I feel that sometimes we do exaggerate about our traditions and put some taboos and concerns without even questioning it. You may say that is different in the new generation, I'd say yes to an extent. However, the majority are still adoring the "group-think" style where everyone if following what is there without not even questioning is it the best thing to do or not.
That is clear on the social, cultural, and even on the economic and political levels..
On the socio-cultural level people tend to consider the traditions are sacred even if it become a show-stopper or create a bottle-neck. Check marriage and the copy and paste procedures and problems, education and its copy cats graduates, entertainment, tv programs...etc.
On the Economic level, we have this tendency of copying the success without assessing why did they succeed and is the surrounding environment and our capabilities are suitable to repeat theirs or not (you can find a whole street selling the same commodities just because one or two shops were successful at a certain point in time). Also, the tendency to save in banks and not do any investments or take risks, the tendency to buy very low quality product many times instead of buying a better durable one that have the same life span, the tendency to spend money without any balance or relativeness with income to show off (like Mobiles), or own mood (Cigs or Drugs)..etc.
Even now on the political level, people just go with the flow ... Of course people have the free right to choose and select, but do they really do? Does everyone for example selecting Abou Ismail, is really doing so because he or she are convinced of Abo Ismail and his values, vision, and strategies? I have checked all the referendums in Egypt in the last 100 years, and we never said NO, not even once.. and the highest percentage a No got was like these days last year (22.8%). The rulers of Egypt know this and always play on that line of thought.
What I wanna say is that Jan 25th Revolution has been losing on many fronts, but if we take a deeper look we can see that there is an important factor that everyone has been ignoring ... THE REVAMPING of all our norms and traditions ... The younger generations (below 40) and specially university students are coming up with different values that are much more powerful than their parents and elders... SCAF, Ekhwan, may seem winning now, but who will conquer the future.. who is leading the change .. Who will be there to witness in the first place... It is these young generations. My bet is on them, and I will be putting my effort and time in supporting my, and the younger generation to be able to lead and change this country on the medium and long terms. That is the only hope I have now after all what happened to us over the past 14 months..
Can't say I am still Optimistic as I was a year ago, but I still have a lonely hope, and I cant afford to lose it as well.
Mohaly
