Why is Egypt still the lead story in the USA?

Gashog · 02-12-2011, 09:20 AM

Originally posted by techmulla

compared to Pakistan, the role of egyption army is quite commendable, if it was Pakistan, there would have been a martial administrator by now.

The army acted more as peace keepers this time. The only time I saw them draw guns was when Mubarak supporters threw a Molotov cocktail at a tank.
I am thinking CIA made some promises?

I am so glad it wasn't a repeat of what happened in Iran.

reeftool · 02-12-2011, 09:04 PM

I must say I had mixed feelings watching the crowds cheer and rejoice over Mubarak"s departure. While a corrupt tyrant is now gone, Egypt has essentially been a military dictatorship for the past half century and the military is still in control. The news reporter I was watching mentioned that the cabinet and parliment have been dissolved so has anything really changed?

**Ash** · 02-12-2011, 11:53 PM

There's yet more to do, and hopefully a democratically elected successor will resume the country's progress. For now, the news there in photos:

ABC News - Egypt protests in photos

lithos · 02-13-2011, 05:23 AM

I gotta say, it was bloody beautiful what happened in Egypt, and was rightfully the top headline around the world for the past few weeks.

It was a leaderless, populist revolution, which is about as democratic as it gets. It was pretty peaceful, as these things go, and coherent. Protesters were lining up voluntarily to be searched for weapons. And, before anyone else says otherwise, no, the Muslim Brotherhood didn't have much to do with it. They were more or less tagging along.

Everyone's now back in the Tahrir Square, cleaning up. Surreal or what?

**dadipentak** · 02-13-2011, 06:05 AM

Originally posted by mikemike

There have to be other stories out there of national interest but why won't the press move on?

Really! Let's get back to the "missing white girl" & "Oprah wears sandals" stories.

jolepp · 02-13-2011, 06:24 AM

Originally posted by lithos

...
Everyone's now back in the Tahrir Square, cleaning up. Surreal or what?

, hopefully events continue to unfold like that.

jogiba · 02-13-2011, 06:55 AM

Originally posted by mikemike

The press has been relentlesly banging this drum for about 2 weeks now. I have even had to turn off NPR yesterday and this morning because they spend about 30 minutes of every hour following the non-development of this story and overanalyzing the situation and it crowds out any other news. You would think the crowd of protesters were on the national mall with the amount of coverage this story has been getting. It has been receiving a similar level of intensity of coverage from other outlets like HP, NYT, and nightly news programs (which I generally don't watch because of the pharmaceutical commercials).

There have to be other stories out there of national interest but why won't the press move on?

You are looking for news on Egypt then complaing about it, you must be a conservative.
Justin Bieber has more hits than Egypt, 461,265,447 hits on this video alone.
[YT]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kffacxfA7G4[/YT]

Last edited by jogiba; 02-13-2011 at 07:05 AM.

ihasa · 02-13-2011, 10:15 AM

Originally posted by lithos

I gotta say, it was bloody beautiful what happened in Egypt, and was rightfully the top headline around the world for the past few weeks.

It was a leaderless, populist revolution, which is about as democratic as it gets. It was pretty peaceful, as these things go, and coherent. Protesters were lining up voluntarily to be searched for weapons. And, before anyone else says otherwise, no, the Muslim Brotherhood didn't have much to do with it. They were more or less tagging along.

Everyone's now back in the Tahrir Square, cleaning up. Surreal or what?

It's brilliant!

A section of the protesters are going to remain in vigil until the handover to civilian rule takes place.

A victory for people power and open media. Twitter, Facebook, Wikileaks and good old fashioned word of mouth activism, all there in the mix and making the world a better place.

**Ash** · 02-13-2011, 01:01 PM

I also consider it a victorious revolution when the world can get behind the people to defeat mandated governmental repression of the media and information through technology and spread the news around. Glad to see the country not have to undergo what a number of other African countries have, but I eagerly await a progressive leader to reestablish the country again.

**dadipentak** · 02-13-2011, 03:03 PM

The extent to which these events will lead to real democracy remains to be seen, of course.

GeneV · 02-14-2011, 05:15 AM

Originally posted by dadipentak

The extent to which these events will lead to real democracy remains to be seen, of course.

True, but there is a lot of distance between what they had and a real democracy. Things could be much better for them even short of a complete change.

sandilands · 02-14-2011, 07:52 AM

The press being the press need to foster controversy, fear, uncertainty and doubt just to survive. The Western coverage will continue until something with more FUD comes along.

