What is worth fighting for?

Sometimes you hear people in the the US say that we have to defend the "American way" or the "American lifestyle." It is true that many people in the world don't have freedom of religion, freedom to go to a rock concert or to dissent. But the tolerance that is assumed to be part of the American lifestyle, is often lacking. We hear about gay teens that were kicked out of their homes, or people afraid to speak their minds. Most people are struggling to survive and get out of debt. Globalism hasn't been any better for American Workers than for those in the "developing world."
Its time for international solidarity! Hopefully, movements for change around the world such as those in Tunisia and Egypt will also be tolerant to minority groups: Berbers/ Amazighe and Coptic Christians. Many Coptic Christians that I have met have been bullied out of Egypt. However, I have hope that a new day is dawning. I was watching Al Jazeera (English) and one young protester in Egypt said something like "we keep hearing about who is our next leader, but we don't need a leader-all the people are here, keeping the peace and speaking out. There is no one leader".

There are a lot of movements for change in the world that don't look to one leader. The leadership paradigm is a relic of the past. You can have a council, a federation, or other structures. There is too much room for abuse and corruption with just one leader. In the US, if you type in the word "anarchism" it is likely your computer's code will be sent to Homeland Security. And many public libraries block the search for anarchist websites. Anarchism is not a violent movement, though it is best known for disruptive street demos. It is a very broad, egalitarian philosophy that believes the idea of government is at best flawed because it is not true representation. The writers: Murray Bookchin, Kropotkin, Tolstoy, Jacques Ellul, Proudhon, and many others wrote from this point of view. It is a banned belief system in the US, probably because it challenges the status quo. I would say that as long as you are non-violent you can advocate for any form of social change, but this is not the case. If having a better standard of living and a so-called democracy leads to rights for all-then why did France put Roma/ Gypsies on a flight back to Romania with only one piece of luggage and 300 dollars? There was no major outcry against this ethnic cleansing! There is also pressure by China to have the US overlook the abuses in Tibet just like they overlooked Mubarak's iron rule. Minority groups around the world are not enjoying a great lifestyle, and the US's minorities are no exception- the Native Americans are basically starving in desolate parts of the country.

At least in the US, we do have organizations like the Civil Liberties Union and the Center for Constitutional Rights.

My advice for Egyptians is to call a meeting to discuss what kind of future everyone wants. Include youth, minority groups, women, intellectuals, artists. Form a coalition government based on local economies, not globalization. If you have a free and open society-your history and treasures will draw tourists. Also, don't become too extremist. Work with your neighbors to solve regional problems. The middle-path will ensure peace for Palestinains and Israelis. The gates to Gaza could be opened and allow Gazans to chose whether they want to live in Egypt and please give those kids some diapers and toys.

Don't be too hard on the American people, most don't have access to the truth due to corrupt media, and just found out about the problems there. Most of us who are educated are behind your struggle. We are upset about the tear-gas canisters that say "Made in America." Most of us also feel powerless to change the military machine that funds dictators. Maybe you have some advice of how we can go about it. Some of us have been following the struggles for years and are watching every development on the news with intense emotion. For some Americans they are staying up late and losing sleep to cheer each new outpouring of protest. Some are apprehensive, feeling that extremists will take over, and some are actually afraid to voice an opinion, thinking they will get on a government watch list HERE IN THE US! A small portion are completely a-political feeling that problems outside their own life are unimportant. A small but growing group is nervous about anything Muslim. So that is the spectrum, many are not advanced enough to see that what happens in one part of the world affects every other part. A country can have an identity, but we are all global citizens. We have to care about Pakistani flood victims and Australian ones too. Let's all do one thing today for world peace. Even if it just to say "I care about your problems." It is a simple act that goes a long way.