Tag: history

The Muslim Scientific Legacy

With recent hopes of democracy and a new renaissance of the Islamic world, it’s perhaps appropriate to look back at the contributions that came from Muslim lands. This includes works in the fields of optics, ecology, engineering, algebra, mostly done in the years between 800 and 1250 A.D.. David Beillo has a wonderful slideshow in Scientific American.

In 1647, when Johannes Hevelius published his treatise on the moon, he placed Muslim scientist Alhazen on the frontpiece (left) to represent reason. (Image by Jeremias Falck via Wikimedia Commons).

Great Britain: a theocracy

The question of the role of the British monarchy always comes up when we talk about government types, so it’s nice to have a good, clear explanation. C.G.P. Grey explains the difference between the UK and Great Britain, and untangles the relationship between Britain and its former (and current) colonies.

It’s a fascinating piece of world history. Apparently, Britain is technically a theocracy, because all power is vested in God, and God’s delegate is the monarch. The state religion is Anglicanism.

Update

Grey also has a nice Venn Diagram.

The Battle of Tahrir Square: Getting Medieval

Anti-government protesters prepare catapult that will fire flaming debris. Image from Al Jazeera English.
This ID is of an undercover security officer who tried to start a fight, he was apprehended but not hurt, however, he said he was paid to come and start trouble. (via Al Jazerra English)

Anti-government protesters, who’ve been occupying Tahrir Square for the last week, fought off pro-government protesters yesterday in a vicious turn to the insurrection in Egypt. The army stood out of the way, and the police were no where to be found, except for reports that some captured pro-government rioters had police identification cards on them.

Although there was some shooting, the battle was mostly fought with impromptu weapons: rocks, Molotov cocktails, knives, and swords. Then there were the horses, camels and catapults.

Pro-government camel-man charges photographer and anti-government protesters. (via the Daily Dish)

A number of horsemen were pulled off by the anti-government portesters and beaten (WARNING: the video below is quite vicious).

A main street leading into Tahrir Square by the Egyptian Museum was completely covered in broken rocks, which had been used as weapons. (via Al Jazeera English).

More pictures from Al Jazeera English’s Flickr page.

Protesters’ uniform

Part of an Egyptian pamphlet created as a guide to protesters. Image links to the original, Arabic version.

This guide for the modern protester was created, in Arabic, as part of a guide for the for the protesters in Egypt. It’s amazing just how much it tells, not just about the protesters, but about the people and equipment, as well as their goals. I particularly like that, next to the scarf to protect from tear gas, and the pot lid to defend against rubber bullets and battons, there is also a rose:

A rose so we can show that we can do as we ought to and join together in the most peaceful way possible.http://montessorimuddle.org/wp-admin/media-upload.php?post_id=3932&type=image&TB_iframe=1&width=640&height=578
— Unknown author (2011). Translated from the Egyptian protest pamphlet

The Guardian also has another picture from the pamphlet in an article that really tells a lot about the authors’ objectives.

Potential protesters from Egyptian leaflet.

(Via the Daily Dish)

Islands of peace in a revolution

From the Guardian’s live feed of the uprising in Egypt:

A protester approaches the police to organize a cease-fire for the evening prayer. (Screengrab from Al Jezeera via The Guardian)
Prayer as protest (via The Daily Dish)

And who are the police? Who’s side are they on?

An Egyptian anti-government activist kisses a riot police officer following clashes in Cairo. Photograph: Lefteris Pitarakis/AP (via The Guardian live updates)

It reminds me of this picture from the protests last November in London over university tuition increases:

Schoolgirls join hands to peacefully stop attacks on a police van during student protests in London. Photograph: Demotix/Peter Marshall (via The Guardian)

So some questions:

  • What would it take for you to go out and protest (have you done it before)?
  • What would you do under these circumstances?

Uprising in Egypt

(via The Daily Dish)

What protests look like:

See also:

  • Summary of the last two days’ protests.
  • The United States’ support for Egypt.
  • What happens when you’re arrested by the state security service. (warning: contains one quote with vulgar language)

UPDATE: We just watched the video over lunch, and it actually resulted in a very good discussion. Our morning novel discussions have been useful here, in helping us see the multiple perspectives of the actors in the street protests: the protesters and the police. After all, the police have families too.

I gave a little spiel at the beginning, to set the stage and to point out the potentially historical nature of these protests. Democracy spreading through the middle east has huge implications for a country fighting two wars in the region; not to mention the blowback from these conflicts.

The truth of the anger of the protesters in the video seemed to resonate, making poignant what could have appeared farcical. The music and the Kennedy quote also helped my students identify with these events in such a far off place.

We also touched on the role of the U.S. in supporting the Mubarak government, and the potential of the uprising to lead to an anti-US, muslim fundamentalist government (via the Muslim Brotherhood). We still need to talk about what the US should and can do to support democracy in this situation, which is so full of conflicting imperatives.