The dawn must come.

The dawn must come.

Thursday 21 March 2013

A Momentary Lapse of Reason!

By: Ahmed ELNAHAS – Montopoli, March 21st 2013.
In 1969 a football (soccer) match ignited a bloody war, between Honduras and El Salvador, causing too many lives and wasting tons of uselessly spent money, marking an historical act of collective madness, that will remain archived in history’s forgotten stores as “the monumental case study of a perfect manipulative use of ‘Mass Psychology’ to determinate the ‘Techniques of Mass Behaviour Control’ for political ends”.
Having introduced my argument as such, I bid your forgiveness for borrowing the title of a banner concept album chosen out from the discography of the immortal rock band ‘The Pink Floyd’; as I couldn’t find a more appropriate title for this article! A title that could colourfully paint a perfect impressionist portrait of the political and cultural ‘débâcle’ which our society is experiencing right now.
Back to us.. At first, when the people decided that it cannot go on any longer living under the corrupt rule of a “Military Élite Dictatorship” associated with “Business Élite Oligarchy”, in a world where ‘Freedom’ and ‘Democracy’ are air and water by which to outlive any pains; it rose up and disbursed a generous blood tax trying to achieve what it brilliantly synthesised in a thundering popular roar: “Bread, Freedom and Social Justice”.
However, in the absence of any kind of sincere intellectual guidance, that improvised popular emotional thrust didn’t foresee to pragmatically organise itself under a unanimously identified and accepted Leadership; hence the political void and consequently the giant leap of the “inadequate to rule¹” Brotherhood to grasp the vacant throne and proclaim itself the one and only “Ruler of the Lands and Master of the Hands”!!
Then came the time for the official declaration of the social divisions when the President, while addressing his supporting mass, stated publicly “US OR THEM”.. At this point he deliberately used the religious flag to distinguish and select, leaning upon the epidemic illiteracy infecting the population in order to create the needed disorder to buy his administration enough time to carefully implant his trusted followers at every corner of the country’s public services and institutions, but also to figure out what should be done next.
Later on came the “flash of genius!!  Why not use the mass to terrorise the mass.. Simple.. By pressing over the Magistrate to pronounce what should seem to be a “Political Verdict” for one of the most sensitive ‘Public Opinion’ trials (the infamous institutionally motivated killings of 72 citizens in a football match), and obviously the ULTRAS, supported by the infiltrations of well trained and equipped hired thugs, will do the job.
Laterally the anti-revolutionary forces (not only the ex-régime’s official sponsors/supporters and sympathisers, but as well foreign and domestic lobbies of various interests), were permitted ample time to survive the initial shock wave of the January 2011 quake and adequately organise, recall, equip and mobilise their tens of thousands of followers, supporters, parasite beneficiaries (turncoat politicians, hired media, bias intellectuals, sports fans/ultras and street thugs); started their counter attack on private TV screens through various talk-shows, in sporting clubs to collect and conceal the consensus of an anxiously worried ‘Upper Middle Class’, after having safely pocketed the unconditional approval of a crushing majority of the country’s Bureaucratic Machine’s working forces; to massively hit the streets as to establish a state of chaos and insecurity.
My problem is that the actual revolutionary forces, those who really have embraced the bullets and spat blood, in the end of the day have found themselves obliged to unite inside the same trenches with their original opponents, the anti-revolutionaries, to defy a new common danger, the Brotherhood’s apparent Fascist arbitrary rule; and defend a common objective: a Civil Secular² State.
Let me try to figure out the ‘Why’.. In doing so I’d kindly ask you first to sum-up together the following facts:
·         Awareness: The Brotherhood and its allies, for a very long time (over 3 generations), have been managing schools and health care clinics within the medium, poor and poorest socio-economic demographic segments all over the territory, consequently they were able to educate, recruit and prepare a wide platform of constituencies. While the Liberal, Neo-Liberal and Socialist parties, throughout the past 45 years, were mainly geared towards their own political survival apparently regardless of whatever popular reactions may be.
