Is a hammer only a hammer?

N/A (N/D)

In this post I’d like to explore free communication. The internet is an amazing and wonderful tool. It allows an exchange of information that we’ve never before had access to. Any question you may have can be answered in moments with only a few keystrokes… Being quite curious by nature I look up all manner of obscure factoids. Also we are able to keep in touch with friends and family, real time; we are truly a “connected” society. Information, instruction and world events stand at the ready, waiting only for a question. Anyone can do it.

However, innocent learning and communication is not the only purpose free communication can serve. These mechanisms can be exploited for other use. We don’t have far to look, terrorism is global and we have not been spared. Not only have we seen the devastating effects of terrorism on our own soil we also have seen an increased recruitment of world citizens targeted by terrorist organizations. Want to build a bomb? You got it, just search and you’ll find the answers (may I point out that I have not made any queries on this subject and I am not suggesting that you should either… only that it’s a well-documented fact that the information is available). Al Queda has an online magazine, Anwar al-Awlaki has many hours of extremist sermons on YouTube of all places, “In May 2010 Roshonara Choudhry stabbed the British M.P. Stephen Timms after having watched 100 hours of extremist sermons by Yemeni-American cleric Anwar al-Awlaki. … Al-Awlaki’s other followers include the Fort Hood shooter Nidal Malik Hasan, the Christmas Day bomber Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, and the Times Square bomber Faisal Shahzad.” (Ferguson, 2011).

Now here is the thought to ponder. As much as we value our freedom of speech, shouldn’t restraint sometimes be in order? The recent Quran burning in Florida sent shockwaves around the world and inflamed Islamist militant organizations… how? Cell phone and internet access (Ferguson, 2011). So what exactly is the balance between freedom of speech and restraint? Our freedoms are precious, and yet they can easily be exploited and manipulated into something destructive. This is a fine line, as we become more interconnected we are not only national citizens but world citizens. We must learn about other cultures, peoples, their values and treat them with respect if we are to live side by side in peace.

An afterthought?

Chisholm S. (2011)

An obvious problem with our “war on terror” (do we still call it that?) is that it is reactive rather than proactive. Militant organizations use communication tools to plan, organize and fund their actions around the world. Almost as an echo to my thoughts on this subject we learned that Osama bin Laden had at long last been located and assassinated. He was in the end tracked down by his use of communication. Word spread quickly and people assembled around the world. This was a monumental event. How did the word spread? Virally of course! I was on my way home from Baltimore when I learned the news.

But even more interesting to me is the administration’s decision not to release photographic documentation of the assassination itself due to its inflammatory nature. In fact many details of this mission that have been revealed in the news were specifically designed with the intent to minimize the stirring of passions. Remember, we see the death of a man who symbolizes a horrible time in our world history. But this man has devout followers, who believe their truth just as passionately as we believe ours.

References:

Chisholm, S. (2011/05/01) original image

Ferguson, N. (2011, April 10). The Mash of Civilizations Social networks might promote democracy, but they also empower the enemies of freedom. Newsweek, retrieved from web http://www.newsweek.com/2011/04/10/the-mash-of-civilizations.html

Image retrieved May, 2011 http://keenetrial.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2010/10/Cat-Surfing-The-Web.jpg

Demographics of Freedom

Us and Them, let’s personalize it a bit.

In this post I want to share a bit of factual data. Numbers and statistics are pretty boring. Trust me, I’m the first person to yawn when this kind of stuff makes an appearance, but stick with me. What I want you to take away from this post is some information that compares our daily lives to those in the Middle East… to make it a little more approachable and to help use this information to understand some of the conclusions I hope to guide you through in later posts.

A Hungry World

Percentage of total household consumption expenditures going to food

U.S.	U.K.	Australia	Mexico	Brazil	Iran	Russia	China	India	Tunisia	Egypt	Nigeria
7%	9%	11%	24%	25%	26%	28%	33%	35%	36%	38%	40%

SOURCE: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Here I’ve found a very simple set of numbers describing the percent of income by nation devoted to basic survival (Foroohar, 2011). Note that the more industrialized nations (yes folks that’s us) tend to have a lot more of our money left in their pockets after providing food for their families. I was stunned to realize how affluent we are simply by the luck of where we were born or live. Even though I suspect we know this intellectually a gentle reminder never hurts.

