Stay classy, SCAF supporters: Clinton met with Lewinsky jeers during recent Cairo visit

It took me awhile to write about this because I have so much to say and no idea how to say it.

It started a few weeks ago when an Egyptian friend posted a photo of Clinton on Facebook captioned, "To Hilary Clinton focus your attention on the Monica Lewinsky scandal!!!"

Ignoring the spelling mistakes and the poor grammar, I almost reached through my computer and strangled my dear Egyptian friend. He's obviously part of the upper class, works for the government, and once defended Omar Suleiman, Egypt's answer to Dick Cheney, as a good man.

Disagree with Clinton's actions as Secretary of State. Whatever, I don't really care.  But Lewinsky? Why define her by her husband being a jerk? What the hell does that have anything to do with her work? Nothing. Don't be such a machismo douche.

He answered that she kept on talking about SCAF and should mind her own business. I told him to mind his.

That was unfortunately a prelude to the Egyptian reaction to Clinton's recent visit to Cairo.  Fed by rumors Clinton is a secret Islamist, protesters gathered outside her hotel and pelted her motorcade with tomatoes, holding signs with similarly poor grammar, taunting, "Monica! Monica!" The protests were led by Tawfiq Okasha, Egypt's answer to Glen Beck. They pointed to information from right-wing nutjob Frank Gaffey, who accused Clinton's rock-star staffer of being a closet Muslim Brotherhood supporter.

Via Ayman Mohyeldin. I don't really know what that's supposed to mean. 

According to Foreign Policy Passport:

 If Hillary Clinton is indeed a covert Islamist, she's not doing a very good job eliminating the tensions between the Muslim Brotherhood and the U.S. government. The list of potential issues goes on and on: The Brotherhood's uncertain guarantees of equal rights to Copts and women, its shaky commitment to inclusive democracy, and its antagonism toward Israel are just a few of the subjects that could trip up relations with the United States. Decades of built-up antagonism and suspicion can sabotage even the most basic cooperation: Just this month, a spokesman for the Brotherhood's political party accused the American NGO workers who were arrested under the former military government of being involved in "intelligence work."

Hillary's response? It was a shameful waste of tomatoes.

I'm not particularly surprised by the lack of class.  But really? Ugh. See. I don't even know how to say what I'm trying to say.

Graffiti around Cairo

My favorite part of traveling in Egypt is the graffiti. It acts as an informal opinion survey and gives an idea of what people are thinking. Compared to my trip in the summer of 2011, the graffiti around Cairo right now is explicitly anti-military. That should worry SCAF, who entered into power wildly popular with the Egyptian people, who saw the military as defenders of the revolution. Like politicians everywhere, SCAF saw their popularity plummet as they began their military rule. More so than the anger usually directed toward politicians, many Egyptians are angry with SCAF and see them as simply an extension of the old regime. The regime did not change; it was only decapitated. This is reflected in much of the graffiti I saw around Cairo.

"The revolution continues."

"Liar"

"Son of [something really bad]"

Tantawi, the head of SCAF

"Mohammed [I can't read it], martyr of freedom."

"The street is for us."

"The revolution continues," with Tantawi and Mubarak as the same person.

The regime set up roadblocks around the interior ministry. Street artists painted them to depict the scenes behind the blocks. 

Tantawi does not equal Egypt. Disagreeing with him does not make one a traitor.

Last February, thousands of football fans flooded the field after a game between al-Masry and al-Ahly in Port Said, Egypt. Security forces failed to intervene. Fans were thrown to their deaths off stadium walls and others were killed by explosives.  In the end, at least 74 people were killed.

EThe violence shocked Egypt and embodied the sense of insecurity and state failure that pervades post-revolution.  Many maintained the police deliberately turned a blind eye to the violence to pay back the football fans for their leadership role in the toppling of Mubarak.

Abo Bakr painted the walls of AUC's main campus with a mural depicting the victims of the football violence.

The AUC wall also shows pharonic-inspired graffiti, designed by Alaa Awad, showing a funeral and highlighting the role of women in the revolution. 

"ACAB" = "All cops are bastards"

Suzanne and Hosni Mubarak

These guys are wanted for shooting out the eyes of protestors.