Some say that a fascination with brouhaha and agitation has become a fixed tradition in Egypt since the January 25, 2011 Revolution. There is many a man who prompts rumours that it is all doom and gloom in Egypt in both the political and economic arenas. There are claims that the Government is a failure and the State is collapsing and there is no respect for the rule of law. But I tell them: sod the doom and gloom, let us have a break. Apologies are due for those who see this as a bit saucy. I am optimistic by nature and have always cultivated a taste for optimism throughout my life that is now over sixty-two years. There are many values that we believe in and work hard against pessimism. Throughout its long history, Egypt has passed many setbacks, but those setbacks have always prepared Egypt for larger triumphs. Despite the claim that we don't learn from our mistakes, Egyptians have taken advantage of their faulty choices. Many Egyptians have not lost their way. Even through leading a vendetta against their opponents, the President and the Muslim Brotherhood found it difficult to be in charge. With limited civil disobedience, many Egyptians want their message to reach the President. Though many media pundits huff and puff about an imminent civil war, an inside reader of the Egyptian scene would see it as a far-fetched conceit. There is absolutely no need to cry doom and gloom, but we should meet such whiffing with a wry smile. The police are unpresumptuously coming back in the governorates or provinces outside the Greater Cairo area. The traffic police force is out and about. I was personally given a speeding ticket last week on the way to Ismailia and paid a fine of LE150 ($22) on the spot. I was happy to see the police back on the road doing their job, but hoped that all their peers in the police force would show up too and be deployed everywhere throughout the country. We should all call for support for the police. No single party could settle scores since there is an opponent fighting back. The age of power grab is gone and has become obsolete. The Government and the opposition forces should not remain at loggerheads for long. We call upon the ruling party to shed the cult for secrecy and address the public at large with all the facts on the ground. There should be no room for polarisation, no disgruntled or alienated minority. The opposition, on their part, should cast the veil of suspicion. The numerous messages represented in the so-called “millionias" every Friday must be listened to. There is only one saga for success and it is only attained through unity. Rest you who croak for another revolution. The American novelist Mark Twain said to those who believe that history repeats itself: “History doesn't repeat itself, but it does rhyme." Or take this: “History repeats itself, the first time as a tragedy, the second as a farce." No pessimism please, we are Egyptians.
