Reflection #8

The main thing that struck me about the Egypt documentary last week was that all levels of Egyptian society were affected. From the well to do to the poor, everyone wanted and did get involved in some way whether through protesting or supplying the protesters with food and other needs. It just shows the effect that civil society can have on the region. It can unify a nation through revolutionary action. The dictator becomes the unifying object. Civil society unites the fight and aids the protesters. However, the Civil Society's role does not end there. What Civil Society has to do once the unifying factor of the dictator is gone like Mubarak is in Egypt, the role of Civil Society is to keep the unity in order for the country to move forward with progress and not be hampered down by divisiveness that might give rise to a coup and another dictator. I just felt that the unifying factor of unrest can sometimes be a very good thing as opposed to the traditional negative connotation that one typically associates with unrest. Furthermore, sometimes the unifying factor is not enough such as in Syria where the country is still not completely united behind the rebels, even though through the Actions of Assad there are more and more united. The unifying factor of unrest against dictators and government can still not be discounted and is an extremely powerful force.