What exactly is going on in Egypt and what repercussions ?

[ksl]

[JR8]

Hi KSL,

Thanks for a thought provoking reply. Yes I am familiar with the Mann/Thatcher secret mission (that apparently everyone knew about).

To be honest, the whole thing is so opaque in Libya. Your update re: the diplomat and 'A-Team' of SAS apparently going in at night by chopper, tooled up with guns and explosives and all dressed in black!? FUBAR eh.

The situation is in such flux, and to a large extent beyond me, there is little point me pontificating on it further right now.

TTFN

[ksl]

[quote="JR8"]Hi KSL,

[tyianchang]

[quote="ksl"]opportunistic moment maybe, or maybe the guy that committed suicide was actually on a suicide mission.

This reminds me of how the protests against the Vietnam war in the USA, UK and France started. I remember seeing pictures of monks pouring petrol and setting themsleves alight. It was horrendous.

But I agree with you that the war in Libya seems too complex for us to grasp. Just that people are suffering and being bombarded until it stops.

A point I'd like to share is whether the protest above could be French influenced, as Tunisia has close ties with the French. The French historian, Foucault, stated " What people think of as the permanent truths of human nature and society actually change throughout the course of history. " He sees history as " underlayers of suppressed and unconscious knowledge... which on the surface, depict the codes and assumptions of order that contain the structures of exclusion ..." In other words, the underdogs always rise up with the mob to reverse the status quo to the polar opposite. Foucault sees this cycle as an unavoidable shifting of patterns in the study of post modernist history.

As many of the protesters seem well educated, it's possible that they have mobilized the protests and the fact that it's leaderless might suggest the proetsts to have stemmed from a real desire to want changes, esp when people have been slammed into jails and tortured for political activities. Which makes the current struggles very real.

The best outsiders can do is to call for an armistice and set up peace talks to allow the opposing parties to negotiate. The war in Libya does have spiralling effects on the world's global economy; but any form of interference should be just and fair to both sides and should be based on the non-negotiable insistence foran instant end to fighting and peace talks to begin. That's how I always envisage what the UN's role is.

As a side track, isnt it the case that the ME is running short of oil anyway? Is the scarcity of oil the real trouble?
It'd be a good idea that everyone uses a bicycle instead of a car, as a way of protest against the scramble for oil.

[ksl]

Time for bed

Libya seems too complex for us to grasp. Just that people are suffering and being bombarded until it stops.

Those with investments should really keep an eye open. Yemen news is that Al Qaeda killed 6 soldiers. 23 million population and 40% are armed. It will escalate.

There is an exodus to Italy of Libyans, like Gaddafi warned, they will get to Europe 6000 are being held in Italy and Italy don't want them.

[tyianchang]

Time for bed

Libya seems too complex for us to grasp. Just that people are suffering and being bombarded until it stops.

Those with investments should really keep an eye open. Yemen news is that Al Qaeda killed 6 soldiers. 23 million population and 40% are armed. It will escalate.

There is an exodus to Italy of Libyans, like Gaddafi warned, they will get to Europe 6000 are being held in Italy and Italy don't want them.

I was born post war but I can imagine how horrendously awful it'd be to live in wartime conditions. In the present economic downturn, no country would be able to sustain the influx of more refugees. There's an imminent danger of being outnumbered too.
Armed warfare sounds ghastly. Which countries are supplying all these arms? They should stop manufacturing armaments.
I read that oil's drying up in many parts of the ME- is this one reason there's so much strife to control the oil wells? It'd do the ME countries well to look into alternative ways of raising produce and incomes.

[ksl]

[JR8]

Reminds me of Gordon Brown's ego and his bitter-in-defeat scorched earth policy before he was finally unceremoniously booted out.

Unhinged from reality.

[ksl]

Reminds me of Gordon Brown's ego and his bitter-in-defeat scorched earth policy before he was finally unceremoniously booted out.

Unhinged from reality.

Yes it does appear that he's not a full shilling!

[JR8]

Reminds me of Gordon Brown's ego and his bitter-in-defeat scorched earth policy before he was finally unceremoniously booted out.

Unhinged from reality.

Yes it does appear that he's not a full shilling!

Was it the mini-skirted Presidential Guard, or the fact that he slept in his own personal tent whilst on foreign visits that alerted you to this?

[ksl]

Reminds me of Gordon Brown's ego and his bitter-in-defeat scorched earth policy before he was finally unceremoniously booted out.

Unhinged from reality.

Yes it does appear that he's not a full shilling!

Was it the mini-skirted Presidential Guard, or the fact that he slept in his own personal tent whilst on foreign visits that alerted you to this?

[tyianchang]

I've lost the drift but it doesn't matter.
My 8 years old granddaughter is doing a project on Ghandi at school. Don't think we've got more civilised with all that development post WW2.
Are you really in Benghazi, ksl? Take good care.

[ksl]

Are you really in Benghazi, ksl? Take good care.

Not in Benghazi! I have some local contacts there!

[tyianchang]

Are you really in Benghazi, ksl? Take good care.

Not in Benghazi! I have some local contacts there!

In retrospect, if C. Ghadafi was pointed out by his army officer as the one responsible for the Lockerbie bomber when about 260 + innocent passengers lost their lives, why isn't there a summons for him to stand trial in the supreme court?
The current civil war in Libya is tragic and no outsiders should interfere, except for putting an end to the fighting and getting both sides to the table. As long as they're fighting, Libyans can't live a normal life and childhood get so disrupted, it's tragic. Amazing how the tragedy is so unstoppable, one wants to say. "Freeze!"
Mahatma Ghandi's way to fight for freedom is through passive resistence. That way is the best as it's non-violent.

[sundaymorningstaple]

You forget that it ended rather violently.