Mubarak's Chaos Theory: Did It Backfire?
by Dominic Tierney
But in Egypt there’s been a role reversal. In the main, the protesters have shown restraint. The Atlantic’s Graeme Wood reported that Tahrir Square in Cairo “reminded me of Burning Man,” with children getting their faces painted, and protesters clearing up the trash.
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And then the regime hurled an army of thugs and camel cavalry against the protesters — Tiananmen Square meets Mad Max. One witness to the violence said: “Mubarak lit the world on fire.”
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It’s the revolutionaries who have the upper hand. But with power comes responsibility.
vruz: Dear Mr Tierney… have you ever heard of a man called Mahatma Ghandi?
Or at the very least, have you ever watched the (somewhat fictionalised, but still useful) biopic?
Is it possible that the only real world reference of a peaceful gathering you can get is from the (mostly upscale hipster) Burning Man(TM) retirement and yearly bacchanalia by Black Rock City, LLC.?
I appreciate pop culture references like Mad Max, but what insight do you think it adds when you refer to a “Mad Max Tiananmen Square”?
Are you implying that your disgust for diesel, dust and generally dirty environments is larger than, or somehow obscures your disgust for the loss of human lives?
Are Stan Lee and Peter Parker the only literary references you could find to support your urgent call for responsibility?
What makes you think people have not been responsible? They’ve been responsible of their own security without police watch, they’ve been responsible of their own rubbish collection, what is your call for responsibility exactly about? are you implying that these people can’t possibly be responsible because they don’t know power and that is something best left to someone else, who you might possibly approve for their responsibility credentials?
Is this the level of reporting / thought leadership / insight we are expected to get from The Atlantic?
Thoroughly disappointed.
