Head of Saudi religious police condemns treatment of nail polish girl while government accuses activist of "disrespect"

The head of Saudi's religious police "came out strongly" against the member of the CPVPV who was caught on a girl's cell phone camera ordering her to leave the mall for wearing nail polish. The video became a viral hit on the blogosphere.  The dislikes however, far outweighed the likes- 2,775 likes to 8,400 dislikes. "The world is manufacturing airplanes and we are still telling a woman, 'Leave the mall because you've got nail polish on your fingers,'" local news quoted Sheikh Abdullatif Abdel Aziz al-Sheikh as saying. Both parties, however, we're responsible for the escalation of the situation, according to al-Sheikh, "I was very disappointed by what I have seen.  The matter had been exaggerated and negatively exploited.  The way the member of the commission behaved sad most right, even if the girl had gone too far." The government's response was, to me, the embodiment of the one step forward, two steps back method of opening Saudi society.  This is especially true in light of the fact Saudi officials announced activist Waleed Abu Al-Khair was accused with "disrespecting" the judiciary by contacting foreign NGOs about a petition to release detainees.  It seems like the Saudis are going through the motions, but there remains a thick red line no one is allowed to cross.  This line ensures the perpetuation of the status quo.  How to reform if you can't change the status quo?? PS-It seems the Saudi trip had the opposite of the intended effect. It was to show us the soft side of Saudi in a PR type of way, but seeing the ridiculous and repressive rules, for both men and women, made me even more passionate about my beliefs about the government.

McClatchy: Egypt's former spy chief runs for president, Islamist candidate excluded

Headlines like that give me a sinking feeling in my stomach.

Omar Suleiman, the former head of Egypt's despised intelligence for over 18 years, announced Friday his candidacy for president.  He's like a caricature of an evil boogyman and is responsible for much of the repression and torture of the Mubarak years.

Ooga booga! I'm going to come and kidnap you and take you to an undisclosed location to torture you. 

His election would be a huge slap in the face to the revolutionary movements, including the Islamists, who perhaps suffered most under Mubarak.

His announcement comes after revelations that Salafi frontrunner Hazem Abu Ismail's mother held dual United States-Egyptian nationality, which disqualifies him from running for president.

This dude: Actually more legitimate.

The timing of the disclosure regarding his mother is very convenient for those who want to nip the Islamist surge in the bud.

Honestly, part of me feels for the Islamists. A lot of them, especially the younger ones, really do believe in the hope-y, change-y stuff. And a lot of people voted for Islamists--70 percent, in fact. No, the elections weren't perfect. There were a lot of barriers. But liberals did what liberals (in the United States, especially) do best--they bickered amongst themselves. They didn't have the institutional knowledge the MB had for political organization. They lost. And just because the powers that be--SCAF, the Egyptian intelligencia, the United States--doesn't like where things are going, does not justify the delegitimization of the Egyptian political process.

Besides, imagine what would happen if the thousands of Egyptians, emboldened and heartened after the revolution, saw the elections that followed as proof their vote would never count and democracy will never come.

As Egypt moves toward democratization, it will serve everyone well to keep Islamists in politics. Marginalizing and alienating them will only serve to radicalize them as they simmer with (probably well-founded) disdain.

Update: I got it. Suleiman reminds me of Cheney. Fact.