Mubarak: shame and honour

So Mubarak has now been shamed by his own people, by the world community, by the great super-power USA, and of course, now, quite publicly, by Obama (those 'must' statements were so paternalistic). In a shame-honour culture, once shamed, honour must be restored. Middle Eastern cultures have particular, common, means of restoring honour -- exercise strength. Egyptians who may have had no particular opinion one way or another on their country's state of affair (it is just to be endured, insh'allah), now have an opinion -- their president has been shamed by the world. So now they come out of their homes (see CBC's Susan Ormiston's comments here).

An Egyptian military leader is suggesting 'enough is enough' 

"Your message has arrived, your demands became known … you are capable of bringing normal life to Egypt," military spokesman Ismail Etman said Wednesday, a day after Mubarak said he would not run in the upcoming presidential election.

He knows this can't do anything but get worse.

Comments

[Dschuchardt]

Thanks Dan, this was helpful.