Another Week, Another Country

Mt. Kilanjaro was a part of
Grace's daily scenery for a week!

Grace recently returned from a wonderful week in Tanzania for her school's "Week Without Walls" program.  None of us had been able to travel beyond Egypt further into Africa, and neither had any of us ever travelled south of the Equator, so this was quite an opportunity and experience.  We were so blessed by her excitement and stories once she returned, and we loved seeing the beauty and culture she witnessed in another country.  She and a group of classmates served the students of "Second Chance" school through physical labor, tutoring, and companionship.

spoiled on spring break

Once she came back, our family spent Spring Break together down at El Gouna, where we vacationed last summer--this time, rather than staying in a hotel, a friend allowed us to stay in their villa there.  Free lodging in a sea-side resort--AWESOME!  We had a great time, blessed by the change of scenery and peaceful surroundings that are so foreign compared to the noise and pace of Cairo.  We got to go snorkeling in the Red Sea again, and just took it easy.

Now, Grace is preparing to travel again after just a couple of days back in school.  Grace made the jv softball team, and they have a set of games against an international school in Kuwait next weekend--I know, Kuwait!  Simply surreal.

She'll be traveling with the team, staying in homes of the host team's players, and playing a few games, and then it's hop back on the plane for the return trip.

It's a quick trip, but she's keeping her passport in good use with all this travel.  She shouldn't be going anywhere after this for awhile.

Zeke and Keli have gotten to travel to Lebanon at different times.  Though Titus has traveled within Egypt, he has yet to leave Egypt since arriving with us 15 months ago.  He's ready to see more of the world--he may get to go with me to Budapest, Hungary when I travel there in July.

Pray for Grace's safety during this upcoming, quick trip to Kuwait--and pray for more "eye-opening" experiences that will continue to shape her heart for things to come.

No Laughing Matter CONTINUES

Bassem Youssef pushed through fans to enter courthouse

On April 1, I posted "No Laughing Matter," chronicling the recent charges filed against Bassem Youssef, "the Egyptian Jon Stewart" (Stewart is a popular US comedian and host of the political satire, "The Daily Show").

Bassem Youssef, formerly a heart surgeon who began by making political satire YouTube videos from his flat, is host of a similar political satire/comedy show here in Egypt and has grown in popularity enormously since the revolution. Bassem was charged with crimes of insulting the President, Islam, and potentially (varying reports) contributing to an environment of unrest. The summons to face the charges led to a mob of supporters outside of the court, and a series of articles, tweets, blogs, and international media responding--including John Stewart himself on a recent episode.

Stewart's 10 minute clip was posted and recirculated via YouTube by many--Viacomm, who has rights to the program, was able to bring down all the links within a day, but not before the links were reposted on Facebook, Twitter, and various blogs. We ourselves sent out a link via Twitter, which are automatically posted on our Facebook account. (Thanks to our friend Jacob who gave us the links to the Daily Show's website who still have the clip available: http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/mon-april-1-2013/morsi--viva-hate----egyptian-democracy ).

Apparently, Stewart's little segment was not only tweeted by 20-somethings (and us), but also in a RT (retweet) by the official US Embassy in Cairo. This led to an international set of responses from the US State Department, the Cairo Embassy, and the Egyptian government, the Freedom and Justice Party, and the Muslim Brotherhood--beginning through their Twitter accounts and continuing in other means. Here's an interesting article, first seen in a Tweet by Tahrir Squared, on the whole international incident.

Though I'm sure it will all be sorted out without too much further incident, it is a unique situation in which social media has had international political implications. As social media is used increasingly by governments, it seems that there has to be growing stacks of policy & procedure manuals on what to do, what not to do, and what to do when the policies and procedures are blown! The older, officials and policymakers in international affairs are likely outsourcing a lot of this "new wave, tech savvy" stuff to younger interns and staff members who do not necessarily have the years of experience in diplomacy to handle such popular, and potentially volatile means of communication--and, the appropriate disclaimers themselves cannot possibly fit in "140 characters or less", much less the retractions that may be necessary to prevent international incidents.

Think before you tweet, follow, like, or post!

Pray for Egypt...

No Laughing Matter

It's April 1st--April Fools Day--and as pranks are played, jokes are told, and the hijinks unfold around the globe, you may not find anyone laughing in Egypt.

Over the past few weeks, the government's prosecutor has been calling in anyone suspected of spreading negative information and spurring on continuing protests/demonstrations, vandalism, and even violence.  Leaders of various political opposition groups have faced charges levied against them for inciting such public disturbances, but the ongoing unrest not only continues, it seems to be increasing.

This past weekend, various individuals were brought in on new charges for using media to contribute to unrest.  Bloggers, Tweeters, journalist, and even a hugely popular political satirist from television were summoned to the high court.



There are many who are challenging and even outraged at what has been called a violation of their new freedoms of speech.  President Morsi and the national government are finding it difficult to look like they're taking the high ground--yet, the high ground is shrinking fast in Egypt.

The current political, social, and economic condition is no laughing matter, the future seems even more bleak.

With such difficult circumstances, might even the freedom of free speech be enabling the overwhelming feelings of negativity that perpetuate the cycles of unrest and violence?

Pray for Egypt...