Some vital statistics

	yemen	bahrain	syria	lybia	egypt	united states
population (in millions)	24	1.2	22.5	6.597	82	313.232
mobile phones (in millions)	8.313	1.578	9.6	5.004	55.352	286
percent of population with mobile phones	34.64%	131.50%	42.67%	75.85%	67.50%	91.31%
literacy	50%	86.5	79,6	82.6	71.4	99%
gross domestic product per capita	2600	40400	4800	13800	6200	47400
unemployment	35	15	8.3	30%	9.7	9.7
population living below poverty line	45.2	na	11.9	(about 1/3)	20%	12%
area (in square km)	527	760	185,180	1,759,540	1,001,450	9,826,675
arable	2,91 %	2.82	24.80%	1.03%	2.92	18.01
airports	55	4	104	137	86	15079
roadways in km	71,300	3851	2052	100,024	65,050	6506204

(The world, n.d.)

I concede that this is a pretty ugly set of numbers… I pulled this information from our very own CIA’s data to see what a basic set of demographic data looked like across the middle east compared to the united states. Some of things that really stood out to me were the very significant differences in infrastructure (roads and airports). Here in our own country we think nothing of getting from point a to point b. The worst we really go thru is to either refer to a map or that handy little GPS device. We have cars, roads and lots of airports that allow us to move around with ease. The Middle Eastern countries aren’t quite so fortunate. Of course there’s not so much spending money after eating so even if the infrastructure were in place there might not be many people that could afford to use it.

Next take a look at the incomes and literacy rates. We take for granted in this country that everyone can read, but imagine for a moment how your view of current events, even world events, would be limited by being unable to read and gather information for one self. Although it seems at times our consumption of what is happening in the world is limited to quick sound bytes from a local news program rather. But that is fodder for a totally different discussion. Next we see that little of the land in the MENA (Middle East North Africa) region is considered farmable. Perhaps this contributes to the statistic I presented earlier showing the percentage of income that is spent on food. Lastly on the same note are the high rates of unemployment. These numbers are difficult to come by as they depend on government reporting. I have seen many reports suggesting unemployment rates in the 30 percentile range. By contrast in the US we are facing unemployment in the 10 percent range, and we all feel the squeeze. It’s common to listen to any news program and hear reports about the impact of job loss and jobless rates here in the U.S. Imagine if the numbers were tripled!

We begin to see a pattern emerging of an area marked by poverty, not so great education, a pretty mean environment as far as ability to raise food for harvest and not very good job prospects. Added to the lack of mobility and disposable income I pointed out earlier it’s not hard to see these people as fairly isolated from the rest of the world. I draw the conclusion that this population is primarily focused on getting by (aka survival) with not many resources available to do so.

Now, look at the rates of cell phones in use by the general population. Here’s another graphic I found to depict this data:


 Does it strike you as odd that while we live in relative wealth and luxury we are less connected than those in the Middle East? Proportionately the sacrifice that people make to have access to internet and social media is staggering. I found this amazing when viewed in terms of the personal choice of how disposable income is used. Wow!

Another article that I read discussed the role of religion on the economic and technological growth. This article points out the same data regarding literacy, poverty and governance that I have brought forward but a new thought is explored in the relationship of religions of the world and their relationship to and the apparent shunning of such growth by traditional Islam beliefs. It is suggested that the catholic/protestant Reformation era brought forward ideals of self improvement and individual accountability provided a favorable climate for the development of capitalistic societies (Cassidy, 2011). In contrast traditional Islamist governance did not accommodate the growth of a financial sector. Also inheritance laws deemed that 2/3 of property must be distributed to all heirs thus limiting the passage of intact family wealth (Cassidy, 2011).

