Trouble in Libya

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Created on Monday, 26 September 2011 15:17

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Opinion

By Jed Hackett

Since late last year, the Arab world has seen the fall of old regimes and the rise of new democratic governments.

These revolutions started in Tunisia, a country in Northern Africa, when a fruit vendor lit himself on fire in protest of rampant poverty and oppression. From this single act stemmed nine months of protests and three revolutions.

In the movie V for Vendetta the main character says that the people shouldn’t fear their government, but that their government should fear its people. That has proven true in the Arab nations. The people showed that they were tired of their oppressive governments, and in Tunisia, Egypt and now Libya. The governments of other Arab nations have shown that they fear their people. In Saudi Arabia, King Abdullah authorized $130 billion for the benefit of the people to prevent mass demonstrations against the Saudi Crown.

When Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak fell to the protesters, it was a symbol to the West that major change was brewing in the Middle East and Arab world. However, when former Colonel Muammar Gadhafi fled from Tripoli as National Transitional Council forces, the West saw it as a sign that a democratic revolution has truly started to take place in the Arab world.

But how does this affect the rest of the world, and how can the United States learn from Arab Spring?

With Gadhafi on the run, the Arab world seems to be changing for the better. It seems that the world can bring from this, a sense of security. The sense of security comes after one of the West’s thorns in its side has been neutralized, but what makes it better is that he was tossed out of power by his people, not a multinational coalition without a game plan.

The world can also feel at ease because friendly governments are taking the reins to revitalize this troubled region.

But what can the United States take away from this; a lesson in cooperation. The protesters in each country came together despite different religious beliefs, political associations, and ethnic backgrounds to better their countries.

If these rebels and protesters can overcome their animosities, why is it that American politicians cannot come together and forget their own personal agendas, in order to pass legislation that would better the American people? Otherwise we might end up with an “American Spring” on our hands.

The children’s rhyme goes, “Ashes, ashes, we all fall down.” Let’s learn from the mistakes of the Arab dictators, and give the American people what they want, change, and not erupt into ashes and all fall down. But that is up to the American people, and their patience.

(photo by Sheng Lor)