Arab Spring Egypt

The Egyptian Revolution Continues. The People vs. the New Pharaoh

January 31st, 2013

The revolution in Egypt ain't quite over yet. Cynic that I am, I did not see this level of defiance this coming. There have been so many examples of Islamists successfully hijacking revolutions from cowed and disunited secular democrats to seize absolute power around the world. I expected the violence in Egypt to die down and the Muslim Brotherhood to consolidate their rule a la the Taliban in Afghanistan, the Mullahs of Iran and the hellish pockets ruled by self-declared sultans from Algeria to Pakistan.

This may still happen. But Egyptians are not going down without a fight.

The ongoing riots aren't just a rejection of Morsi's theocractic thuggery. They're a reaction to a dire vision of a future that's been decades in the making. It's doubtful that a President and parliament absolutely committed to economic reform and a secular democratic civil society could ever pull his countrymen out of the grave the country's rulers have dug for themselves. Hunger and never-ending violence on the scale of Somalia are pretty much the only sure things people have to look forward to... and the Muslim Brotherhood are going to have to wear this failure....More >>

Who Is Stupid Enough to Visit Egypt Now?

November 2nd, 2012

Egypt's tourism industry has been in the toilet since before the overthrow of Mubarak was accomplished. It's actually a miracle of Egyptian public relations that previous Islamist terror attacks on tourists didn't keep visitors away long before that.

Now that Islamists are again openly discussing the benefits of kidnapping Western tourists, and after so many well-publicized attacks involving hundreds of Egyptian men against female foreigners... who the hell were these British tourists that Al Qaeda fanatics were planning to kill? People are still vacationing in Egypt?

How does that even happen?

EMMA. "You know where I'd like to go for vacation?

BASIL. "Where, my dear?"

EMMA. "Egypt."

BASIL. "Hmmm. I don't know about that. I think I heard something from someone, sometime recently about something being a bit off in that part of the world. Didn't they just have a revolution or something?"

EMMA. "Yes, and the people in charge of the country now are even worse scoundrels than that old Mubarak chap. But forget about that: look at these air ticket deals, my dear. And this itinerary!"

BASIL. "Oh my. For just $300 per person, you could be gang-raped and possibly murdered in Tahrir Square and I could...More >>

Who Is In Charge In Egypt?

June 24th, 2012

They've now got a relentlessly-moving-forward Muslim Brotherhood President and an immovable military ruling council.

Your guess is as good as mine as to what happens next. But we can at least say that the next stage in Egypt's political future is not a liberal Western-style democracy.

Viva la revolucion!More >>

Islamists In Egypt Want Right to Screw Their Dead Wives

April 25th, 2012

Newly-empowered Islamist lawmakers in Egypt understand the pressing needs of their nation.

Tourism has fallen off a cliff. The economy is in the toilet. Copts are under siege. The Sinai desert has turned into a lawless frontier filled with arms smugglers and terrorists.

Clearly, what all men need in these troubled times is a stress-relieving roll in the hay with their recently-deceased wives.

DOCTOR. I'm sorry, sir. Your wife has passed. Would you like a moment?

BEREAVED MAN. Yes. Please. Lock the door on your way out. Oh, one last thing. Have you got a condom?More >>

Eighty Lashes for Getting Naked On Your Blog

November 18th, 2011

An Egyptian couple who posted naked photos of themselves on their blog to test whether the revolution has opened up freedom of expression are likely about to face some pretty naked repression. The mob is already howling for them to be punished according to sharia, or the Islamic law that is entrenched in Egypt's constitution.

Mahdy identified herself in a Tweet, following widespread speculation about her identify. Her intention in publishing the nude photos was to “call attention to a violent society, racism, sexism, sexual harassment and hypocrisy” wrote the young Egyptian woman. She has described herself as a “secular, liberated, vegetarian, and individualist Egyptian.” She has participated in the past in Facebook initiatives that demanded that Muslim men wear veils, much as Muslim women do all over the world. The effort distributed photographs of Muslim men wearing veils, rather than appearing nude.

The ones leading the charge for these bloggers to get lashed for "insulting Islam" aren't imams leading fiery sermons. No, these are the lawyers.More >>