Clearly the differences in culture and lifestyle are a complex issue. However I think we are seeing some of these differences at their tipping point as personal frustrations and interaction with the rest of the world increase. The ability to communicate is becoming a high priority. People are overcoming the lack of infrastructure and learning about the outside world in a way that has never been possible before.

References:

Cassidy,J. (2011). Prophet motive. New Yorker, 87(2), 32-35. Retrieved March 31, 2011, Database, from the Academic Search Complete Database.

Foroohar, R. (2011). Food fights. Time, 177(8), 19. Retrieved March 31, 2011, Database, from the Academic Search Complete Database.

n/a (nd). The world factbook. Central Intelligence Agency, Retrieved March 31, 2011 Google Search https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/ym.html

The seeds of revolution

I suppose every story has a beginning. Today I want to give you a bit of background on the beginnings of unrest in the Middle East that have ignited people’s emotions to defy government and demand fair treatment and opportunities.

I think as Americans we can all understand outrage over unjust governmental practices. Perhaps a bit before most of our personal experience but let me remind you of the violent protests that took place over the war in Vietnam. We were mired in a war we could not win, our young men were dying senselessly and young people around the country joined together to protest loudly. We know that much of the public hatred spilled over into horrible treatment of our soldiers when they returned. In no way do I want to construe this as a shining moment, that part was shameful. But the public outcry for action was heard and we eventually pulled out of the conflict. Yes, we understand the demand for justice here in America quite well. So as you read this post, try to understand how world citizens feel. They may be far away, unknown faceless and nameless. But increasingly we are more than just a nation alone. We are impacted by world events. The events of 9/11 have brought global problems to our attention; we cannot afford to look away or choose not to know the facts.

Mohammed Bouazizi with President Zine El-Abidine Ben Ali
 (second from left in this photo) who came to visit him in the hospital

The revolutions began in the small country of Tunisia which has since been dubbed the Jasmine Revolution. Tunisia is actually one of the more progressive of Middle Eastern nations. But sadly “progressive” in the Tunisian context means an average income of $8000 (Walt 2011) per year, 25% unemployment (Zakaria 2011, Walt 2011), rampant inflation and a repressive dictatorship (Walt 2011). College educated Mohammed Bouazizi, unable to find work in the computer science field he was educated in earned a living selling fruit from a street cart to support his seven siblings. The breaking point occurred when his cart was seized and he was slapped by a police officer. 

 Tahrir square on Feb. 8

Technology is not the reason revolution is occurring in the Middle East, instead it is a means. Other factors are responsible for the mass unrest:

·         60% of the population is under 30 (80% of outbreaks occur in societies with this demographic feature) (Zakaria 2011).

·         Youth unemployment is estimated at 25% (Zakaria 2011, Walt 2011)

·         Incomes are pitifully low(Zakaria 2011, Walt 2011)

·         Cost of living is on the rise (Zirulnick 2011, Walt 2011).

The number one wish of Middle Eastern youth according to a recent survey is to live in a free country (Zakaria 2011).

In future postings we will examine some of the details I have presented here to gain a fuller understanding of their impact. My hope is that as you read this information you will look at your life and compare the daily struggles of others. It seems so much more real when we personalize the data. I find myself feeling grateful for the abundance and freedom in my own life. Even on the darkest of days I never come close to the struggles these people are facing. And they are people, just like you, just like me.

References:

Walt, V. (1/31/2011). Tunisia’s nervous neighbors watch the jasmine revolution, Time, retrieved April 07 2011, Google Search

Zakaria, F. (2011, February 28). Why it’s different this time. Time. Retrieved March 28, 2011, Database, from the Academic Search Complete Database.

Zirulnick A.(ND) Countries in the middle east where the ‘winds of change’ are blowing, The Christian Science Monitor, retrieved April 07 2011, Google Search

Patrick B./AFP/Getty Images (2011/02/08) Days of rage. Foreign Policy. Image retrieved March, 2011 http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2011/01/25/day_of_rage?page=0,0

AFP/Getty Images (ND) The president and the martyr. Time. Image retrieved March, 2011 http://www.time.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,2042614_2229054,00.html