Greetings! 

Over the past few weeks, we've seen spontaneous, grassroots uprisings throughout the Middle East and North Africa. 

As they are wont to do, both mainstream and right-wing media have hyperbolized these events, in virtually every instance assuming a worst case scenario.  I have no expertise on these matters, but I do have an adult sense of history.  So, I'm optimistic for the people of the region; not least of all, because I trust them, as I trust the American people, to act in their own best interests over the long run.  To wit:

In the December 30, 2010 issue of eFlourishing I wrote:

In case you missed it, communism died a warm and fuzzy death on November 9, 1989.   Crazy Islamic fascists notwithstanding, Freedom and Capitalism have taken root in the hearts and minds of the middle class in the Middle East and in most of Asia.  African societies, to the extent that they have a middle class, are likewise endowed.  Socialist utopianism in North and South America, as in Western Europe, is in its death throes.  The good guys have won and/or are winning.  Those aren't predictions, they're facts.

The trend of human history is on the side of those demonstrating for liberty and democracy in Egypt, and throughout the Middle East.  To be sure, whacko Islamists and other unsavory elements are involved, and no one can be certain that the outcome of these events will be entirely positive.  However, to the extent that the demonstrators act rationally, with purpose, and with truth on their side, they will succeed in achieving a better future for themselves and their countrymen.  Until next week,

PATIENCE, DISCIPLINE, and CONFIDENCE in the FUTURE!  mh