The Arab Spring
The Arab Spring
The Arab Spring is an uprising in the Arab world against their government. The uprising started in Tunisia by a man named Mohamed Bouazizi who set himself on fire in protest for the harassment and repression from the Tunisian government. Rebel groups throughout the Arab world in countries such as Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, Syria and Bahrain, were formed with the intent of overthrowing their government and/or changing their regime. This came as a shock to many political scientists because they widely understood that the dictatorship was stable in the Middle East. However, they were wrong and as a result, the United States is faced with a dilemma concerning the support of the newly democratic states and their policies. Therefore, I think that President Obama should continue to wait and watch the policies the newly democratic states make before taking action.
FLS states that “there are three sets of factors that can explain the emergence of organized, armed opposition groups: [the first are the] features of the group and its interests, [the second are the] features of the country in which the group resides, [and finally are the] features of the international system that influence the possibilities for external support” (FLS, pg. 225). In regards to the Arab Springs, the main Middle Eastern countries involved such as, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, Syria, Yemen and Bahrain, had high unemployment rates especially among young men whom make up a large amount of the rebel group population (FLS, pg. 225). The first factor is demonstrated in the high unemployment rate, combined with the increased food prices. This factor contributed to the unrest experienced in these countries because the interests of these young men are to provide for their families and with no job and high prices life it is very hard. The second factor is apparent throughout all of the countries. The countries are extremely unhappy with their corrupt and repressive government, and with “activists
The Arab Spring is an uprising in the Arab world against their government. The uprising started in Tunisia by a man named Mohamed Bouazizi who set himself on fire in protest for the harassment and repression from the Tunisian government. Rebel groups throughout the Arab world in countries such as Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, Syria and Bahrain, were formed with the intent of overthrowing their government and/or changing their regime. This came as a shock to many political scientists because they widely understood that the dictatorship was stable in the Middle East. However, they were wrong and as a result, the United States is faced with a dilemma concerning the support of the newly democratic states and their policies. Therefore, I think that President Obama should continue to wait and watch the policies the newly democratic states make before taking action.
FLS states that “there are three sets of factors that can explain the emergence of organized, armed opposition groups: [the first are the] features of the group and its interests, [the second are the] features of the country in which the group resides, [and finally are the] features of the international system that influence the possibilities for external support” (FLS, pg. 225). In regards to the Arab Springs, the main Middle Eastern countries involved such as, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, Syria, Yemen and Bahrain, had high unemployment rates especially among young men whom make up a large amount of the rebel group population (FLS, pg. 225). The first factor is demonstrated in the high unemployment rate, combined with the increased food prices. This factor contributed to the unrest experienced in these countries because the interests of these young men are to provide for their families and with no job and high prices life it is very hard. The second factor is apparent throughout all of the countries. The countries are extremely unhappy with their corrupt and repressive government, and with “activists