Mars has turned its reddish rays toward Egypt

Do you know that song of the Beatles which says "I'm so tired, I haven't slept a wink / I'm so tired, my mind is on the blink" ? These words apply to me.





I was ill these last days. Caught flu. Bad one which made me look like a withered plant.

Though I was lying down all day long, barely able to move one finger most of the time, I had brief moments of relief. I could thus take a look at my tweetDeck (among other things I had a look at) once or twice a day to stay in touch with what was happening around in the world and on Mars while I was agonizing.


This allowed me to read Jared Leto's Tweet on Egypt and dedicated to the fighting Egyptian people :


"Sending support to our brothers and sisters that are fighting for freedom in#EGYPT!!!We are with you in spirit and believe."


There had already been in the latest transmission a mention of Avaaz.org as the website of the week.


This is great. The more we talk about what is happening on the ancestral lands of the Pharaohs, the more we help the people there in their fight for freedom. And the more we talk about what is happening in Tunisia, the more we can help either.


BUT one has to use that beautiful word "freedom" with caution, especially in places where extremists from all sides are waiting for their time to come. Possibly the time for obscurantism.

Ready to ravage

Remember what happened in Algeria during the 90s ? People fought for freedom. They demonstrated, many were killed during riots but in the end, the people sort of won...until the specter of obscurantism started to hang on people's head. All this led to what has been called a civil war which lasted long long years and which "killed" 60000 people according to some, 150000 according to some others. Numbers do not matter anyway. 1 is already too many, let alone 60000...


In french we say "on ne fait pas d'omelette sans casser des oeufs" (you can't make an omelette without breaking a few eggs). The way to freedom is not an easy way. Believe me, I know what I am talking about...But if you end up with a "real" freedom (does it exist anywhere in the world anyway ?), you can at least say that those who died, did not die for nothing.


So, FREEDOM ? Yes. A billion times yes. Freedom of expression, freedom of the media, freedom of religion for the believers no matter what the religion is, and for women of this part of the world, basic things such as freedom to study, freedom to have a job, freedom to dress the way they like, freedom to go out from home, freedom to marry or not, freedom to choose the "man"...


Beware the monster which has been muzzled for so many years and which is patiently waiting...


I'd call this going from Scylla to Charibdis.


In Algeria where I live since 2008, we have been literally sitting on a powder keg these last months. People here are also fed up and a huge demonstration is supposed to take place on Feb.12.








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