Muslim Ban is " un-American and unconstitutional "

I am proud to be an American and Islam is my religion

While some among us attempt to delude themselves into thinking that we live in a post-racial society, with each passing day it become abundantly clearer that this concept is a farce. Racial tensions are increasing throughout the nation, and negative attitudes towards minorities have exacerbated substantially, with many thanks due to those who misuse religious principles to gain political power while simultaneously backing racist arguments and ideas.

For example, take hate-mongering administrative and senior advisory team of the newly elected republican president Donald Trump who for their nasty hidden agenda have attracted large evangelical Christian followers and far-right white supremacists just to destroy more than 60 years of American civil liberty success story? Many of us watch the ceremonies surrounding the presidential executive orders on Muslim ban and are left scratching our heads, trying to understand what about profanity and hate speech is so enticing to devoted members the Christian faith.

While the exact scope and meaning of the executive order continues to be deciphered, on its face and as applied to date, Trump's order appears to violate several international treaties ratified by the US, some provisions of which have been incorporated into US law and cited as binding by the US Supreme Court. In particular, the order seems to fly in the face of the 1967 Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees which updated the post-World War II Refugee Convention of 1951, and other international human rights law that prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, religion, or national origin.

One of the reasons international law is so valuable is because the international community of nations has developed it as protection against such abuses, both in our country and around the world, often in the name of national security. International law has learned from the past and made explicit that none of these violations can be excused by an appeal to national security, nor should they be permitted by an appeal to xenophobia.

The United Nations Refugee Convention requires that the US provide protection and safe haven to those facing persecution. By shutting the door to refugee admissions whether temporarily or indefinitely, Trump's order flagrantly violates that core obligation. This order also breaks with the long US tradition and history (with some abhorrent exceptions that should never be repeated) of opening its doors to refugees.

The UN High Commissioner for Refugees and International Migration Organization noted this proud tradition in a joint statement in reaction to the executive order. "The long-standing US policy of welcoming refugees has created a win-win situation: it has saved the lives of some of the most vulnerable people in the world who have in turn enriched and strengthened their new societies," the statement read. "The contribution of refugees and migrants to their new homes worldwide has been overwhelmingly positive."

President Trump has further publicly and falsely stated that his order will protect our national security. But the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, acknowledging states' legitimate interests in maintaining public security and combating terrorism, has warned against the effects of making exceptions, or, in his words, "the erosion of long-standing refugee protection principles". While the order doesn't bar all Muslims from entering the US, barring immigration entry from seven majority-Muslim countries, especially when paired with his national security team's record of Islamophobia, leaves no doubt that Muslims are the target of this order. While Trump's order places a moratorium on refugee admissions and an indefinite halt on resettling refugees from Syria, the order leaves an exception for "religious minorities". And while the order's language is neutral, the president stated in a recent interview with the Christian Broadcasting Company that he wants to provide priority to Christian refugees.

But President Trump's un-American and unconstitutional action doesn't just violate the Refugee Convention - it flies in the face of other sources of international law that bind us. The International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, or ICERD, to which the US is bound, requires states parties to "guarantee the right of everyone, without distinction as to race, color, national or ethnic origin, to equality before the law."

US violations of this treaty precede the Trump administration, and have already been so flagrant and obvious that nearly identical concerns were addressed by the ICERD's committee after 9/11. The Committee expressed concern at the US government's discriminatory anti-terrorism measures and remarked that "measures taken in the fight against terrorism must not discriminate, in purpose or effect, on the grounds of race, color, descent, or national or ethnic origin."

The one must wonder if the Republicans are getting paid to write propaganda for ISIS. Anyone works for ISIS would probably consider cutting the republican leadership a check or at least a thank you card for all the hard work they’ve been doing, helping create the narrative that the United States is so anti-Muslim, so consumed with hatred with all things Islam, that they can’t even tell the difference between bad guys like ISIS and the victims who are trying to find safety, i.e. the Syrian refugees. If I were trying to stoke the Us vs. Them narrative that ISIS uses to recruit people to join their apocalyptic war-mongering cult, I would argue that “the West” hates the ordinary Muslim as much as the ISIS fighter, so you might as well be the latter. But why should ISIS bother writing that propaganda, when Republicans are willing to do it for them?

