Al Sisy for President

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clash, disappointment, discipline, Egypt, Egypt and the Egyptians, government beaurocracy, iron will, knight in shining armor, Marshall Al Sisy, MB, Military man, Morsi

I wonder how many Egyptians realize what that would mean for their way of life? How many Egyptians have really followed him closely enough to understand how this man thinks and what he has in mind for Egypt and the Egyptians? Most Egyptians are starry eyed, looking at him like he is our knight in shining armor who slayed the dragon (Morsi and his terrorists), to see him in any other light than the all-knowing, savior of the whole country. When they finally see the man for who he actually is, and understand the kind of man he is, how will they react?
Al Sisy has been very frank and above board in his dealings with the Egyptian people. He has not hidden that he is a man of deep thinking, an excellent strategist, a workaholic who gets things done on schedule. Egyptians have to understand how these traits would apply to them once he becomes President.
A military man to the core, he is not the type of person who would tolerate any slacking off or inefficiency. Witness how he licked the army into shape after it had become complacent over the past few decades. It took him a few months, less than a year to run a tight ship and get all areas within the armed forces into top shape. If civilians can ever conceive of the iron will and discipline that is needed to achieve such results in such a record time, they would sit up and take notice, and would have a slight glimmer of what is in store for them. In a military environment, with the ingrained discipline and obedience, such miracles can be wrought through iron wills and excellent management. But in a civilian environment, many a disappointment or a clash would ensue, if orders are not followed to the letter and promptly.
One of the very telling sentences that Marshall Al Sisy once said, but was never noted, let alone highlighted, is a very telling phrase where in response to a question of how he would handle things if ever he became President, he laughingly replied that if this happened, “nobody would sleep”. Meaning that everybody will be working day and night and there would be no slacking off or any excuses accepted for that.
Soft spoken, mild sounding, military men should strike terror in the hearts of slackers, but should be the hope of anyone hoping for a better future for Egypt. Al Sisy’s handling of the situation in Sinai should be an indication of things to come. When a group of the terrorists shot down a military plane killing its five personnel on board, his retaliation was swift and ruthless. As head of military intelligence he made sure he had the correct information then went out and flattened the camp, exterminating all the vermin there. This one incident should show Egyptians that this man means business.
The very lack of discipline or any kind of work ethic or sense of duty shown by a large number of government employees will get a very rude awakening once the new cabinet is formed, especially if it is headed by someone like Mohammed El Erian. This could cause dissatisfaction in a large faction and the beaurocracy for which the government is notorious has daunted many before him. Let us hope that he has the ability, patience and in certain cases the ruthlessness to deal swiftly and surgically with any attempts at disrupting growth and realignment of that beleaguered sector.
We are in for some very interesting times, with many looked for changes, that just might work, but that could just as well turn to be rather painful experiences to both the ruler and the ruled. My money is on Al Sisy proving to be as innovative as he has proven himself up till now, in his ability to surround himself with talented, industrious, patriotic people who can give him out of the box solutions for practically insurmountable problems. His choice of an excellent PR Team that has managed to portray his image as Egypt’s knight in shining armor, is an indicator that he knows how to pick his people. But that’s in the army, in civilian life he would probably be met by very frustrating constraints. I hope he has the patience and the wherewithal to deal with them and unravel the debacle Egypt has become. His initial popularity will give him the edge and a good grace period, but he has to show some sort of results pretty soon to keep the sorely tried populace in check. I think he could manage it, especially with the resources of the army at his disposal. I am hoping that the inevitable disappointment of the people would be somewhat tempered by some tangible progress in the economy and public services. These would go a long way towards reinstating him in the hearts of ordinary Egyptians.

Addiction – The Other Side

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Egypt and the Egyptians, MB, Salafis, support group

On the other hand there were some really positive addictions by the Egyptian people as a result of the 25 January 2011 revolution. Egyptians who were not consciously aware, became so, to the love they have for Egypt. What might be described as a wave of patriotism does not cover the depth and breadth of that emotion. Many an Egyptian, who in former years, repeated a joke at the expense of the country, has now become a staunch defender of Egypt and loudly attacks anyone who is foolish enough to criticize it. Ordinary people whose nose was constantly to the grind, trying to keep their heads above water and to barely survive, have now lifted their heads, are standing tall, lifting the flag and willing to die for Egypt. A ver famous saying that some attribute to the later Pope is: Egypt is not a country we live in, it is a country that lives inside us. So very true. Especially now, when, after a ling period of dormancy, a group awakening has taken place and the people are now aware of the extent of their love for Egypt.
Quite often one does not value a thing until they are about to, or actually lose it. This has been the case with Egypt and the Egyptians. It took the threat of losing the essence of the Egypt that we have known and loved, to have us rise in its defense and put our lives on the line to have it returned to us the way we knew and loved it. The one year under the rule of the terrorist organization of the Muslim Brotherhood, and their representative, Morsi, was enough to open the eyes of many an Egyptian. The desperate attempts on their part to “Brotherize” the country were a death knoll to their rule. Egyptians have been forever a peace-loving people, very moderate, easy-going people. People who love to have a good time, who love music and dancing, who appreciate poetry, painting and sculpture, who revere the arts and enjoy the. There is not a single social or religious occasion that does not have its own songs and its own music. Every small or large social occasion must have some kind of music to denote festivity. Then we get the Brotherhood and their cohorts the Salafis trying to prohibit music and dancing and the cinema as being frowned upon by religion. While the Islamic religion is totally innocent of such libel. It is their own narrow, warped interpretation, with no basis whatsoever in religion.
This joie de vivre which is an inherent quality of Egyptians was what motivated them to rise against a bigoted, dark ages mentality, that tried to impose its narrow-minded view of the world on a people who love life and enjoy living in the sun.
This addiction resulted in another. The getting together of like-minded people. People who have never met, or would have never met under normal circumstances, got together and became friends because of their unified goal. This has enriched many lives and has generated a positive energy that has been very beneficial to a large number of people. The inevitable bouts of depression and fear that take over periodically are now being easily battled by this strong support system that grew out of the closeness of individuals united in the love of a country.