After Most of the Media Moves On, Some Insightful Reporting on Egypt
Two recent articles present disturbing information about where Egypt may be heading.
Lee Smith in The Tablet reveals that the conventional media narrative of how events unfolded in the first days of the unrest did not square with existing realities. Smith argues that Mubarak’s role in promoting economic reform and keeping anti-Western elements at bay has been underappreciated. The sweeping away of the Mubarak regime unleashed anti-Western forces that will be increasingly important in shaping post-revolution Egypt. Smith envisions an accomodation between the Muslim Brotherhood and the Egyptian army. He warns of trouble from the irrational anti-Semitism that pervades Egyptian society. The worsening supply situation of the main staple of the Egyptian diet, wheat, will also continue to stir unrest.
Lester Brown in the New York Times adds a new dimension to the impending food crisis in Egypt. He describes how countries both immediate and far away compete for the Nile river’s water in order to grow wheat to feed their own populations. The problem is multi-faceted, as it involves not only the burgeoning populations of Ethiopia and Sudan, both upstream from Egypt, but also a new form of colonization of Africa by wealthier nations like China, South Korea and Saudi Arabia that lack sufficient fertile land to feed their own population’s Westernized diets. Vast tracts of African land have been purchased by Asian nations to grow crops. Brown warns that Egypt, which is dependent upon the Nile river for its sustenance, is directly threatened by the diversion of Nile water to irrigate new cropland upriver.
Already, earlier this year, drought in China threatened Egypt’s supply of wheat. Some, like Spengler (David Goldman), have pointed to the wheat crisis as a crucial underlying factor in Egypt’s unrest.
More from SNAPSHOTS
Double Standards: Boycotts and Discrimination in MassLive
May 16, 2025
Anti-Israel activists, including Harvard University’s Lara Jirmanus, a clinical instructor, seem to struggle with the concept of “discrimination.” Quoted in a May 14 MassLive article, “Harvard ‘failed to respond’ to 450 discrimination complaints. Staff hand-delivered [...]
Swarthmore Students Are Learning: It Was Never About Palestinian Rights
May 14, 2025
Students at Swarthmore College are so close to understanding the conflict. An article in the Swarthmore Phoenix details the frustrations of student activists with the college’s Students for Justice in Palestine. The gist of their criticism is [...]
AFP Arabic Stops Mislabeling Northern Israeli Communities ‘Settlements”
August 10, 2021
A view of Metulla, northern Israel (Photo by Hadar Sela)After failing to set the record straight last May when Agence France Presse's Arabic service repeatedly referred to Jewish communities in northern Israel as "settlements," the [...]
NY Times Praises Ilhan Omar’s Book While Glossing Over Her Antisemitism
August 19, 2020
A recent New York Times book review boosts Rep. Ilhan Omar’s (D-MN) autobiography while glossing over her antisemitism. In the paper’s Aug. 16, 2020 edition, NYT reporter Christina Cauterucci writes: The memoir offers breathing room [...]
When TV Interviews of Ilhan Omar Constitute Journalistic Malpractice
August 11, 2020
Rep. Ilhan Omar’s (D-MN) documented animosity toward Jews and Israel was ignored in recent interviews by MSNBC and C-SPAN. MSNBC’s The Beat for July 23, 2020 included host Ari Melber’s 10-minute conversation at 6:16 [...]
Boston TV Station WCVB Teamed Up With Terrorist Supporter CAIR
July 7, 2020
WCVB-TV (channel 5) (Boston’s ABC network affiliate) recently misled area viewers about a matter involving antisemitic propaganda. This occurred on its local Sunday show Cityline hosted by Karen Holmes Ward who is described by the [...]
Harper’s Magazine Echoed Palestinian Propaganda Condemning Israel And America
June 2, 2020
Writing in Harper's, Kevin Baker condemns the U.S. Middle East peace plan [“The Striking Gesture,” Easy Chair, May 2020], mischaracterizing it as, “Give up all your [Palestinian] hopes and your holiest places, embark on a [...]