army officer—and I cannot give any more details than that—actually asked his soldiers to pick me up and put me inside the tank, and where I stayed until it got dark. And then they called an ambulance for me to get out in the ambulance and go straight to a hospital. The mob outside were really calling for my head, as a traitor, an American-paid Baradei supporter.
AMY GOODMAN: Sharif, describe the whole scene in Tahrir Square right now.
SHARIF ABDEL KOUDDOUS: Amy, I’m talking to you—I’m standing on a rooftop near the 6 of October Bridge, just a few hundred yards from where the studio is. It’s impossible to get across. I’m standing basically on the frontlines of the battle between the pro-democracy uprising and the Mubarak regime. There is a lot of rock throwing that is happening back and forth. There are army tanks that are stationed on the bridge. And there’s the crackle of gunfire, and it’s unclear who is firing.
The people in Tahrir that I met throughout the day today were very proud of the fact that they held the square, that they—despite this brutal assault that they came under, that they managed to hold Tahrir. You know, "Tahrir" means "liberation." And what the people say now is that they’re going to stay in Liberation Square until liberation.
Right now—the pro-democracy forces seem to have pushed back and keep on pushing back the Mubarak thugs. Right now, it’s unclear what is going to happen in the evening.
Tomorrow, Friday, is going to be a decisive day. Of course, Friday is the day for Muslim prayer, and they expect hundreds of thousands to come to Tahrir. And they want the ouster of the Mubarak regime, and they demand nothing less.
[Pro-democracy forces] held the square, but they suffered terribly. There are people—many, many hundreds wounded. I’ve seen broken legs and arms. I’ve seen many people bandaged. They’ve shown me bullets that were fired. There’s a man right now trying to give me bread. We went to a makeshift hospital, where people have been—the doctors have been up for more than 48 hours, tending to the wounded. The numbers of the dead vary, but there’s somewhere between five and 10 people, they say were shot in the head, people hit by rocks, who died. They said they weren’t allowed to leave the square yesterday and that they were trapped inside.
Another thing is that the army—people are very angry at the army, because they say they were complicit in all of this. You know, in my earlier reports, I said that the Egyptian army—people were convinced that the army wouldn’t harm them. But what they didn’t imagine was that they would just stand by and allow these pro-Mubarak thugs to come in on horseback and camel, to attack them with rocks, Molotov cocktails and to lay siege to Tahrir to try and make them leave.
But the people here are defiant, and they refuse to leave. And there’s more coming into Tahrir, as I speak. But right now, I’m on the very edge of it, and the battle continues to rage. I can see more Mubarak forces continuing to gather at the foot of one of the bridges. It’s unclear what will happen next. There are rocks absolutely everywhere on the ground, rocks that were thrown from both sides, mostly from the baltaguia, from the thugs.
JUAN GONZALEZ: Sharif, you mentioned the role of the military. We did get some reports that when the pro-Mubarak forces started shooting machine guns, that the army did intervene and tried to confiscate those. Are you getting any sense that there’s an increase in the military presence, or does this represent basically conflicting orders that are coming in to the military about what to do in this situation?
SHARIF ABDEL KOUDDOUS: Well, Juan, they certainly did let in the pro-Mubarak thugs to come in on horseback and camel, which people are very shocked at. You know, they say, "What are we living in? Barbarian times?" I have heard the same reports, that when machine gun fire started, that the army did come in and pushed back Mubarak’s forces. So, it appears that at a certain point they intervened, but people don’t understand why they let it come to that point. Many were wounded here, hundreds were wounded, and some were killed. And they want the army to do more to protect Tahrir. Tahrir has become the epicenter in all of Egypt for this struggle for democracy.
AMY GOODMAN: Speaking of being caught, Sharif, the reports of the number of pro-Mubarak forces that have been captured by anti-Mubarak forces, the protesters in the square, The Guardian has something like 120 IDs of police. What do you know about this? And as you were reporting, Juan, the busloads of these pro-Mubarak forces being shipped—shipping them in.
JUAN GONZALEZ: Yeah, the New York Times, Sharif, is reporting that they were bused in systematically throughout the day, apparently, obviously by the government. Who else would pay for all those buses?
SHARIF ABDEL KOUDDOUS: That’s right. I mean, there’s no question who these people were who attacked last night. I have seen, myself, at least four police IDs. People say they grabbed—as you know, on the ground, it’s difficult to get numbers. I get between dozens and hundreds of them. And they say that 90 percent of them had some sort of ID that linked them to the police or state and Central Security forces. They say many of them are baltaguias, just these kind of—these thugs that the Mubarak regime has used for many years.
