Some Thoughts About Recent Events

Except as was pointed out by Chris Martenson ... who though a bit of a conspiracy theorist in this article:

Egypt's Warning: Are You Listening?
Web Link

All the demographic trends in Egypt are trending downward. They are now not exporting any more oil, their water is running out, their population is rising still, and the people are feeling the brunt of that ... it is almost nothing to do with Democracy.

I quote the last paragraph of the article to point out that if we are not careful, and maybe even if we are, we may be facing the same thing:

``With abundant energy and food, we are treated to expansive and stable economies in which everyone stands a chance of gaining. Not that everyone will, mind you, but the possibility is there In an energy-constrained world, what was formerly possible is no longer do-able, things don't work right, and there seem to be persistent shortages of everything from growth, to money, to food, to goodwill. What used to work doesn't. It is at these points that the prior stresses and imbalances are most likely to snap and suddenly change the world.''

Egypt oil exports down? Is that a big deal (especially given that they are in the middle of a coup, hopefully leading to democracy?)

Egypt produces less than 650k barrels a day, ranking it about 30th in the world. By comparison, the US produces about 5,000,000 barrels a day, Saudi about 8m. (source: CIA)

But generally I agree with your point, Egypt is an upheaval about lack of economic opportunity: jobs, wages, fairness. While the fear boys on talk radio want it to be about Al Qaeda and Islam, in fact, the people in the street showed that AQ's violent methods and religious extremism aren't the solution.

May their God(s) bless them, and good luck to Egypt!

And may all leaders, tyrant or otherwise, ignore the economic well-being of their peoples, at their peril. As Paul notes, from PA to trains to state to nation to world.

Speaking of: John Boehner, it's getting on towards March, where is the jobs legislation for which you claim you were elected Speaker? How did that phrase go?

It's the economy, stu....

Anonymous, kind of pointless contradiction, especially when you go on to agree with me. follow the link to the article i posted and just look at the graphs of Egypt's predicament, and then get back to me some some more of your sarcastic disagree ment ... ah, before you decide to agree with me again! OK? ;-)

Anyway, if you are too unmotivated to click to the link and take a look, here is the executive summary:

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Population 1960: 27.8 million
Population 2008: 81.7 million
Current population growth rate: 2% per annum (a 35-year doubling rate)
Population in 2046 after another doubling: 164 million <<<<<<<<<<<

Rainfall average over whole country: ~ 2 inches per year
Highest rainfall region: Alexandria, 7.9 inches per year
Arable land (almost entirely in the Nile Valley): 3%
Arable land per capita: 0.04 Ha (400 m2)
Arable land per capita in 2043: 0.02 Ha
Food imports: 40% of requirements
Grain imports: 60% of requirements

Net oil exports: Began falling in 1997, went negative in 2007
Oil production peaked in 1996
Cost of oil rising steeply
Cost of oil and food tightly linked

Any country that has to import both oil and food is living on borrowed time. It was only a matter of time before something gave way, and apparently that time is now.

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This is a microcosm to one degree or another of the whole "exponential" human world.

Good grief. It doesn't remind me in even one tiny bit about the fall of the communist dictatorships. In that time, there were leaders who had read and understood principles of individual liberty and the protection thereof, principles of govts that work for protecting individual liberty, and there were people OF THE PEOPLE ready to step in and create their constitutions, their elections, their government.

This is much more like Iran...a groundswell of some university students in front with a military junta and an islamist population in the background. Iran turned into a military theocracy...worked out great, didn't it? It did not turn into a mob rule ( otherwise known as a "democracy" where 6 lions can outvote the 4 sheep on plans for dinner, then wonder why they are dying off after it is all gone). It did not turn into some style of protection for every individual regardless of gender, religion, race and sexual orientation.

I see Egypt heading the same way.

The "mob" is this

Web Link

and this

Web Link

Not to mention the many other journalists beaten and hidden away in cells until released.

This is not democracy, and the proof is in Carter now coming out in support of it. Remember, he owns the results in Iran..Geez