Friday, February 11, 2011

They did it!

People of Egypt Celebrating the Victory in Tahrir Square
Photo by RamyRaoof. Used under a Creative Commons license.

Talk about a grand finale. I have been in awe of the Egyptian people through this whole process—their courage, dignity, and perseverance in the face of what appeared to be insurmountable odds. For as long as I've lived, "Middle East" has been a byword for bad news. First Tunisia, now this: who knows what the future will bring?

It won't be all easy from here on out, of course. However, I can't worry too much for a people that can accomplish what they accomplished over the past 18 days—a revolution to make a Gandhi sit up and take notes. Egypt has taught the world a lesson; many lessons. If this hasn't shattered the stereotype of the rock-throwing Arab rioting in the streets at the slightest provocation, there truly is no justice in the world.

The real work starts tomorrow. In the meantime, there's time for a little celebration, I think.


  1. This has all been quite amazing. It's left me mostly speechless. Yet another non-violent centric ending to a dictatorship. It's time to give more focus to actions like this, and less to the already over-dissected body of wars throughout history.

  2. Oh, yes! If somebody had told me that Egypt is about to have a revolution, my reaction would have been "Yeah, that's possible." If they had told me that it would unfold like this, I'd have told them to stop being hopelessly idealistic.

    In my piece about Tunisia a few weeks back, I said that the Arab world badly needs a shining beacon on a hill. Now the whole world has one.