We’ve lived so long under the spell of hierarchy—from god-kings to feudal lords to party bosses—that only recently have we awakened to see not only that “regular” citizens have the capacity for self-governance, but that without their engagement our huge global crises cannot be addressed. The changes needed for human society simply to survive, let alone thrive, are so profound that the only way we will move toward them is if we ourselves, regular citizens, feel meaningful ownership of solutions through direct engagement. Our problems are too big, interrelated, and pervasive to yield to directives from on high.
—Frances Moore Lappé, excerpt from Time for Progressives to Grow Up

Monday, March 21, 2011

War stalks revolution in Middle East

by Sreeram Chaulia from Asia Times Online. 

This astute author looks at the current situation in Bahrain from a historical perspective regarding counter-revolutions, and sees some ominous signs as suggested by the title.
Historically, there is a strong sequential correlation between revolution and inter-state war. Radical overhaul of a country's socio-economic or political system rarely remains confined to that state and often triggers a wider regional or international conflagration. This is because revolution is a volcanic phenomenon that knows no artificial borders. If ideas cannot be imprisoned the way bodies can, then revolution is the most exhilarating or pernicious idea, depending on where one stands.
Read also this article from Ahram Online entitled, "Middle East boils with Libya strikes, Yemen on brink".
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