re: #85 marjoriemoon

I don’t have to tell you, because you’re well aware, but Egypt is still run under theocratic rule, so there’s a big difference between the U.S., communism and Islamic theocracy (maybe not so much those last two).

I think of the Arab countries along a line from “far left” to “far right”. The UAE is on the far left of the spectrum, but mainly because 80% of their citizens are ex-pats (least in Dubai). Then as you move to the right, you have Jordan, Egypt, what used to be the country of Lebanon (God help them) maybe Turkey closer to the middle and then Yemen, Somalia, Sudan, S.A. at the right side. So you have more moderate Arab states, for sure and yet, just how moderate if the people are revolting.

Exactly.

None of this can be easily reduced to a few catchphrases- way too many agendas, all of which place real democracy behind those agendas- and we haven’t even mentioned the sunni/shia/sects issues.

What is happening in the region now cannot be reduced to a few minutes of breathless coverage.