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The White House and Egypt


Chef Jim

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I haven't really heard anything from the administration regarding what's going on in Egypt and elsewhere in the region. I'm not sure what's to be said but shouldn't we be hearing something or have I just missed it?

 

You've just missed it. There's been about four statements released, vaguely reminiscent of Kevin Bacon at the end of Animal House ("Remain calm! All is well!")

 

But when you get down to it, Kevin Bacon impressions are about all any administration can do in this situation.

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I haven't really heard anything from the administration regarding what's going on in Egypt and elsewhere in the region. I'm not sure what's to be said but shouldn't we be hearing something or have I just missed it?

 

 

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You've just missed it. There's been about four statements released, vaguely reminiscent of Kevin Bacon at the end of Animal House ("Remain calm! All is well!")

 

But when you get down to it, Kevin Bacon impressions are about all any administration can do in this situation.

 

Thanks. I've been busy getting caught back up at work after being our for a week.

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But when you get down to it, Kevin Bacon impressions are about all any administration can do in this situation.

I'm no foreign policy wonk, but I've listened to enough discussions in the past couple of days to understand how true this statement is. It was easy at first to see people in the streets screaming for democracy and thinking "Hell, yeah! This is great!" But the more you pay attention, the more you start to realize this will probably get much worse before it gets any better. It doesn't end when Mubarak leaves.

 

More to the point, the more I learn, the more you can understand the administration's public position on all of this, even as it changes from day to day.

 

We talked last night to my mother-in-law, who lives about an hour outside Cairo, and the local rumors she's hearing are scaring the living crap out of her.

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I'm no foreign policy wonk, but I've listened to enough discussions in the past couple of days to understand how true this statement is. It was easy at first to see people in the streets screaming for democracy and thinking "Hell, yeah! This is great!" But the more you pay attention, the more you start to realize this will probably get much worse before it gets any better. It doesn't end when Mubarak leaves.

 

More to the point, the more I learn, the more you can understand the administration's public position on all of this, even as it changes from day to day.

 

We talked last night to my mother-in-law, who lives about an hour outside Cairo, and the local rumors she's hearing are scaring the living crap out of her.

 

Ok spill it. What is she hearing?

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Ok spill it. What is she hearing?

The more realistic stuff that has her worried includes power and water being cut off today or tomorrow. More ridiculous is a growing concern Mubarak will, for some reason, release some 8000 of the worst prisoners to the streets. Knowing my MIL, it's also possible she just finished watching "Demolition Man" before we called. Regardless, she's pretty scared. Tanks continuously rolling through the village don't help.

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Awww, dammit...did Brendan Fraizer and Rachel Weiss bring Arnold Vosloo out of the desert again???

 

I know I'm supposed to have at least a slight clue as to what you might be talking about but unfortunately (or is that fortunately) I have no idea. :unsure:

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There really isn't much you can do, Mubarek has been a strong ally for the west but on the other hand he is an oppressive dictator. The best we could possibly do is just keep our mouths shut, monitor what's going on and if it looks like some radical is about to get control (which I doubt, most likely it will be Mohammed El Baredei, the ex UN chief nuclear negotiator with Iran), then you take him out :devil: .

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I know I'm supposed to have at least a slight clue as to what you might be talking about but unfortunately (or is that fortunately) I have no idea. :unsure:

 

The Mummy.

 

And probably "fortunately"...although it wasn't THAT bad a movie, really.

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It's Irm all over again. Get a weak ineffective uber-liberal president who wants to apologize and accede to every foreign nation and the extremists will take over. Sounds like this group that will gain power is very similar to the Ayatollahs.

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The Brendan Frazier flick was actually pretty good. But you can stick to your black-and-white movies there, Stuck. Bet you were real bummed when the "talkies" came out. :lol:

 

The best movie I saw all last year was the 1920 silent version Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde at the SF Symphony accompanied by this mother !@#$er.

 

But then again it was the only movie we went to see last year.

Edited by Chef Jim
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It's Irm all over again. Get a weak ineffective uber-liberal president who wants to apologize and accede to every foreign nation and the extremists will take over. Sounds like this group that will gain power is very similar to the Ayatollahs.

 

You're right, 30 years of rule by the same person while suppressing democratic representation has nothing to do with the situation; it's Obama's fault. <_<

 

If only Mubarak would give tax breaks to wealthy Egyptians, all the economic and unemployment problems the citizens are upset about would be solved.

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I find it interesting that the administration made no moves whatsoever until three days of street unrest proded DC into action. Now, all of a sudden, BO and company are dispensing wisdom and platitudes. Is Mubarak any more distasteful today than he was five years ago in terms of human rights, sharing political power, etc.?

 

Again, the US excels in developing basic foreign policy concepts using the wet-finger-in-the-breeze technique.

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