article from the New York Times today
I'm trying to comprehend Gaddafi's mindset right now. Or any person in power who people want out of power. But I can't think from that point of view. Sending people to do your fighting, or demanding the death of opposition, doesn't this seem like some sort of psychological sickness? I could understand wanting to defend one's self and one's country against armed threats. But against protesting citizens of one's own country who want a change of leadership after 40+ years?
I guess what I'm saying is that I don't understand how one can want power so much that the lives of other people (even one's own citizens) don't matter. Is megalomania a psychological condition?
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I just looked it up. A psychopathological condition characterized by delusional fantasies of wealth, power, or omnipotence. So I guess it is recognized as a condition.
It's good that people have taken to the streets to protest these sick leaders/dictators. It sucks that there's other people who still buy into their crap, and would kill others because they are told to.
"After Colonel Qaddafi’s televised speech Tuesday night, thousands of his supporters converged in Tripoli’s central Green Square, wearing green bandanas and brandishing oversized machetes. Many loaded into trucks headed for the outlying areas of the city, where they occupied traffic intersections and appeared to be massing for neighborhood-to-neighborhood searches. “It looks like they have been given a green light to kill these people,” one witness said." from the NY Times article.
"Witnesses in Tripoli have reported Libyan fighter jets and helicopter gunships have been used to attack protesters who are calling for an end to Muammar Gaddafi’s four-decade rule. At least 300 people have reportedly died in recent days, and tens of thousands of foreigners are attempting to flee the country." Democracy Now!
At least some politicians in the US are speaking out against this. More should though, including Obama. He's been oddly silent on Libya since Friday. Maybe it's some diplomatic/political thing that I wouldn't understand. But to be diplomatic when lives are at hand is beyond me. I don't see how politicians do it.
I've been meaning to write about Egypt too. It's very inspiring that ordinary people can still change things. What happened in Egypt was historic. The people rose up and dethroned a president! That's the kind of shit I read in history books. That's change I can believe in. While it's too early to tell whether good or bad will come out of it, it's undoubtably good that people stood up for what they believed in, and didn't falter in the face of repression. I wish the Egyptian people the best.
Same for the Libyan people, I hope they can make it through this, and hope that Gaddafi gets what he deserves (treatment?). Same for that region in general, Iran, Bahrain, and all the other countries that are seeing democratic movements.
Damn, now I have to think about democracy; it's pros and cons (Plato didn't dig democracy, but I am not Plato!). I won't write about it right now though, I think this is sufficient.
-LJL
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