The Fighting in Egypt

I never fail to be amazed by how the US Government reacts to foreign events.  Let's contrast two somewhat similar events:  first, there is the attack on demonstrators by the Assad regime two and a half years ago in Syria.  That attack continued unabated until the demonstrations morphed into civil war.  Second, we have the attack by the forces of the military government against demonstrators in Cairo who were supporting ousted president Morsi.  In both cases, government forces tried to break up the demonstrations with violent force.  There are also differences, however.  In Syria, the attack came without warning.  In Egypt, the government told the demonstrators for at least a week that they would be removed by force if they did not leave the area that they were occupying. 

The US response was also quite different.  When Assad first sent snipers to mow down the demonstrators in Damascus, the American government was silent.  There was no comment on the attacks.  In Cairo, where the government warned the demonstrators that they would be moved and then came to move them by force, the Obama administration is out with a major condemnation of this action.  After sitting silently to watch Assad slaughter demonstrators in Syria, our government is now loudly protesting when the Egyptians move demonstrators out of the way by force.

I am not going to express an opinion as to the efficacy or propriety of either reaction in this post.  I am only commenting on the stark difference in the American reaction to the two events.  It is, to be understated, simply amazing.