If you've paid even the slightest of attentions to the news of ongoing protests in the Middle-Eastern and North-African countries, you must have heard at one time or another the newscaster saying, " ... protesters gathered on this day at so and so square ...". As i followed the TV coverage of these protests from Tunisia to Egypt to Libya and now to Bahrain even, it seems in all these countries there has been a "square" where protesters have been gathering: Liberation Square in Cairo - Egypt, Green Square in Tripoli - Libya, The Tree Square in Benghazi - Libya. I just had to find out for myself what is it about these squares really?
Well, guess what, these are not really squares. I mean at each one of these places there is actually a roundabout in the very middle. Yes, the roundabouts where a bunch of roads meet and the traffic can change directions without stopping. The traffic management system before the advent of the traffic lights - those roundabouts. Its just that the structures that surround the roundabout at each one of these locations give the place an appearance of a square.
Now that i know the real names of these "squares", a part of me wishes that during all the media coverage these places were referred to with their original Arabic names, and here is why:
1. Liberation Square, Cairo, Egypt is actually Maidan e' Tahrir. Maidan means ground/large open space and Tahrir means freedom or liberation.
2. Green Square, Tripoli, Libya is actually Maidan al Shohdaa. Shohdaa means martyr.
3. Tree Square, Benghazi, Libya is actually Maidan al Shajara. Shajara means tree. Yeah, there is a tree in the middle of the roundabout.
4. Pearl Monument, Manama, Bahrain is actually Dawar al-lu'lu'. Dawar meaning roundabout and al-lu'lu' means pearls. Yes, even the Pearl Monument is located in the middle of a roundabout.
A Roundabout - sounds like an appropriate enough metaphor for the events that are unfolding. An entire people are about to make their respective countries change direction, their fortunes change course, their futures change for the better and that too without so much as stopping for a breath. The situation might appear to be chaotic but, if the drivers are attentive they can negotiate all the traffic around the roundabout, and once the vehicle hits its road, its off to its destination. The same shall happen in these countries too - the people have chosen the path they wish to take, and now all that remains is for them to negotiate the prevailing chaos with the deftness of a driver in a busy roundabout and off they will go. Makes me wonder though - what if all these roundabouts had been replaced with traffic lights!
Viva la Revolution, Viva la Roundabouts.
Showing posts with label Viva la Revolution. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Viva la Revolution. Show all posts
Friday, February 25, 2011
Monday, February 21, 2011
30th - The Parallel of Strife
If there is one other aspect that is common to the strife that already is, or will soon be, tearing at many nations around the world, it is that almost all of them lie at/around 30°0′N - the northern 30th parallel. Lets go east from 0°0′E - Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, Jordan, Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, and Pakistan, all of them lie on the 30th parallel.
In some countries such as Tunisia, Egypt and Libya the uprisings by the masses have been self-organizing, and in some others such as Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan such mass movements might be in the making due to years of deliberate (and may be uncalled for) external influences which led to years of war.
Some of the other countries that the 30th parallel passes through are Morocco, Israel, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, India, Nepal, China, and Japan. On the face of it these countries might seem peaceful, but even most of these countries are facing social unrest in their own right, albeit to a lesser (or rather, lesser known) extent. Israel, and its conflict with Arabs, can easily be thought of as central to almost any conflict in the middle-east and to any lasting solution to peace as well. Saudi Arabian regime has a track record that is none-too-dissimilar from its counterparts in the middle-east and elsewhere when it comes to violations of basic human rights and dignity. In India the separatists, mostly belonging to the tribes who have lost out on the "benefits" of liberalization and are missing out on high rate of growth, are seeking statehood so they can govern themselves and theirs better. Nepal, inspite of doing away with monarchy a few years back has still not been able to form a stable government due to its failure to appease the maoists. China it seems is already trying to suppress the news from other movements and revolutions around the world from reaching its populace.
Now going across the Pacific into the Americas - the 30th passes through Mexico as well as the US. Over last couple of years Mexico has seen (and continues to see) numerous killings due to infighting among drug cartels and their ceaseless tussle with the state. In the US the political temperatures are at an all time high - the Democrats and the Republicans have been at each others throats since President Obama assumed the office of the president, and it seems it is only going to get worse, and not in the least due to an ill-advised move of a Republican Governor to take away his state's unions' right to collectively bargain.
