It's the GCC effect, not the Axe effect

Jordan welcomed the warmth of the Gulf Cooperation Council in accepting it, preliminary, as one of their own, well at least the official Jordanian response. It was a warm response, to say the least, but then again the GCC club of "oldies" does have their fair share of warmth, one would be inclined to say too much warmth. Especially when one heads toward the never-land of a certain sultan of Oman, and I use the word "head" cautiously.

The effect of such an alliance is really very debatable, for one it's not really all that clear as to what Jordan as nation has to give, or what it might be asked to give. But there is a lot to be given, if that turns out to be the case. Although, personally, I could think of a lot of things I wouldn't like to be given, even in the name of economic welfare.

To lay the cards down and break such a situation down into a business deal it seems like Jordan can really do with an economic boost, but in politics as in love, war, business, retail, and every other aspect of material life I can come to think of, there is no such thing as a free dinner, or breakfast, lunch or even brunch for those who prefer to skip the "early worm". So what do the GCC old school want from the new comers, as it will evidently cost them quite a sum in return for whatever it is they seek.

On the other hand Morocco was also shortlisted, for a trial period on the list of oil whales to be. So obviously the geographical element of the matter can be put aside, if it hadn't already been put aside upon knowing that Yemen isn't a part of the elite council of elites. So again, what can we add to this gents club, and I say gents because evidently Saudi Arabia is the big 'playa' in the GCC, so try hinting any female role whatsoever in this whole hullabaloo and see what happens then - wink, wink.

So if it's not geographical, economical (mutual-benefits as against leeching ), then it must be political. What does Jordan, Morocco & the other six existing members have in common, other than the fact that their regimes are non-democratic and still in unquestioned power? Huh, what was that? cough, cough, I said nothing. Oh yea, and I wouldn't feel too shy to add that the fall, or fall-to-be, to the neighboring Syrian regime opens a few doors around the place, and closes a few too, especially for Iran - another wink, wink? Maybe

I seem to have looked over the hedge a little bit too much, so lets lay low, something we've learnt to do well as of late, and think of this on a micro-scale, whats it to the average Joe, or average Mustafah more like. Should people get excited? I think not.

After all when you talk about sticky cover-ups for bad smelling areas, you can only think of two possible alternatives: politics or deodorant. For deodorant's sake we have the fast acting Axe effect, which is said to attract the opposite sex with its enticing oder, but I sicerely doubt the GCC effect will be anything of the sort.

The Painful Reality

The painful reality that was exposed by the recent Arab revolutions against their dictatorships is a very painful one, it is a reality that Arabs in general have been ruled for years by monarchies of dictators that hog absolute power and do not take "no" for an answer. The reality says that as democracy has grown in the world in the past few decades it has grown scarce in the Arab world. These dictatorship monarchies have reached the state at which they cannot even begin to fathom that the people who were always seen as a pathway are actually the ones who give them their legitimacy, and once you lose that legitimacy you are no longer a rightful representative of the people.

Giving people their rights, and listening to their voices is not something you should do expecting a Nobel prize for. Personally, I despise their attitudes. Arab regimes have only just began to give their people part of their rights, and that in itself is painful. Why does it have to take bloodshed, killing by the hundreds, mass demonstration and army deployment to give people their rights, rights they should have been given a long time ago. These regimes do not deserve a second chance, they do not deserve sympathy and definitely do not deserve to stay in power. They have ruled for years on end without changing anything and suddenly, feeling the heat, see the need for reform. This in itself is the painful reality.

Democracy should never be a privilege, it is a right.