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Hooray! Mubarak to concede power to his vice president, who has said that Egypt isn't ready for democracy, effectively deflating the protesters' demands while c

by benwerd 16y ago

Hooray! Mubarak to concede power to his vice president, who has said that Egypt isn't ready for democracy, effectively deflating the protesters' demands while changing pretty much nothing, and leaving the door open to come down harshly on dissenters once the eyes of the world have moved elsewhere. That's great! Seriously, this strikes me as propaganda of the worst kind. All of us here are in the business of making things better - the promise of the web is all about democratization and equalizing hierarchies. What can we do to help, both here and elsewhere?

barrkel 16y ago
Odd feature of Egypt constitution, as far as I'm aware: if the president resigns, power falls to the speaker of the parliament, not the vice president. E.g.: http://www.eipr.org/en/pressrelease/2011/02/05/1091 http://www.eipr.org/en/pressrelease/2011/02/05/1091
- learner4life 16y ago
  Remember though, the country is in a state of emergency (As it has been for the last 30 years). I am not sure those rules apply in a state of emergency.
- afterburner 16y ago
  I think in Egypt what happens is largely a matter of what the army lets happen.
Unseelie 16y ago
To help: Education. We're sitting on the best tool for disseminating information ever created, and things get better when people are educated. If they can do math, they can better run businesses. If they know history, they know politics. If they are taught marketing, they understand propaganda. The best way anyone in the world can help make the world a better place is by providing education to as many people as possible.
ugh 16y ago
You are assuming that the current Egyptian leadership is a single actor, executing a single plan. You are assuming that all the interests are aligned, even after all the pressure, the cracks, the jumbling. Considering the situation in Egypt, that doesn’t seem to be the case. This is far from over.

by benwerd 16y ago

barrkel 16y ago

Odd feature of Egypt constitution, as far as I'm aware: if the president resigns, power falls to the speaker of the parliament, not the vice president. E.g.: http://www.eipr.org/en/pressrelease/2011/02/05/1091 http://www.eipr.org/en/pressrelease/2011/02/05/1091

learner4life 16y ago
Remember though, the country is in a state of emergency (As it has been for the last 30 years). I am not sure those rules apply in a state of emergency.
afterburner 16y ago
I think in Egypt what happens is largely a matter of what the army lets happen.

Unseelie 16y ago

To help: Education. We're sitting on the best tool for disseminating information ever created, and things get better when people are educated. If they can do math, they can better run businesses. If they know history, they know politics. If they are taught marketing, they understand propaganda. The best way anyone in the world can help make the world a better place is by providing education to as many people as possible.

ugh 16y ago

You are assuming that the current Egyptian leadership is a single actor, executing a single plan. You are assuming that all the interests are aligned, even after all the pressure, the cracks, the jumbling. Considering the situation in Egypt, that doesn’t seem to be the case. This is far from over.