There is a lot of interesting stuff going on the world right now. Across the northern half of the African continent and especially in Egypt right now, people have been rising up in a rage against the stagnation and oppression of the existing regimes; they demand opportunity and change. When a place becomes so corrupt that you need to grease the wheels in order to have a good job and life, then there can be little hope for progress so long as the corrupt regime remains in place.
Will Egypt change for the better, and will the Egyptian people get a government more accountable to its citizens? That remains to be seen. They could go down a brighter path of equal rights and opportunity for all, or they could go down the dark path of theocracy. One thing is certain: Any government’s power ultimately rests on the consent of the people. When that consent fades away and is removed, no government can hold onto its power forever, and things can eventually reach a boiling point and explode.
Giveaway winners
Congratulations goes out to the winners of my two most recent giveaways:
- Barbara Friedberg of Barbara Friedberg Personal Finance, who has won a complementary copy of “We Have Met the Enemy: Self Control in an Age of Excess“!
- Nicole of Grumpy rumblings of the untenured, who has won a complementary copy of “Early Retirement Extreme“!
Thanks for taking part in the giveaways and for leaving great comments!
Weekend Reading
Highlights
Thanks to Khaleef for mentioning Invest It Wisely on his post “Best Personal Finance Blogs In 2010, And Ones To Watch In 2011“. I am honoured to be part of the list!
Mich at Beating The Index discusses Why High Oil Prices are Good.
In Search of Salt is currently running a giveaway; thanks for awarding me a prize! There are plenty of prizes left, so head over to see what you can win!
Blogging
- January 2011 Blog Statistics and Income Update (Budgeting in the Fun Stuff)
Economics
- Food Riots and China’s 12th Five Year Plan (101 Centavos)
- Seeking an Interest Rate Solution: Why the US Federal Reserve should raise short term rates (Investing Thesis)
Investing
- Investment Fundamental #1 – Your Partner (Retire by 40)
- The Beginners Investing Guide (Buy Like Buffett)
Miscellaneous
- Blending Work And Pleasure (Money Reasons)
- Best of 2010 from Hope to Prosper (Hope to Prosper)
- My Kid Set The Thermostat to 90 Degrees – in 20 Degree Weather!! (Darwin’s Money)
Personal Finance
- 7 Steps to Get Out of Debt and Get Rich – Dave Ramsey (Life And My Finances)
- 9 Tips for Tax Time That Will Save You Expensive Laser Wrinkle Removal (Bucksome Boomer)
- 10 Home Renovation Tips – Learn From Our Experience (Everyday Tips and Thoughts)
- Financing My Dream? (Krantcents)
- HOMEMADE DIVERSION SAFES: SAVE MONEY BY MAKING YOUR OWN (Frugal Confessions)
- How To Save Money During Soon to Be Inflationary Times (The Wall Street Chalkboard)
- The Lesser of Two Evils: Bankruptcy or Debt Consolidation? (Little House in the Valley)
- What Financial Records Should You Keep? (Not Made of Money)
- WHAT YOUR NEW ASTROLOGICAL SIGN MEANS FOR YOUR MONEY? (Barbara Friedberg Personal Finance)
- When Two Incomes Become One (MomVesting)
Philosophical
- Gold and Silver Are Worthless (Personal Finance By The Book)
- The Decline of Personal Responsibility (Hope to Prosper)
- Who Is the Captain of Your Financial Ship? (The Wealth Artisan)
Real Estate
- Bad Tenant Incidents and Lessons Learned (First Gen American)
Video
Thanks to The Biz of Life for sharing this.
Have a great weekend, all!
Hello! Thank you for including my post.
Hello Kevin, thanks for the mention. Let’s hope that things in Egypt go down a more peaceful path before many more people are hurt. More likely, a military junta will step in to “restore order in the name of the people”.
Thanks for the link love Kevin! The 7 steps to get rich are not quick, but they always lead to financial freedom! 🙂
What an amazing video. Although our government is far from perfect, I’m still glad to be part of the good ol US of A. We are so fortunate in so many ways.
Thanks for the link.
Thanks for the mention!
Amazing video Kevin, really hope it all calms down in Egypt.
Kevin,
Thanks for posting my link. Yakezie really is a supportive community!
Appreciate the mention, Kevin.
Have a wonderful weekend.
Nice video. I can barely wrap my mind around what is going on in Egypt right now. It is just crazy.
Thanks for the link, Kevin.
Hopefully a reader or two of yours will be able to make use of the day planners up for grabs. I would hate to have them go to waste.
Have a good week.
Thanks for the mention! On Egypt, it’s amazing how many experts there are in America on the complex situation in Egypt :). I know some actual Eqyptians – Christian minority. They’re not real keen on the departing leadership, but everyone has to question – what next? Is a government influenced by the Muslim Brotherhood gonna be more stable? Doubtful. It will be interesting to see how this plays out, but western societies need to temper expectations – even with Democratic elections. When the majority of the populace believes in stone-age and horribly misogynistic practices, is that a good thing?
@Darwin
Hopefully this is a chance for an improvement, but I agree about tempering expectations; an uprising can always result in another dictatorship or quasi-dictatorship, and there is always the possibility of things becoming worse, as unfortunate as that would be.
Thanks for stopping by, everyone!
Thanks for the mention, sorry it took me soo long to get here (crazy work schedule)…
As for Egypt, I’m afraid the President was just a figure head. I wonder if getting him out of office is really going to accomplish much economically for the country. Hopefully it does!
I think you’re right; it’s not just about the person in power but about the corrupt institutions as well. Even the best people with the best intentions can do evil things in the name of doing good if the structure itself and the incentives are badly placed.
Exactly! The massive Egyptian bureocracy is still in place, along with all the crony sweetheart deals hatched by corrupt govt officials and their counterparts in the business world.