The Egyptian Puzzle Box

[Geee]

Human Events:




It’s not easy for average Americans to sort out their feelings about the crisis in Egypt. Our reflexive response was one of sympathy for peaceful protesters standing up to a dictator, and calling for an end to three decades of repressive rule. To modify a popular Hollywood catch phrase, they had us at “democratic revolution.”

The heartbreaking poverty of Egypt’s underclass touched the deep compassion which illuminates the American spirit. We are the greatest humanitarian nation in the history of mankind. We cannot easily accept the notion of sending billions in foreign aid to a nation where the rulers live in palaces, while the streets are clogged with people who survive on two dollars a day.

By now, most of us have heard of the Muslim Brotherhood, and dismissed assorted media and official efforts to whitewash their record. Keeping Egypt out of their hands is essential, for its strategic importance cannot be overstated. Something like eight percent of the world’s shipping passes through the Suez Canal, which U.S. warships are reportedly moving into position to protect. Israel’s long-standing peace treaty with Egypt is a frayed thread holding the Middle East above an abyss of slaughter and darkness. The Coptic Christian minority in Egypt could be devoured in an Islamist takeover.


Egypt’s well-educated moderate Muslim community is a treasure that civilization cannot afford to lose. After a horrific suicide bombing killed 23 people at the great cathedral in Alexandria, thousands of Muslims volunteered themselves as human shields for the Coptic Christmas services. The eyes of America are riveted on Egypt because we know that hope grows there. We want to see more of the future we glimpsed in Alexandria.