Consider this ....

What would happen if 100,000 or even 20,000 people gathered on the Washington Mall and demanded the US President (pick any) resign immediately and leave the country?
What would we think if the President of Egypt publickly backed the protesters (after years of privately supporting the incumbent)?

Let's say the movement grew and 500,000 people joined the protesters.
1. would the President resign per Nixon?
2. would there be tanks on Pennsylvania Ave?
3. what could happen if the press were not there to follow the events?

I fear events would not be that different.

Gashog · 02-14-2011, 08:33 AM

I don't understand what you're trying to say.
I don't feel fear, uncertainty, doubt. This is good news.
I think if there were a popular uprising in the US, the president would resign, yes.
I would be surprised if some world leaders did not jump on their band wagons. We would not hear about it though.
I think there would definitely be tanks, yes.
News would get out just like it did in Egypt.... Twitter.

I agree that events would not be that different. Maybe more police brutality and a lot more shooting.
I don't think that any of this is something to fear though.

Parallax · 02-14-2011, 10:03 AM

Originally posted by lithos

....And, before anyone else says otherwise, no, the Muslim Brotherhood didn't have much to do with it. They were more or less tagging along.

Good point. I haven't followed this as closely as some, but it seems that religion, has virtually no role in what's going on.

**Ash** · 02-14-2011, 12:49 PM

Originally posted by Parallax

Good point. I haven't followed this as closely as some, but it seems that religion, has virtually no role in what's going on.

You'd only have to live and work in Egypt for a couple of years to see what motivated the mass action. A pseudo-leader come dictator, deplorable conditions only worsening for the Egyptians, inspiration from the Tunisians - all enough to get them going...

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02-12-2011, 09:20 AM	#16
Gashog Veteran Member Join Date: Apr 2010 Location: NY Photos: Albums Posts: 523	Originally posted by techmulla compared to Pakistan, the role of egyption army is quite commendable, if it was Pakistan, there would have been a martial administrator by now. The army acted more as peace keepers this time. The only time I saw them draw guns was when Mubarak supporters threw a Molotov cocktail at a tank. I am thinking CIA made some promises? I am so glad it wasn't a repeat of what happened in Iran.

02-12-2011, 09:04 PM	#17
reeftool Pentaxian Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Upstate New York Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 9,554	I must say I had mixed feelings watching the crowds cheer and rejoice over Mubarak"s departure. While a corrupt tyrant is now gone, Egypt has essentially been a military dictatorship for the past half century and the military is still in control. The news reporter I was watching mentioned that the cabinet and parliment have been dissolved so has anything really changed?

02-12-2011, 11:53 PM	#18
Ash Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Toowoomba, Queensland Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 23,920	There's yet more to do, and hopefully a democratically elected successor will resume the country's progress. For now, the news there in photos: ABC News - Egypt protests in photos

02-13-2011, 05:23 AM	#19
lithos Inactive Account Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Brisbane, QLD, AUS Posts: 3,261	I gotta say, it was bloody beautiful what happened in Egypt, and was rightfully the top headline around the world for the past few weeks. It was a leaderless, populist revolution, which is about as democratic as it gets. It was pretty peaceful, as these things go, and coherent. Protesters were lining up voluntarily to be searched for weapons. And, before anyone else says otherwise, no, the Muslim Brotherhood didn't have much to do with it. They were more or less tagging along. Everyone's now back in the Tahrir Square, cleaning up. Surreal or what?

02-13-2011, 06:05 AM	#20
dadipentak Site Supporter Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Baltimore, Maryland Photos: Gallery Posts: 11,590	Originally posted by mikemike There have to be other stories out there of national interest but why won't the press move on? Really! Let's get back to the "missing white girl" & "Oprah wears sandals" stories.

02-13-2011, 06:24 AM	#21
jolepp Veteran Member Join Date: Oct 2010 Location: Finland Photos: Albums Posts: 3,196	Originally posted by lithos ... Everyone's now back in the Tahrir Square, cleaning up. Surreal or what? , hopefully events continue to unfold like that.

