“A revolution against neoliberalism?”

That’s the title of THIS AL JAZEEERA ARTICLE by someone named “Abu Atris” (the pseudonym of an unknown Egyptian author).

My provisional answer to the question posed by the title would be both yes and no, or rather, both no and yes.

No, in the sense that the revolution in Egypt was sparked more by demands for political freedoms. The economic situation of the country certainly helped lay the table for what we saw happen, but only late in the game (though of crucial importance) came the strikes by people primarily angry about the economic conditions of Egypt.

But yes, in the sense that I don’t think the revolution in a place like Egypt will succeed unless economic inequality is addressed. You can’t just add elections and freedom of the press in Egypt and expect everything to be fine all of a sudden. There is a major social justice problem in this country, and it’s going to have to be addressed in ways that might generate a new sort of political model. “Necessity is the mother of invention.” They’re going to have to figure it out here in Egypt, or they will soon have a new insurrection of the poor, and the Army will either have to let it happen or else they will have to be as brutal as Libya in suppressing it. I hope not the latter.