good morning all,
I hope they managed to fly out. Its very unnerving for an expat family to be caught in this sort of situation.
Even when, all things considered its fairly benign, being away from your normal support system is very unsettling.
Meditrina and seeker, I think this is just another "hunger" protest.
Lets do a little comparison:
In tunisia, everybody applauds, no one has any vested interest / its secular so no big worry there (many still raised the concern of radical Islam, out of ignorance I suppose)
Lybia A bit more of a problem with oil, so let's turn a blind eye, thankfully the news cycle allows it, Islam not a problem just as above (again I think there is a bit of ignorance here, Lybia would actually be very fertile ground for AQMI). I would thing there will be a problem here. why is everyone so oblivious?
Egypt, well kudos to the people because western diplomacy definitely showed its limits and cowardice there.
Bahrain....800,000 american troops, biggest base in the gulf. strong ties to equally wealthy neighbors.
Mega buck to European countries on various industrial contracts.And oil of course which is becoming a pricier comodity by the day. Who cares if they bash a religious minority. Let everyone think its a sectarian problem. Western diplomats must have been so happy to hear Ahmadinejat comment on it so it gives them an opportunity to remind us of that threat too.
Again, my view is that people are hungry, they want to raise their children in dignity and be safe in their homes.
I do feel the west is turning a blind eye because money speaks louder than words and letting the press spin these situations into something they are not.