I have to write about Egypt, even though the political situation and the way forward are far from clear. The most important thing to note is the largest political demonstrations in human history. An estimated 15 million people participated. To put that number in perspective, Egypt did not even have 15 million people until 80 years ago.
The Muslim Brotherhood may have helped to organize the early demonstrations in Egypt two years ago, but it now has become the demonstrators’ target. It cannot escape their attention that the number of people demonstrating against them is larger than their entire membership — that indeed, some of their own members must be among the demonstrators objecting to their attempt to set up a totalitarian state. I wonder if this could be the fate of religious extremists in other places in the world, as they seize power in various ways and set themselves up as obstacles to freedom, prosperity, and democracy.
