I spent a good chunk of July 4 at our local annual Jazz Fest, one of the true gems of Central New York culture. I heard local groups, an up-and-coming regional band, and I thrilled to the unbridled exuberance of the New Orleans Preservation Hall Jazz Band. Before the night was over, I was singing in full voice as the Doobie Brothers banged out their old standards with all the energy, vocal harmony, technical ability and raw talent they had in the 1970’s. And all I had to pay was $5 for a place to park. At dusk, the 15,000 of us sitting in lawn chairs and on blankets craned our necks skyward to watch and cheer a spectacular fireworks show. Oh, and I ate some really good barbecue. Not a bad way to celebrate the birthday of our nation.
During the cackle and color bursts of the fireworks show, I pondered how thankful I felt to be enjoying all that music with all those people in a country where experiences like this are not uncommon. Given the current news from overseas, it is not to be taken for granted that, despite our nation’s flaws and current troubles, we live in a stable, mature democracy and do not resort to mass demonstrations, military coups, and bloodletting in order to change leaders.
It’s pretty obvious that we’re not Syria, where a brutal dictator desperately clings to his waning power by butchering his own citizens as his nation crumbles into mutually destructive factions.
We’re not even Egypt, where peaceful protests two years ago resulted in the removal of a dictator and the rebirth of democracy. Today, the hope of the Arab Spring in this largest of the Middle Eastern nations is, well, fuzzy at best. A popularly elected President has been deposed because the same people who took to the streets demanding the end of the Mubarek regime were back again, saying they had made a mistake. They chanted their dissatisfaction with President Morsi as vehemently as they demanded Mubarek’s ouster. To quell the crowd, the military forcibly removed Morsi from power. He wasn’t even allowed to complete his term in office.
I’m not defending Morsi. When he was first elected, he gave signs of being a political pragmatist despite his affiliation with the Moslem Brotherhood. He pledged to honor the 35-year-old peace treaty with Israel. He seemed genuinely interested in an open society. But his tenure quickly disappointed Egyptians across the political spectrum. The young adults who are demanding true democracy and
So, a popularly elected President has been deposed by the military, primarily in response to a peaceful protest that is demanding a more open society. Is that as encouraging as it is confusing? I am hard-pressed to say that, in this case, the end justifies the means. The Egyptian populace has set a dangerous precedent for itself. If they don’t like the people they elect, all they have to do is make a lot of noise in Tahrir Square and the military will step in to meet their demands. This is not democracy, as subsequent rioting already reveals. On Friday, 30 Egyptians were killed and over 200 wounded as cities all over Egypt erupted in violent clashes between pro- and anti-Morsi factions. It’s difficult to tell how many casualties resulted from direct confrontations and how many were the result of army intervention. If Egyptians don’t find a way to start practicing democracy soon, I’m afraid they are in for a long period of destabilization that will jeopardize an already fragile economy. Economic calamity only produces more violence, not enlightened reform.
I’m grateful to live in a nation where transition happens at the voting booth instead of at gunpoint. I’m grateful that we have enough patience to allow our elected leaders to finish their terms of office – even if we don’t approve of the job they are doing – rather than demand their premature ouster. As frustrated as I am with the inertia caused by political polarization in Washington, I’m grateful that every political faction pledges allegiance to the same Constitution (even if to very different interpretations of it).
Today, Christians in Egypt are celebrating. The Morsi era has not been kind to them. While he publicly spoke of tolerance, he turned a blind eye to the persecution committed by extreme Islamists. I want to celebrate with my brothers and sisters in Egypt, but that seems grossly premature. In fact, there are late reports of Christian homes and churches in Southern Egypt being attacked and torched in retaliation for Morsi’s removal.
Those young people who were dancing in the streets earlier this week are striving for a free society where Moslems, Christians, and Jews will live in peace with one another, but the trail they are breaking to get there is fraught with peril.
Copyright 2013 by J. Mark Lawson
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