It seems the 30th parallel is going to be the new Doldrums, Doldrums of societal upheaval and political change that is, only a few degrees north of their geographical counterparts.
Viva la Revolution, and History and Geography.
View Larger Map
In some countries such as Tunisia, Egypt and Libya the uprisings by the masses have been self-organizing, and in some others such as Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan such mass movements might be in the making due to years of deliberate (and may be uncalled for) external influences which led to years of war.
Some of the other countries that the 30th parallel passes through are Morocco, Israel, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, India, Nepal, China, and Japan. On the face of it these countries might seem peaceful, but even most of these countries are facing social unrest in their own right, albeit to a lesser (or rather, lesser known) extent. Israel, and its conflict with Arabs, can easily be thought of as central to almost any conflict in the middle-east and to any lasting solution to peace as well. Saudi Arabian regime has a track record that is none-too-dissimilar from its counterparts in the middle-east and elsewhere when it comes to violations of basic human rights and dignity. In India the separatists, mostly belonging to the tribes who have lost out on the "benefits" of liberalization and are missing out on high rate of growth, are seeking statehood so they can govern themselves and theirs better. Nepal, inspite of doing away with monarchy a few years back has still not been able to form a stable government due to its failure to appease the maoists. China it seems is already trying to suppress the news from other movements and revolutions around the world from reaching its populace.
Now going across the Pacific into the Americas - the 30th passes through Mexico as well as the US. Over last couple of years Mexico has seen (and continues to see) numerous killings due to infighting among drug cartels and their ceaseless tussle with the state. In the US the political temperatures are at an all time high - the Democrats and the Republicans have been at each others throats since President Obama assumed the office of the president, and it seems it is only going to get worse, and not in the least due to an ill-advised move of a Republican Governor to take away his state's unions' right to collectively bargain.
It seems the 30th parallel is going to be the new Doldrums, Doldrums of societal upheaval and political change that is, only a few degrees north of their geographical counterparts.
Viva la Revolution, and History and Geography.
View Larger Map
Sunday, January 30, 2011
Viva la Revolution - My Musings
The recent movements in Tunisia and Egypt got me thinking about things revolution.
Revolutions are just like hitting Ctrl+Alt+Del on your computer in an effort to get rid of some processes that have run amok. The smarter the user is, the better he/she will be able to decide as to which process and which process tree needs to be gotten rid of, and how - the user can chose either to 'end a process' or 'restart' a system. The decision and the responsibility to make best use of this power to reset the system lies with the participant, be it by hitting Ctrl+Alt+Del on a computer, be it by voting to bring a change in a democratic setting, or be it by being part of a mass movement to overthrow an oppressive regime. Thus, it is crucial that the participating individual, the communities, the societies make every effort to not let a movement devolve into a mob-mentality. There will always be some nefarious elements who will try to seed perfidious ideas and channel the energies of the crowd down the wrong way. That is where individual responsibility comes in - everyone participating in a demonstration should be very vigilant, not just of safety of their person, but also of the safety of their cause and of their ideas - the fidelity of the cause(s) has to be maintained for any revolution to succeed.
Godspeed to our brothers and sisters in Egypt - Viva la Revolution.
We Shall Overcome:
Revolutions are just like hitting Ctrl+Alt+Del on your computer in an effort to get rid of some processes that have run amok. The smarter the user is, the better he/she will be able to decide as to which process and which process tree needs to be gotten rid of, and how - the user can chose either to 'end a process' or 'restart' a system. The decision and the responsibility to make best use of this power to reset the system lies with the participant, be it by hitting Ctrl+Alt+Del on a computer, be it by voting to bring a change in a democratic setting, or be it by being part of a mass movement to overthrow an oppressive regime. Thus, it is crucial that the participating individual, the communities, the societies make every effort to not let a movement devolve into a mob-mentality. There will always be some nefarious elements who will try to seed perfidious ideas and channel the energies of the crowd down the wrong way. That is where individual responsibility comes in - everyone participating in a demonstration should be very vigilant, not just of safety of their person, but also of the safety of their cause and of their ideas - the fidelity of the cause(s) has to be maintained for any revolution to succeed.
Godspeed to our brothers and sisters in Egypt - Viva la Revolution.
We Shall Overcome:
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