And let me just add, I was devastated to hear that Professor Radwan came under attack. We left the hotel maybe 20 minutes after her. We tried to re-enter Tahrir Square. These mobs are very intimidating. They’re very hostile. They’re men, mostly, that range from about 20 to 45 years old. They wear sweaters and thick leather jackets. And they were basically holding a mini riot at every entrance into Tahrir, preventing anyone from going in. We tried to force our way in, Hany, Jacquie and I. We held each other and tried to go through. But we were on the verge of being beaten ourselves, and we backed off and then had to go home, and we were unable to go inside. It was a very dark day in this struggle, but the people are very proud here in Tahrir that they held their ground under this brutal assault. And to this day they remain defiant. And it remains to be seen what will happen tomorrow, but I think it will be a decisive day in this struggle.
AMY GOODMAN: Sharif, where are you in relation—in Tahrir Square, what area are you looking on it from? And be very careful. Don’t be on the phone if you’re in any danger.
SHARIF ABDEL KOUDDOUS: Amy, I’m on a rooftop. I’m on a rooftop that is near the museum, that is overlooking near the Hilton hotel and where we were staying, near the studio. And I can see—it’s right on the 6 of October Bridge. Clashes are breaking out right on the 6 of October Bridge. There’s a lot of rock throwing. People are advancing forward now. This is really the frontline of the struggle between the pro-democracy movement and the Mubarak regime. And it remains to be seen what will happen next, but right now the battle is raging.
AMY GOODMAN: Sharif, we have unconfirmed reports, but tweeted by various journalists on Twitter, that Shahira Amin resigned from Nile TV, citing her inability to lie any longer. Nile TV is state TV. The significance? And describe what you’re seeing now. Just tell us what’s happening.
SHARIF ABDEL KOUDDOUS: Amy, I don’t know about her resignation. I know a lot of people have come up to me, [when] filming, they say, "Make sure you film the reality of this." They’re very aware of the propaganda of the state TV. And the state TV is filming Tahrir Square, just filming these empty spaces, to try and show that there’s hardly anyone there, when in fact there are tens of thousands there, that they do not show the brutal assault that they came under. And so, they know the state TV and the bias that it has. If someone resigned—and I’ve heard of other resignations, not sure if it’s from Nile TV.
But right now, again, I’m standing on this roof, and basically what it is is, from the main square, there’s a big street that runs next to the museum. And the people have created three lines of barricades, with burnt-up trucks to form barriers. They’ve also torn corrugated iron from a construction site, and they’re using that to barricade themselves, as well, and use it as shields under the shower of rocks that keep flying over. And so, they have fortified themselves here after the assault yesterday, and they’re ready to defend Tahrir Square, Liberation Square, they say, until liberation.
JUAN GONZALEZ: Sharif, I know it’s difficult with the events you’re seeing right now unfold before you, but I’d like to ask you a little bit in terms of—have you seen any evidence of involvement of the Egyptian labor movement in any of these protests? I’m not talking about the official labor organizations that the government basically sponsors. But there has been, over the last few years, a very strong labor—independent labor movement in Egypt. And one report that I saw recently said that there have been over 3,000 actions by Egyptian workers since 2004, involving more than two million people. One historian called it the largest social movement in the Arab world, and it’s gone largely unreported. Do you have any sense of whether the masses of Egyptian workers, in one way or another, are poised maybe to act on Friday or in the coming days in any kind of organized form?
SHARIF ABDEL KOUDDOUS: Well, Juan, I would say that the labor movement has been extremely important in this struggle. I think this popular uprising really started to gain strength a few years ago during the strike in Mahalla, which is the site of the biggest textile factory in the Middle East. I think it’s something like 30,000 to 40,000 workers. They held a strike, and they were brutally cracked down upon by the Mubarak regime. And after that, the uprising—many believe that’s when it started. Demonstrations started in bigger, bigger and bigger numbers. And, you know, what is—this uprising that started a week ago was really led by the youth movement, and one of the youth movements that helped organize it on Facebook calls itself the April 6 Youth Movement. That is the date of that strike. And so, the labor movement is very important to this. It’s hard to say how many of them are here in Tahrir, but, you know, many of them—many of the people here are the youth. And so—but labor, indeed, has been very important in this uprising.
Suscribirse a:
Entradas (Atom)