…our true measure of progress has to be whether every American who wants a job can find one; whether the jobs available pay well and offer good benefits; whether people in this country can still achieve the American Dream for themselves and their children. That’s the progress we’re after.
— President Barack Obama
Transcript here.
The President’s Weekly has just as much relevance to U.S. workers as it does to any one looking for a decent job or wages that can support a family and a comfortable life. Is that not the foundation of the uprising in Egypt? My question still stands – “…and then what?” Having the leader step down still leaves the “then what?” ticking.
Will Egypt’s president Mubarak stay or go? It’s like the Tracy Chapman ballad
If not now then when
If now today then
Why make your promises
A love declared for days to come
Is as good as none
You can wait ’til morning comes
You can wait for the new day
You can wait and lose this heart
You can wait and soon be sorry
Now love’s the only thing that’s free
We must take it where it’s found
Pretty soon it may be costly
If now now what then
We all must live our lives
Always feeling
Always thinking
The moment has arrived
The answer may be biblical.
People love a “Revolution,” but no one seems to want to acknowledge the Lennon/McCartney lyrics beyond the first stanza.
Sadly, it’s the people in the middle who take the punches from political and economic falling outs. These are the people who just want to get food on the table and keep the home lights on. Who don’t have the time or inclination to read blogs including this one. But they may be interested in whether the neighbor across the street will finally cut their grass, or when the mom next door returns home from serving in Afghanistan.
The middle seems to know when the money’s out on the street. You don’t see them on the front pages unless they show up at town hall meetings. But what about the ones who stay home? Will they be able to get their groceries or pay the cell phone bill without being pounded on by a shower of rocks, expletives, or bullets?
As Ethelbert Miller/E-Notes (who has been more blogger focused on the topic than I) said:
“If things become unstable in Egypt will people desire stability over freedom? You betcha. When people can’t get food, and basic services stop – there is always a desire to return to normalcy. Here is where revolutions sometime end.”