The rush on the right to blame the Syrian refugees for the attacks in Europe has been breathtaking in its racism, and thoughtlessness. The excuse for the hysteria is that ISIS could be hiding wannabe terrorists in the ranks, and that justifies keeping them all out. This argument makes no sense, of course. Most, if not all, of the terrorists in Europe were European nationals. Meanwhile, the refugees are people who are trying to survive and many of them are trying not to be forced to fight. Blaming them only makes sense if you have an irrational fear and hatred of Muslims.

Of course, a lot of Americans, particularly in the conservative base, do have an irrational fear and hatred of Muslims, and so Republicans—who clearly see civil war, terrorism, and a humanitarian crisis mostly as an opportunity to score political points with the base—are pandering as hard as they can. Republican governors are rushing forward to say they will not allow Syrian refugees to enter their states. Most Republican presidential candidates picked up the same message, that the way to fight ISIS is to refuse its victims shelter.

While the cover story is fear of sleeper agents, the rhetoric shows that the real purpose of this is to stoke hatred of Muslims and feed the Christian right’s narrative about how this is a war between Christianity and Islam, starting with the argument, originating with Ted Cruz, that it would be okay to take in Christian refugees, but not Muslim ones.
Mike Huckabee went on Fox News and, in a stunningly overt bit of racism, sneered, “It’s time to wake up and smell the falafel.” Get it? They eat “weird” food and so they shouldn’t be allowed to live here! Did you know that many of these people have seen entire city blocks wiped out with bombs and have watched loved ones die in front of their eyes? But, weird food!

Chris Christie bragged that New Jersey won’t even accept “orphans under age 5.” Because this is not and never was about legitimate fears of terrorism, but about stoking right-wing hatred of Muslims, even those who aren’t even old enough for school yet.
Many experts rushed forward to immediately explain that states don’t have a right to simply ban huge swaths of legal immigrants from living in their state, but it’s doubtful that any of these governors actually intended to try. It’s all posturing for the cameras, showing the conservative base that you hate and fear Muslims just as much as they do.
Luckily for ISIS, the propaganda that works for the Christian right works just as perfectly for ISIS! The only people who want a “clash of civilizations” between Christianity and Islam more than conservative Christians is ISIS, which is, at its heart, an apocalyptic cult that wants to conquer the non-believers, both non-Muslims and Muslims who have a different take on Islam than ISIS fundamentalists do. So, let us give big ups from ISIS to every conservative who feeds the ISIS narrative with their hysterical anti-Muslim bleating.

A lot of ISIS propaganda bashes refugees, telling them that true Muslims should move to the caliphate. Luckily for ISIS, Christian conservatives agree that the Syrian refugees should go home. It is a Fact that ISIS and the Republicans are working together to terrorize Syrian refugees. Nothing brings disparate people together like hate, I guess.
ISIS holds some territory, but at its heart, it’s an idea: A twisted interpretation of Islam, coupled with an aggressive plan of terrorism and conquest. ISIS fights with bombs and guns made by the west, sure, but its main weapon is propaganda. The strategy is to convince people, mostly oppressed Muslims, to buy into the ISIS bullshit about some epic world-changing showdown, which definitely involves the West vs. ISIS. And so Republicans are giving them a gift: The more hate they pile on Muslims, the easier it is for ISIS to argue to potential recruits that peace is not possible and so all-out war is all there is left.

The way to fight propaganda is to get smart, persuasive counter-messages out there. The United States needs to get the word out that ISIS kills Muslims (which they do, in great numbers), but the U.S. helps save Muslim lives. The best way to do this is to take in Syrian refugees and to be faithful to its longstanding policy as the leader of the free world and the founder of the bill of rights. It’s not just the right thing to do, but it’s just smart politics. It shows that we reject, whole-heartedly, the ISIS narrative about clash of civilizations, and that we want peace and unity between peace-loving people everywhere. We can’t accomplish this goal while refusing to treat Syrian refugees like human beings in need of help, which is what they are.