02-13-2011, 06:55 AM	#22
jogiba Banned Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Millstone,NJ Posts: 6,491	Originally posted by mikemike The press has been relentlesly banging this drum for about 2 weeks now. I have even had to turn off NPR yesterday and this morning because they spend about 30 minutes of every hour following the non-development of this story and overanalyzing the situation and it crowds out any other news. You would think the crowd of protesters were on the national mall with the amount of coverage this story has been getting. It has been receiving a similar level of intensity of coverage from other outlets like HP, NYT, and nightly news programs (which I generally don't watch because of the pharmaceutical commercials). There have to be other stories out there of national interest but why won't the press move on? You are looking for news on Egypt then complaing about it, you must be a conservative. Justin Bieber has more hits than Egypt, 461,265,447 hits on this video alone. [YT]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kffacxfA7G4[/YT] Last edited by jogiba; 02-13-2011 at 07:05 AM.

02-13-2011, 10:15 AM	#23
ihasa Veteran Member Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: West Midlands Photos: Gallery Posts: 2,066	Originally posted by lithos I gotta say, it was bloody beautiful what happened in Egypt, and was rightfully the top headline around the world for the past few weeks. It was a leaderless, populist revolution, which is about as democratic as it gets. It was pretty peaceful, as these things go, and coherent. Protesters were lining up voluntarily to be searched for weapons. And, before anyone else says otherwise, no, the Muslim Brotherhood didn't have much to do with it. They were more or less tagging along. Everyone's now back in the Tahrir Square, cleaning up. Surreal or what? It's brilliant! A section of the protesters are going to remain in vigil until the handover to civilian rule takes place. A victory for people power and open media. Twitter, Facebook, Wikileaks and good old fashioned word of mouth activism, all there in the mix and making the world a better place.

02-13-2011, 01:01 PM	#24
Ash Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Toowoomba, Queensland Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 23,920	I also consider it a victorious revolution when the world can get behind the people to defeat mandated governmental repression of the media and information through technology and spread the news around. Glad to see the country not have to undergo what a number of other African countries have, but I eagerly await a progressive leader to reestablish the country again.

02-13-2011, 03:03 PM	#25
dadipentak Site Supporter Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Baltimore, Maryland Photos: Gallery Posts: 11,590	The extent to which these events will lead to real democracy remains to be seen, of course.

02-14-2011, 05:15 AM	#26
GeneV Veteran Member Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Albuquerque NM Photos: Albums Posts: 9,830	Originally posted by dadipentak The extent to which these events will lead to real democracy remains to be seen, of course. True, but there is a lot of distance between what they had and a real democracy. Things could be much better for them even short of a complete change.

02-14-2011, 07:52 AM	#27
sandilands Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: Lewiston, NY Posts: 108	The press being the press need to foster controversy, fear, uncertainty and doubt just to survive. The Western coverage will continue until something with more FUD comes along. Consider this .... What would happen if 100,000 or even 20,000 people gathered on the Washington Mall and demanded the US President (pick any) resign immediately and leave the country? What would we think if the President of Egypt publickly backed the protesters (after years of privately supporting the incumbent)? Let's say the movement grew and 500,000 people joined the protesters. 1. would the President resign per Nixon? 2. would there be tanks on Pennsylvania Ave? 3. what could happen if the press were not there to follow the events? I fear events would not be that different.

02-14-2011, 08:33 AM	#28
Gashog Veteran Member Join Date: Apr 2010 Location: NY Photos: Albums Posts: 523	I don't understand what you're trying to say. I don't feel fear, uncertainty, doubt. This is good news. I think if there were a popular uprising in the US, the president would resign, yes. I would be surprised if some world leaders did not jump on their band wagons. We would not hear about it though. I think there would definitely be tanks, yes. News would get out just like it did in Egypt.... Twitter. I agree that events would not be that different. Maybe more police brutality and a lot more shooting. I don't think that any of this is something to fear though.

02-14-2011, 10:03 AM	#29
Parallax Senior Moderator Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: South Dakota Photos: Gallery Posts: 19,332	Originally posted by lithos ....And, before anyone else says otherwise, no, the Muslim Brotherhood didn't have much to do with it. They were more or less tagging along. Good point. I haven't followed this as closely as some, but it seems that religion, has virtually no role in what's going on.

02-14-2011, 12:49 PM	#30
Ash Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Toowoomba, Queensland Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 23,920	Originally posted by Parallax Good point. I haven't followed this as closely as some, but it seems that religion, has virtually no role in what's going on. You'd only have to live and work in Egypt for a couple of years to see what motivated the mass action. A pseudo-leader come dictator, deplorable conditions only worsening for the Egyptians, inspiration from the Tunisians - all enough to get them going...