"Well this is the world we live in, And these are the hands we're given
Use them and let's start trying, To make it a place worth living in" - Genesis
A couple of weeks ago Yvonne and I went to Jordan. The day after we got back, we read in the news that the King of Jordan had just "fired" his entire government to start over. This was right at the same time as the ongoing protests in Egypt. It was a strange feeling to see some of the political upheaval that was going on relatively close to where we live. The feelings were even stronger since we had just a day before been in a country that was now making drastic changes.
Earlier this week, I saw the map below showing counties that are facing protests, unrest, and revolutions. I decided that it is as good a time as any to fire this blog back up and share some of our experiences.
As you can see, the UAE is practially surrounded by countries that are in different stages of unrest. It is fascinating, sad, exciting, and confusing all at the same time. The media, politicians, and others all seem to offer differnt reasons for the unrest, and different possible outcomes. At times things are portrayed as black/white or good/bad, but I don't think that is the case. It is very complicated, and I would guess that each country/region would be difficult to really compare to the others.
One thing I feel comfortable about is that we are relatively safe in the UAE. This is an Arab country much like many of the others, BUT, the unique mixture of government, infrastructure, wealth, culture, and freedoms here make me believe that there is little chance of the type of protests that are happening around us. So, friends and family, do not worry. Athough we are surrounded by protests (see map below), we feel safe.
View Protests across the Middle East in a larger map
A few quesetions...
- When is it ok to rebel?
- When is it ok to fight against a rebellion?
- When is violence (killing) justified?
- What would I risk for my freedoms?
- Is it worth the risk to fight for more freedoms when the result might be chaos or loss of freedoms?
- It is ok to work with "bad" people who have "evil" intentions to accomplish what you feel is "good"?
- Is it possible to have long-lasting freedom(s) without democracy?
- Would I have courage to stand up?