If you care about breaking ISIS up and reducing violence, the first step is to take Syrian refugees gladly, to show that we are better and more moral and more peaceable than our enemies. Republicans refuse to do this; instead feeding the ISIS propaganda machine and helping them recruit more people with their hate. Looking over the landscape, it’s hard not to conclude that given a choice between saving lives—not just Muslim lives, but the American lives that will be lost if this conflict escalates—and scoring political points against the Democrats, they will score their points rather than save lives.

The international community has seen this before, and it has wisely created mechanisms to stop history from repeating itself. International companies, academic institutions, and even the international air transport association have raised serious concerns regarding the detrimental impact of the order on their staff and ability to conduct business. Even Trump's own employees took a bold and public stance against the ban.

Trump's Muslim ban has enraged world leaders and was condemned by UN officials. The secretary general of the UN, Antonio Guterres, said that Trump's executive actions "violate our basic principles … [and] are not effective if the objective is to indeed avoid terrorists to enter the United States."

Additionally, several UN human rights experts issued a joint statement blasting Trump's immigration ban as discriminatory and in violation of US human rights obligations. It shouldn't take the chancellor of another country or the top refugee and human rights officials in the world to tell President Trump that fear and xenophobia are no excuse for discrimination.
But if he won't listen to the UN or Chancellor Merkel or concerned companies, academic institutions, transport associations, human rights organizations, and over 100 diplomats, maybe he should listen to former US President Ronald Reagan, supposedly a hero of his. In 1980, a year after the Refugee Act was signed into law, the new president, just a few months into his presidency, re-affirmed the US' commitment to welcome the exiled.
"We shall continue America's tradition as a land that welcomes peoples from other countries," he said. "We shall also, with other countries, continue to share in the responsibility of welcoming and resettling those who flee oppression."

My Iraq Experience in 2003 دكتور عدلى حسنين حله فى العراق

My Iraq Experience in 2003

  My deployment to Iraq in 2003/4 by USAID and The Department of Defense (DoD) as a human rights and democracy education Advisor changed me in many ways. It opened my eyes to poverty, oppression, and human need. I saw Iraqi children standing barefoot on the burning sand of the desert. I saw old villagers afraid of both American soldiers and terrorist extremist groups. I saw families of Americans providing toys, school supplies and clothing to poor Iraqis. I saw bravery, kindness, and evil on both sides up close. I saw suffering on a scale I had never encountered before during my 30 plus years as US Government and United Nations development expert all over the world.

People asked me whether I made a difference being deployed or sent to countries like Iraq, Bosnia, Yemen, Lebanon, Mali or Palestine I would say, “A very small difference, but if everyone makes a very small difference, in time it will make a large difference.” I have learned to strive for large differences, but to be content with small ones. Trying to be humane and just in a war is difficult, but it differentiates us from despots, dictators and hate groups. I am proud I serve in institutions with rules of engagement that seek to protect innocent life without any distinction for race, religion, social association or sex orientation. I am proud to have served with people who joined our missions for the right reasons.

Many people ask questions about what I did in Iraq - was I in combat zone, did I wetness the killing of anybody, etc. While plenty of military personnel engage the enemy, there are more people like me in support roles than on the front line. These support personnel also risk their lives, but their tasks are different. Surprisingly, even support personnel can get Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) - there are horrifying events and memories that can affect us as human beings. Vets want and need community, just like everybody else.

A person I admire is Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a Lutheran pastor in Nazi Germany who actively worked against the Nazi regime, which led to his execution in a concentration camp. He began as a pacifist, but then came to believe it was necessary to kill Adolf Hitler in order to stop the genocide of the Jews by the Nazis. If I could ask him a question, it would be what he thought about America today - he lived briefly in New York in the 1930’s, and I wonder what he would think of our society now after the shocking election of Donald Trump and his horrifying picks for the current administration.

So many vital issues! We must learn to work together to safeguard our world and each other; education is the key. Learning together, working together, playing together - these create relationships which allow us to live in peace together. Many people think people in the military want war. They are wrong Mr. President - almost all of us really want peace. It’s why I believe kind relationships create peace.

