The Boy who Cried Wolf

With the growing alliances that are being created and destroyed and recreated among nation states, it is no surprise that their leaders are always very much so concerned with their sovereignty and their security. Every politician discusses security, people want to feel safe in their home towns and so it is up to our presidents and prime ministers to ensure that safety for us. 

What happens though when that assurance of security impedes on other people's safety and freedoms? What happens when the leaders we have elected will go to any and every length, including putting other people's lives in danger, in order to ensure that our children can walk home safely from school? Why is it that suddenly, in 2013, one person's life is more important than the other on the basis of race and religion? 

Everyone has been watching closely as the syrian people have been trying to maintain their demands to overthrow Al-Assad, they protests took place shortly after Egypt succeeded in their uprising. Sadly, the syrian uprising has turned into a bloodbath and now many fear that the end will be a gruesome tale of lost lives. One country though, felt the need to come up with a theory of it's own as it has many times before, Israel is concerned with their security and so are taking preemptive steps in order to maintain their security. 

Excuse you? 

What do these preemptive measures entail exactly one might ask, well put in layman's terms, we're going to bomb them as a show of force, build the wall ten miles into their territory and show them who's boss! This is starting to sound more and more like a hostile player at the Risk board game than real life to me. Thus, I am reminded of the old tale that our parents used to tell us about the boy who cried wolf when no wolf was around and the day there was a wolf, no one believed him. The IDF should really start to think before they act.

The international community is now faced with a predicament; Israel is trying to secure it's citizens safety by bombing Syria in an effort to ensure that Syria will reconsider if it was planning on attacking Israel because they seem to think that civil war isn't enough of a concern right now. How is this even legal? How can an international body such as the United Nations that is a cornerstone for peace processes across the world, sit back and watch as innocent lives are being trafficked practically for the sake of safety and security? Or is anything that Israel does justified by the fact that it's the black sheep of the Middle East; the same old excuse that the arabs don't like us so we had to hit before they could think of hitting us first.

I wonder if one day they will cry wolf and no one will respond.  

Pharoah's Rule

As the old adage goes, history always has a way of repeating itself and this phenomenon cannot be more clearly seen than with what is taking place in Egypt now. If one is to look at the history of the country, egyptians went from being ruled by four presidents in thirty years to  a series of vice presidents, members of parliament and two presidents in a few months. Be that as it may, the fact that egyptians managed to overthrow a dictatorship that was going to lead them to their demise is an extraordinary feat; right now though it's time to be less emotional and more practical. 

Two years after the egyptian revolution successfully took place, the country has yet to improve in any way. After holding the first ever democratic elections which included the participation of expat egyptians as well as every single egyptian locally, the government has yet to act in the way in which a democratically elected government should act. I wouldn't dare say that democracy is perfect and creates complete utopia but if a dictatorship hasn't been working for the last three decades, then I think it's time to give something different a chance. 

As I sit in my living room in Montreal, I watch as flames blaze over the most beautiful country in the world. Thousands of years of civilization will be destroyed because of the lack of tact on behalf of our current president. The people of Egypt have spoken and what they want is simple and very achievable, they want the basics. They long for the same rights that we all exercise in our daily lives and the facilities which we take for granted every second of the day.

It really isn't rocket science, really. 

Please Mr. President, instead of blocking your ears like a child in the midst of a tantrum, open your mind, your eyes, your ears and most importantly your heart to the people which you preside over. Listen and feel their concerns, you were once one of us, standing in endless lines in order to get your national identification card. You were stuck in traffic among the masses trying to understand why the road system is such a disaster. You fear for your family's health when they eat food from local crops just as any father would for his family.

You are one of us, don't forget your roots, go back to them and listen to them. 

Sincerely,

A disheartened egyptian. 

The True North, Strong & Free.

In the west, above the great Unites States of America, you'll find a quiet neighbour of massive size but not so massive population. Its people are dispersed on its lands due to bad weather conditions, it has a black sheep as does any other family that feels left out of everything and it is known for it's growing multiculturalism. This country is Canada, my home. 

I'm part of a visible minority but here in Montreal, people will never make you feel like you're a visible minority, they'll embrace your culture and want to be a part of it. Living here meant that I could have dinner in South East Asia, have coffee in the Middle East and have dessert in Latin America all in the same night. It also meant that I could observe my religion in peace and tranquility as long as I wasn't infringing on anyone else's boundaries. 

In that respect, every year a conference by the name of Reviving the Islamic Spirit takes place in Toronto with the purpose of celebrating our religion and teaching us something new about it. It is open to anyone and everyone and always creates a huge crowd in the the weekend that it takes place. This year, Justin Trudeau made his way to this conference as a special appearance and a show of support for canadian-muslims. 

As Trudeau made his way on stage, many were skeptical that he was only there for votes and that his motives were not wholly pure. Soon after he began his speech with peace and blessings upon his listeners though, many of those thoughts dissipated. He spoke of being proud to be part of such a great country and discussed his support for Muslims and other minority groups in Canada. His speech was extremely well researched and written, I can gladly say that he did his homework before making his appearance. 

For those fifteen minutes that he spoke, he made us all realize that, although for the most of us we were either ourselves immigrants or our parents at least immigrated to Canada, we were all canadians. Our voices matter and our needs are thought of in government decisions. Many said that he's a politician and that this was typical of someone who is thinking of running for a high profile position soon. I find that hard to believe because what Justin did was go out of his way and go against many of his entourage's advice to speak in a conference that supports a religion that is greatly misunderstood in the media and around the world today. He decided to show his support for a group of people whom very few leaders and international players are willing to speak up for today. 

So, today I say, let's be proud of our Country and it's warm embrace to each and every one of our religions and cultures. The maple leaf will always represent the true north strong and free but now it also represents multiculturalism and not only tolerance for it, encouragement and teachings of these differences as well. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cMRj0JfhDnA