The unspeakable loss of lives in Egypt is deeply troubling. My sympathy and condolences go to those who have suffered this loss. However, I do not sympathize with the Muslim brotherhood who are now struggling to cast the current conflict as a conflict between military dictatorship and democracy. This crisis, if anything, was orchestrated by the dictatorship of the Muslim Brotherhood. After winning power in Egypt, they went to work clearing the ground for Sharia rule rather than working with all the stakeholders of the country to create a democratic future. The mantle of democracy which the Muslim Brotherhood is now claiming is a sham. The very essence of Muslim Brotherhood makes it anti-democratic - it claims Islam as the only legitimate rule. This is abominable!
The issue now seems to be a choice between two anti-democratic movements - the military and the Muslim Brotherhood. In this I will throw my lot with the military. The military is dictatorial and they kill their enemies, as we have just seen in Egypt and in many countries around the world. However, a profound difference between the military and the Muslim Brotherhood is that the Muslim Brotherhood rules in the name of God. The dictatorship of the military does not claim divine sanction and recent dictators generally do not claim to be ruling in the name of God. However, by ruling in the name of God, the Muslim Brotherhood does not only claim the body but it also claims the soul so that those who do not agree with them are also seen not to be in agreement with God. Thus, while the military only claims possession of the human body, the Muslim Brotherhood claims both the body and soul. While the dictatorship of the military is rooted in realpolitik, the dictatorship of the Muslim Brotherhood has metaphysical backing. That is what makes it very sinister. People who cannot live with others unless others become like them cannot claim the mantle of democracy. The Muslim Brotherhood has always been fighting and dying for something else and that thing is not democracy, rather, it is Islamic rule.
The issue now seems to be a choice between two anti-democratic movements - the military and the Muslim Brotherhood. In this I will throw my lot with the military. The military is dictatorial and they kill their enemies, as we have just seen in Egypt and in many countries around the world. However, a profound difference between the military and the Muslim Brotherhood is that the Muslim Brotherhood rules in the name of God. The dictatorship of the military does not claim divine sanction and recent dictators generally do not claim to be ruling in the name of God. However, by ruling in the name of God, the Muslim Brotherhood does not only claim the body but it also claims the soul so that those who do not agree with them are also seen not to be in agreement with God. Thus, while the military only claims possession of the human body, the Muslim Brotherhood claims both the body and soul. While the dictatorship of the military is rooted in realpolitik, the dictatorship of the Muslim Brotherhood has metaphysical backing. That is what makes it very sinister. People who cannot live with others unless others become like them cannot claim the mantle of democracy. The Muslim Brotherhood has always been fighting and dying for something else and that thing is not democracy, rather, it is Islamic rule.
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