My wife and I are art and music lovers! And we raised our children to be a third culture kids with love and respect for all human and other beings. Nature, culture and beautiful music inspire us. My life is full of love; family, friends, and hope ... hope that I leave the world a better place for my children and grandchildren.
Will war ever end? ANSWER: I wish I had an answer to this question myself - it is certainly within humanity’s power to prevent it! However, evil has always existed and will probably always exist in our world, so I think some form of violence and warfare is the unfortunate result of the current administration, and we must prepare for it.

I am truly proud to be a Muslim because I know Islam is the right religion and I am on the right path. I am also proud to be an American because we’re all different and yet we’re alike in a lot of ways. Since the beginning, we’ve always been a nation that the world has looked to as a place where anything is possible; It is the land of the braves, it is the land of the “American Dream”. We have freedoms that people in other countries only dream about but we’re not without our flaws. We know how to make fun of ourselves during the good times… And support each other during the bad.

Malta the tiny wonderful island دكتورعدلى حسنين حله فى مالطة الجميلة

Malta is tiny but we left with a big opinion of this wonderful island

My beautiful wife and I had a marvelous 9 days in Malta, 10 –19 September 2015. Based on all year planning research we were really looking forward to the visit. And I’m glad to say our high expectations were well exceeded! Other than the high humidity on our arrival day the weather was mostly warm and humid throughout, pleasantly bright sunshine, ideal for sightseeing. We love walking and did loads, which was one of the pleasures of the holiday, just ambling around in the early morning sunshine soaking up the atmosphere and admiring the lovely architecture. We used the excellent public buses extensively getting great value from our 2€ ticket (valid for two hours) trip. Above all we enjoyed our roundtable conversations with the wonderful people and listened to the aspiration and the excitement of the future generations in the middle of the Mediterranean sea.  

I would like to pass on to you some of our lovely experiences, so here goes.
The view of the fortified Three Cities – Cospicua, Vittoriosa and Senglea – from the port is truly breathtaking and one of many highlights of our short break to this Mediterranean island. Our first day had already started well, with a walk through the walled city to the Barrakka Gardens, to watch from the shade of the palm trees as the little fishing boats returned with their morning catches.
From here we meandered through Valletta, down Republic Street where we stopped for a snack and espresso in one of the city’s best coffee bars.
Fortified, we began our descent to Valletta’s waterfront, admiring numerous palatial churches and boutique gelato shops on the way. Ahead of us, standing proud above the clear water the Three Cities – a term first used during the French occupation of Malta.
Given the veneration of St. Paul in these parts we thought it apt that our first visit was to the nearby eponymous Church of the Shipwreck. The interior is Baroque ornate with beautiful marble columns, paintings and numerous treasures.

