A Call for Mideast Progress

Excellent speech. The team of Hillary and Barack (or Barack and Hillary?) is the right team to move this forward, and the President did an excellent job of framing the issues and providing the solutions. He deftly pointed to Iran, Yemen and Bahrain, putting everyone on notice that fundamental and democratic change was not going to stop. Also, he reminded that Israel – in order to maintain its democratic heritage  – could not maintain dominance over another group. Mr. Obama let them all know that there is a peaceful and successful path. Great work!

Like George H.W. Bush and his team which handled the dissolution of the Soviet Union, Mr. Obama and his team are steering a very smart, steady and forward-looking path. From his speech in Cairo, to his subsequent actions, and to this speech and beyond, it is simply refreshing to hear a team speak about these things. These are momentous times, and we must tread carefully. This speech was a good start; now the team must successfully navigate some very tricky waters.

Iraq Restores Monument That Symbolized Hussein Era – NYTimes.com

I love this article (see below pictures) – partly because it shows that the Iraqi people finally have their country back, and can make their own decisions. More importantly, although quite scary, is that in the article a spokesman for Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki actually compares the Victory Arch in Baghdad to the Buddhist statues in Afghanistan and the Berlin Wall. He suggests that the Iraqi people are somehow “better” because they do not destroy their legacy. Interesting concept – did anyone suggest to the Germans that they ought to keep the Wall intact? Also, does anyone think that the Victory Arch in Baghdad equals in stature to the centuries-old Buddhist statues? Interesting….now that the Iraqis have their country back, what will they do? Apparently, they will not destroy their Hussein-era monuments. I suppose that is ok as long as they do not destroy their true legacy.

Iraq Restores Monument That Symbolized Hussein Era – NYTimes.com.

Modern, Moderate and Democratic?

The title of this post……it describes the ideal country, right? Modern infrastructure and economy. Moderate politics and foreign policy. Democratic institutions that help the people. In an interview with Anderson Cooper of CNN, the leader-in-waiting, Mohamed ElBaradei, proclaimed these to be his goals if he were to lead the country.

What a refreshing take on what is important to a country and what its leaders should fight to achieve. Is this Egypt today? Hardly. While Hosni Mubarak has brought security and limited economic progress, he has left a cesspool of discontent, economic malaise, and political upheaval in his wake.

For that reason, he must go. As of this writing, Mr. Mubarak seems to have received the message and does not plan on running for office again in September. Good riddance, say many in Egypt, but not fast enough. They want him gone now. On the other hand, there is a core group of constituents in Egypt which proclaims strong allegiance to Mr. Mubarak and will not be happy to see him go. Their voices have not been loudly heard, but expect to hear them shortly.

So will we see an Egypt which portrays ElBaradei’s hope? Will Egypt continue to remain a member of the list of stable countries throughout the world? Might this be another Iran? Might it be a Turkey? Do we really know?

We in the United States have a very particular vision of how this should evolve, and we likely share Mr. ElBaradei’s vision. However, are we ready for something that is different? Will we get a modern, moderate and democratic country?

What’s great about all of this? American political junkies now have a September 2011 election upon which to focus. Good practice for 2012!