What Egyptian Copts are telling us about the Egyptian revolution.

In a rather telling headline, the WSJ reports today that the Christians of Egypt are worried what might happen with Mubarak's departure.  Consider Coptic Christians Worry About Future Without Mubarak and think about this for a moment.  Why would about 8 million people willingly accept an autocratic tyrant who has turned Egypt into a police state?  The same 8 million people who have been beaten, persecuted, blown up and marginalized by the virtue of them being Christian?  People who in some areas are relegated to the trash heaps of Egypt, literally.  What can possibly be worse than what they already have?

Answer:  Islamists.

Plenty of people across the world are calling Egyptian's Muslim Brotherhood a humanitarian movement that is destined to bring democracy, freedom and liberty to Egypt  Oh really?  This is why Coptic Christians prefer a tyrant?   Who do you suppose understands the dynamics of Egypt better, people who live there now or the BBC?

Let us briefly look at the Brotherhood and what they stand for.

First of all, they are banned in Egypt and they are banned because the Brotherhood insisted that Egypt be governed under shari'a (Islamic law).  The Brotherhood created an offshoot organized called Al-Jihad al-Islami and assassinated Egyptian president Anwar Sadat because he signed a peace treaty with Israel. Even though they are banned they are present in the Egyptian Parliament as independents.

The current group's found principles are as follows:

Inform the masses of Islamic teachings.

Unify mankind under Islamic teachings as well as bring “closer the viewpoints of the Islamic sects.”

Raise the standard of living of marginalized people.

Expand social justice and social insurance to cover every citizen.

“Liberate the Islamic nation from the yoke of foreign rule.”

Establish the country as an Islamic state and defend the nation against “the internal enemies.”

Support global co-operation based on the provisions of Islamic Sharia law.

So while raising standards of living in poor Egypt can seem quite attractive to many people, imposing Islamic law and teachings will have the same effects that we have seen in numerous countries where Sharia has been implemented in one way or another.  No need to look further than the Taliban or the Ayatollahs of Iran for a shining example.

So while the idea that a bunch of people can raise up and depose an autocracy through the means of collective will is awesome, the effects and consequences of such an action are impossible to predict.  No doubt that life in Egypt is very difficult for many and they probably believe that it really cannot be worse than it is, but this is exactly the kind of mentality that brought down the Shah of Iran.  Scores of people who once grinned with joy as the Shah fell came to strongly regret their decision as life turned remarkably worse for Iran and it's citizens.  Be careful what you wish for and be careful what you support.