Walking around the gorgeous streetscapes it was interesting to see the ubiquitous colorful wooden balconies. We are very interested in architecture, viewing it as a form of public art and Valletta is a fabulous exemplar. We took in the Lower Barracca Gardens and the road around Fort St Elmo.
Our second day starts with our early morning walk with anexpresso and pastry at CaffeCordina, with its marvelous indoor seating with the decorative Bibliotheca building in the background of its entrance. It was lovely to sit and watch the streets awakening..  Then we walked to the bus station and took a nice and easy bus ride to Mdina, the island’s first capital. In the Second World War Malta was awarded the George Cross after a two year and five month siege and it’s a source of great pride to this day. During the siege, 80% of the island’s buildings were damaged yet the ancient architecture of Mdina – known as the silent city – was largely untouched, making it one of the most authentic, interesting and enchanting places on the island.We availed of the lovely sunshine and visited Mdina, which from entering through the fine gate we thought absolutely gorgeous. The yellow hue of the architectural stone was dazzling in the bright sunshine and everywhere was pristine clean. We entered the Carmelite Church and gazed at its wonderful dome and interior. We continued to Bastion Square for panoramic clear views over much of Malta.
We visited the Grand Master’s Palace. We do not usually frequent war-theme museums, but found this particular Armory museum absorbing. The State Apartments are wonderful, with the flamboyantly decorative Corridor of the Knights leading to the other ornate rooms.Had a fine walk admiring the blue sea with Sliema and Fort Manoel opposite and the massive bastions on our left, with their strategically placed watchtowers. We marveled at the bulk of the bastions, particularly striking when walking to the area where renovations are underway. It was interesting to see a little religious grotto hewn out of the rock and almost hidden within the walls.
We visited the magnificent St Paul’s Cathedral, beyond the lovely façade; the whole interior including the floor design is fabulous.. We visited the incomparable St. John’s Cathedral. The high Baroque is superlative. We found the museum very interesting with the great collections of choral books, vestments and tapestries. We admired the famous Caravaggio.
We had a most enjoyable time on Gozo Island. After lunch at Independence Square surrounded by the open air market we explored the marvelous Citadel. First stop was the impressive Cathedral whose façade was substantially under scaffolding. The interior is wonderful, including the convincing trompe l'oeil of a great dome.
We Spenta day in the Three Cities, took bus No 2 to last stop Richie. Entering Birgu/Vittoriosa through the impressive Gate of Provence, we found it delightful, quiet and sedate.We had a grand walk along the marina waterfront marveling at the super yachts. Work was underway at Fort St Angelo. I enquired whether a visit was possible to be told that restoration work is scheduled to finish in 2015 when it re-opens as a visitor center. The gorgeous St Lawrence’s Church was open and we admired its interior.We decided to take bus to the pretty seaside village of Marsaskala, and saw further typical Maltese countryside.

Comino Island and the blue lagoon:  Wow this place is incredible and the sea so blue, the turquoise waters call you in however this place is absolutely heaving with tourists and you need mountain goat skills to be able to get around.Beach is mainly rocky foreshore with minimal stretch of sand. Very busy in summer especially when the your boats arrive, large area for swimming but space to sit etc. at a premium. Sun lounges & beach umbrella are available for hire luckily as there is no shade. Numerous vans sell cold drinks, ice creams & hot food at reasonable prices especially as it's a captive audience. Life guards are on duty & they assess the current between Comino & Cominotto and advise whether it's safe to swim to the small islet. You can read a Brief History of the islands of Malta in the following site: http://www.maltamigration.com/about/malta.shtml#top

Dr Adly Hassanein Hella Proud Citizen Of The World دكتورعدلى حسنين حله

Proud Citizen Of The World

I am a citizen of the world and I am proud to be born in Egypt the birthplace of civilization.

I am proud to be an Arab because in all aspects of our westernized daily lives, in our homes, offices and universities; in religion, philosophy, science and the arts we are indebted to Arab creativity, insight and scientific perseverance.

I am proud to be a Muslim because Islam is a holistic religion integrating all aspects of life. Islamic Lands were once the bacon of scientific research, innovation, tolerance, philosophy, and inventions. Out of 1400 years of its history, Islam remained the global dominant force for ~ 1100 years. That is...71% of its ENTIRE history...No other civilization in human history can match this success ratio.

I am proud to be an African because I am overwhelmed by the grace and persistence of the African people, the beauty of its land and the magnificence of its nature. As Desmond Tutu said “When the missionaries came to Africa they had the Bible and we had the land. They said 'Let us pray.' We closed our eyes. When we opened them we had the Bible and they had the land”.

I am proud to be an American where at least I know I'm free. And I won't forget the men who died, who gave that right to me. And I'd gladly stand up next to you and defend her still today. ‘Cause there ain't no doubt I love this land. God bless the U.S.A. In terms of being an American, what is most significant is that the government can’t come after me because of what I say.

Now I am a citizen of the world and I am proud to be and I am inviting you to join me and to do what is right to save our humanity or what is left from it.
We are in a global age. The world has become a global village due to technological advances in communications and other spheres of human endeavor. Being a world citizen can create international cooperation on all levels, uniting everyone and making the world a better and safer place for all; the mentality of "us against them" has caused untold, useless suffering worldwide.

