REUTERS article on Bahrain: An update 02/19/2011

Bahrain protesters emboldened


A very interesting recent article highlighting the details of the Bahrain incident for an update on the status of the people.

Bahrain protesters emboldened

Includes the word from Obama on the situation, what the police are doing, how much lethal force is being used, etc. It was interesting to read that they're using lethal force without fear in addition to having rubber bullets and tear gas. This isn't just protection of quelling an uprising, it's just oppression...

I don't think a lot realize the severity of this uprising. This is just like Egypt, in my opinion in terms of how much of an impact this will have on the region and the world. I was discussing this with a few friends, and my brother gave me some very helpful insight into this issue.

He is currently serving overseas in the middle east, so he has first hand experience with what's happened, what will happen and what needs to be done. Here's his commentary on our discussion:

We'll Egypt didn't attack its own citizens because they feared they would make the situation worse, and were just praying that they would disperse with time, they were wrong.

So when all these other countries see Egypt as an example and try to do the same thing, that countries government has to look at what Egypts government did and do the opposite, IE. mercilessly gunning down its citizens.

Now if the people in Bahrain don't stick it out and make the revolution work, then all the other governments that have uprisings will just gun its people down. There's much more riding on the citizens of Bahrain than just this, 1 of 3 things are the outcome, Middle East stays the way it is under undemocratic conditions,Middle East has a very bloody revolution, Middle East has clean revolutions. Basically if things are going to change for the better for the whole Middle East...Bahrain has to have a very violent revolution to prove that repression doesn't work.

And I wholeheartedly agree. The citizens of Bahrain from what I've read and seen are doing peaceful protests, but are definitely capable of taking violent action of this unjustified violence from the security, police, and military persists. If there is another resolution, it's another win for the people of that region.