Every once in a while I waddle into a landmine-filled area…politics. I know some may say it has little to do with a personal solar blog, yet actually, since everything in this world is connected, in a way it does. Political stability leads to investment stability, whether for oil pipelines or solar farms. (You can bet that this kind of topic would not be dealt with in a corporate blog, yet its the freedom that I am blessed with in having this media to share with others).
Tonight I was inspired to try it again, with this story about the message of hope and peace and coexistence in the middle east.
Amr Khaled’s message is as clear as the thousands of Facebook pages that Egyptians setup to help promote their desired goal…democracy. It is the unalienable right of every person and society to effect change through its vote, its voice. When muted, it is only a matter of time before its voice is first found, and then heard. Egyptians have declared to the world that they do not wish to do “jihad” in the sense of the word that is destructive, yet a holy war on the establishment which would reduce it to adults without votes, unable to determine for themselves how their society worked.
Borders have proven, as they always do, to be useless in the waves that ensued in Jordan, Tunisia, Morocco and now Libya. Borders do not protect you from what is outside, they simply cage you. It has been proven time and again that those who chose to shoot messengers of openness and peace (Sadat and Rabin) will not win. They cannot mute the message of hope that hundreds of thousands of Egyptians insisted we all hear.
My mother today said something so well. She repeated a statement by a muslim leader who said that “jihad” need not be seen as bad. Well, I guess this visionary’s words are proof of that. We often live from a place of fear of what we don’t know and label it as “bad”. Perhaps this is simply further messaging of the good that comes from dropping fears and driving all from a place of love.
What are your thoughts about what is going on in the Middle East? How might we help them become full citizens of the world? Now that they are acquiring their rights, so too must come their responsibilities.
Sass
1 Comment
I am very hopeful that the revolutions we are witnessing (1776 redux) will bring a more stable and positive world politic. The model for these peoples is our own US Constitution (and those of other constitutional governments, e.g. Canada, England, etc.) and its predecessors (the Magna Carta, France’s Declaration of the Rights of Man…..).** I am however, always afraid and wary of the way in which religious fundamentalism can raise its head and cause a people to attempt to quash the rights of fellow citizens. Religious fervor and blindness is a real scourge. I am writing a piece on that – will post some day hopefully soon.
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** http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magna_Carta