Let's Promote good governance, Respect and defend human rights, gender equity, religious pluralism, encourage digital broadband access, support environmental protection, sustainable development, poverty alleviation, contribute to cessation of conflicts between countries, advocate for elimination of weapons of mass destruction, respect and protect cultural diversity. Let's leave our conformable sofa and get involved in the planning and management of our future.

The Challenge of Establishing Democracy in Egypt

 The Challenge of Establishing Democracy in Egypt
A Conversation with My Daughter
By: Dr. Adly Mohamed Hassanein
International Expert on Democracy and Governance

 This paper reflects my keen interest in establishing a new government in Egypt that is open and secure for the various religious, ethnic, and cultural groupings that exist in the country. It also reflects a simple dialogue I had with my daughter a few weeks ago, when she asked the following question: “Father some of my friends think that Hosni Mubarak was great leader and it is too bad that he was overthrown and other of my friends tell me he was a very bad leader and the Egyptian people should be grateful that he is gone. Father what do you think?” It appears to me that my daughter’s question is both simplistic and yet surprisingly profound and thus this paper has been written to help an eighteen years old consider some ways by which she might seek to answer her own question.

I have been a world citizen, an international development professional and Middle Eastern history expert for over thirty years and it seems to me that the lessons of history have a lot to tell us about what kind of government Egypt should have. I began my discussion with my daughter by presenting a list of qualities that would make a good leader and a list of qualities that would make for a bad leader in terms of the Egyptian people.
First the qualities of a good leader:

1. He/she would accept the basic tenants of Islam that teaches that in the eyes of Allah all men and women were created equal and born free. This profound notion of human equality and freedom was a revolutionary concept introduced by the Prophet Muhammad and suggested that in God’s mind, the different ways that we might, judge and evaluate people (be they white, brown or black; rich or poor; free or slave; or Arab, Indian, or Chinese) was of no consequence to Allah. A good leader would accept this idea and would seek to ensure that all people in his/her society would be treated fairly. He/she would be tolerant toward all people in society who are different from him/her, he/she would seek to ensure minority groups (people who had different religious beliefs, different racial and ethnic backgrounds) would be protected from injustice or unfair treatment.
2. He/she would be deeply concerned both with the problems facing his/her society (poverty, illiteracy, sickness, lawlessness), but also with the achievement of important goals that would make society better (better systems of education for both children and adults; better systems of health care; the strengthening of the economy, ensuring that each person would be able to earn enough money to take care of his/her family; the enhancement of justice, equity and fairness; the establishment of opportunities for personal growth and development (arts, music, sports, leisure); and the freedom to worship God as his/her conscience might dictate (no secret police or military courts).
3. His/her personal and private life, as well as his/her public and political life, would reflect the same basic values of love, freedom and justice, honesty, courage, compassion, fairness, nonviolence, and generosity. He/she would seek to be submissive to God’s teachings and commandments in a genuine and consistent Islamic way. People would come to trust him/her knowing that he/she was truly a kind, wise, honest, just, and compassionate leader both privately and publicly.
4. He/she would seek to surround him/herself with the brightest, most competent, and experienced people he could find. He would seek people who understood what it takes to solve society’s pressing problems and achieve society’s important goals. It would not matter what religion they might believe in, or to what ethnic community or racial or tribal group they belonged. What would be most important would be their abilities, competencies and their commitment to the values of honesty, fairness, justice and good effort in their work.
5. He/she would seek to council with others, listening and considering the opinions and ideas of a variety of other people, not just his/her family, friends or close associates. He/she would be willing to listen to others, able to learn from others, being humble enough to know when he/she might not know everything. This ability to listen to all the people would be a fundamental attribute of a good leader.
6. Finally, he/she would be committed to work within the constraints of the law. He/she would insist that people cannot be imprisoned or punished without due process of the law (through an independent court system), that a person’s property land, house, tools, furniture, or business) could not arbitrarily be taken away or confiscated by the government, a political party, or powerful individuals. He/she would be committed to making certain that all people would be treated fairly, that no person, group or organization would receive special favors or be granted preferential treatment.