·         Unemployment: While all political arrays, whether in the ruling majority or at its all times collusive and servile opposition groups, were engaged in what they imagined to be a restless war against the “Dark Specter of Unemployment”; they did exactly nothing but aggravate it to the extent that those who are currently not working but are willing and able to work for pay, currently available to work, and have actively searched for work reached a new record of 51% unemployed citizens (a percentage out of which about 47% are women) mostly young belonging to a vanishing middle class and a large poor/poorest crushed classes.
·         Illiteracy: The latest available statistic goes back to 2010 and indicates that little under 40% of the population are illiterate, living mainly in rural and sub-urban mostly abusive localities of extremely high density and deprived of basic infrastructure. Like all Dictatorships and ever since 1952, the official strategic policies for public education was conceived to create the largest possible “Ignorant Mass” with the sole objective of establishing a major demagogic support for the system. Such policies found also support in an escalation of an unofficially declared “Religious Segregation” inviting and encouraging quicker population growth. We couldn’t detect the minimal trace for any effort whatsoever exercised by any political party to elaborate an idea of a long term plan to fight illiteracy.
·         Poverty: The 2010 statistics show that the rural and urban middle classes have both dangerously dropped down into the line of poverty bringing the national poverty ratio up to 54%, consequently the ex-poor became poorer inflating this segment’s ratio to another 31%.. The Brotherhood, who have for long decades worked closely among the poor and poorest segments of the population in rural and urban territories, knew that by ensuring the loyalty of such a huge mass the result would one day guarantee them a “Legitimate Authority” over the sorts of the country.
·         Women: I was stunned by the fact that over 50% of female population within the age bracket 15 – 19 are convinced that a husband is justified in hitting or beating his wife under certain circumstances!!  
Max Weber taught us to distinguish between ‘Power’ and ‘Authority’. He affirms that “…while power flows from the barrel of a gun, authority is the likelihood that a command will be obeyed”, explaining that  “leaders who have authority do not have to shoot people”. Webber continues “Authority is rooted in legitimacy”, whereby “leaders are acknowledged because the people agree that there is some ‘legitimate basis’ for their authority and power”.       
In democratic countries, it is obvious that legitimacy comes from the ballot box. However it seems that the Brotherhood didn’t grasp the real value of the people’s vote, because their ‘arbitrary rule’ (so far apparently identical to that of their predecessor’s régime), is showing their failure, or even worse their refusal, to connect with the growing anger caused by the rapid drowning of rural and urban middle class into the giant whirlpool of poverty and need. And for certain this will lead to more instability and will definitely widen the gap of the by now openly manifested common mistrust separating the ruled from the ruler.
I can hear the sermons of the Imams preaching the mass out of gigantic loud speakers in every mosque:
“Let us altogether observe a serene moment of silence in honour of our so young dear departed ‘Reason’ with its partner ‘Will Of The People’ both fallen in their battle for Democracy.. May they rest in everlasting peace in Heaven’s paradise”.
Pass On The Word.
¹>The logical inadequacy of the Brotherhood for rule is relevant to their long history of a somewhat justifiable  “Persecution Complex” which forced them into the Underground Activities. A complex that restrained their performance into the molds of: secrecy, paranoia, doubt and mistrust. As such the Brotherhood camouflaged these characteristics by continuously proclaiming throughout the years their interest in social activities as: education, health care, solidarity, and religious preaching.. So that by seeking refuge in such public good deeds, they can easily conceal their meticulous and ongoing underground activities of recruitment, brainwashing, behaviour control and training (especially among the very young) in order to create loyal groups and cells of radical fanatics ready to obey and execute any order issued by the Brotherhood.. Notwithstanding their huge finances were never transparently published, and no one ever seriously investigated their sources!      
²>Secularism require the separation between ‘State’ and ‘Religion’, and not to completely abolish religion from public life as Laicism; therefore its main objective is to “Limit the influence of religion over education, government and politics”.     

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