Now let us contrast these with the attributes found in bad leaders:

1. First, he/she would reject the inherent equality of all people and thus would seek to pursue policies, and establish institutions, that would enhance and give special advantages to his/her family, clan and friends. He/she would take the resources of society from the many (the poor, the disadvantaged, and the weak) and distribute these resources to the few (those who would help him/her stay in power). Those who were his/her supporters would be given many special advantages and all the rest would be persecuted, ignored and impoverished.
2. He/she would be less interested in the true needs of the country. He/she would spend the scare resources of society on building a huge military organization to wage war with his neighbors and to glorify his own ego. Instead of spending these resources on schools, research centers, hospitals, work opportunities for new generations and other important social needs, he/she would purchase bombs, guns, tanks, airplanes and other instruments of war. The whole society would suffer because of his/her personal ambitions and his/her lack of concern for the needs of the people as a whole.
3. He/she would tend to present him/herself as a person of good character, a good leader. In public he/she would present him/herself as supportive of religion, as following in the footsteps of past leaders, while at the same time in private life, he/she would be hypocritical, using violence, torture and brutality toward those who would oppose him/her. This inconsistency and hypocrisy would breed cynicism, apathy, suspicion, dishonesty and disillusionment throughout the entire society.
4. He/she would tend to surround him/herself with people who would do exactly as he/she said. The officials would not be selected because they are the most competent, but because they are totally obedient to his/her will. Thus many officials would be given much power in government even though they lacked the needed education, experience, integrity and ability to meet the true needs of the people efficiently and effectively.
5. He/she would tend to ignore the advice and counsel of others. He/she would consider him/herself much smarter than those around him/her. He/she would never be able to admit that he/she had made a mistake and would often blame others for the problems that exist in society. Because of his/her ego and unwillingness to listen to others, he/she tends to make many mistakes, cause much suffering in the society, and thus be oblivious to the many ways that his/her government could be more effective in solving the problems that society is facing.
6. He/she will tend to do whatever it takes to stay in power. He/she will tend to ignore the requirements of the law whenever necessary. In his/her obsession to stay in power, he/she will be willing to imprison and use torture, to brutalize and even kill all those that stand in his/her way.

As I outlined these contrasting characteristics of a good leader and a bad leader, my daughter said to me. “It is obvious which kind of leader most people would want for their country, but father, how does a country ensure that good men and women become leaders in their country?” I thought for a minute and then suggested that while there are hundreds of different kinds of government systems, there are essentially only three ways by which a person can become a political leader:

1. Selection by birth: This is commonly found in most monarchies and some dictatorships, where the son or daughter becomes the next leader simply because of their birth.

2. Selection by power: This is a very common way by which an individual becomes the leader. He/she simply forces him/herself on the people through military power or his/her political influence.

3. Selection by free election: This is always found in democratic systems, where competing candidates are free to debate and challenge each other in ways that allow the members of society freely to choose the leader that they want.

I explained to my daughter that it is important to remember that both good and bad leaders may emerge as a result of all three types of selection. There can be good and bad kings, there can be good and bad dictators, and there can be good and bad freely elected leaders. However, of the three types, the one that has historically had the greatest probability of empowering good leaders has been leadership selected through periodic free elections.
When a person becomes a king or a dictator there is no easy, nonviolent way to have him/her removed when he/she proves to be incompetent, unjust or cruel. The people simply must suffer until he/she dies or is forcibly removed. When a leader is forced to participate in an election every few years, the people have an opportunity to judge his/her strengths and weaknesses, to compare him/her with other candidates, and thus have the opportunity to re-elect or to remove the leader, depending on what kind of a leader he or she has been. The history of the world demonstrates conclusively that good leadership is much less apt to emerge in a given society when leadership is independent of the will of the people.
You see my good daughter, this is the key advantage of a free and democratic society. No society can always be free of bad leaders, but a free society, with free elections, with the rule of law, and the guarantees of basic human rights, will consistently tend to have a greater probability that good leaders will emerge.
“Thank you, Father!”
God Bless you and your Generation and God Bless Egypt and the free world.