Egypt in Crisis

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Egyptian Twitter Crisis Egypt's protest to evict President Hosni Mubarak from office were successful.
On January 25 2011, over 1.5 million people of Egypt said "No!" No to poverty, no to unemployment, no to government corruption, and no autocratic governance.

President Mubarak

Millions took the streets, a day entitled "The Day of Anger" people from, different social and economical status, and religions backgrounds, demanded President Hosni Mubarak to the left.
This chain reaction of protest started in Tunisian, when the Tunisians overthrew their long-time president.
The Egyptian people wanted "Change." President Mubarak was in control for 13 years. Protesters grieved over legal and political issues, police brutality, lack of free elections, and freedom of speech.
President Mubarak  responded after the capital city Cairo was named “a war zone.” Then implement a curfew, but police or army officials didn’t enforce it. At last President Mubarak appointed Omar Suleiman former head of the Egyptian General Intelligence Directorate Omar as Vice President. Omar announced on February 11 2011, President Mubarak will no longer be president and will give power to the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces. Soon the constitution was suspended by both houses of parliament.
If you are not on the forefront of a protest, it’s not possible to dissolve the realness of the situation. We can read the media stories, watch videos, but how we do know if information has been distorted?
Park University student, Yazeed Alothman a 21 year old, sophomore pursuing a political science degree was raised in Egypt and Saudi Arabia. Currently his brother works in the Saudi Arabia Embassy in Egypt. His father retired from the Embassy in Egypt, but was present during the protest. Also his sister attends Alexandria University located in Egypt.
Yazeed studied at Kansas University for a year then transferred to Park University, he felt Kansas took advantage of international students. Now at Park University he enjoys the diverse campus, and city life of Kansas City. He still has a strong accent, but is able to communicate in English.
He began to tell me the story of Egypt from his prospective, “The people of Egypt say President Hosni Mubarak is not fair!” He then typed on the computer using an Arabic keyboard, using a converter to translate Arabic to English “Friday Anger” showed on the screen. He began typing again on the keyboard “Friday Departure” appeared. He explained on the first protest, people let the government know, we had enough. It is not right that people are in poverty in this country, jobs are scares, police are treating people wrongfully, and you have not made any changes in years. Yazeed laughing said, “After the first protest President Mubarak said he would give the people what they wanted to stop protesting, but it was to late, they wanted him out.”
Yazeed started playing the video of the protesters on Kasr al-Nil Bridge in route to Liberation Square. As I watched the video, it reminded me of the Civil Rights Movement. People where being sprayed by water cannons, tear gas halted the crowd from moving forward, At one point in the video many protesters retreated. The riot police seemed to have the situation under control. At the very movement I hought it was no possible way, the protester would get across to Liberation Square. At that very same moment there was a break in the tear gas, and the crowd began to push forward. The person recording the video started cheering, as the crowd forced the army to retreat. The success of gaining control of the bridge fueled the rest of the Egyptian people. (pic of bridge and people)

Bridge Kasr al-Nil Bridge

Video Click Link. Protest Footage

The second protest Yazeed called “Friday Departure” “On this day the president (Mubarak) had to leave, the protesters wanted President Mubarak out immediately, Yazeed put in plain words, “My father said he was scared because the people where stealing(looting), and robbing.” I asked if he was in Egypt today would you have been in the streets protesting? He looked confused and said, “Maybe I have friends in Egypt that I went to school with when I was younger, but I was worried about my family, not really the people. My father and brother where working to get Saudi Arabia people out of Egypt.” He knew that if his family was leaving, then he more than likely would have left. He briefly spoke about his friends in Egypt, and after speaking with them, they all were ok.
I asked how he felt about the coverage of media here in the United States. He believes that America does not know the realness of what goes on in other countries. He said, “America just gets involved when money is there.” I asked him to explain more. “The US is wrong they just want money.” He stated.
Yazeed said, that he likes the system of America, and that rules are effective, but was confused by the race barrier. In detail he told a story, about going to a bar, and people stared at him and his friends, also bumping into them. 
I then wonder if Yazeed plans to move back to Egypt or Saudi Arabia once graduating. He said, “Home sweet home, after graduating I will go home to Saudi Arabia, then maybe come back and get my masters degree.” What was interesting was to know the government of Saudi Arabia pays for students to

come to American and study, if your scores are high enough on test.  Yazeed believes it would only be in his ethics to return to his country and use the knowledge he learned here and implement it for the enhancement of his country, although, one day he would enjoy following the footsteps of his father, and brother, and work in a Saudi Arabia Embassy, in Washington, D.C.

Tarrah's Story

"I remember the first day my mother walked me into the dance studio at 3 years old." Tarrah Bossert a 20 year old Park University sophomore from Parkville, Mo said. She was later convinced that she wanted to dance by herself. As she rode in the car with her mother she proclaimed,"I want to dance myself!" A curious mother asked, “Why?" She finished, "Because they don't know what they are doing." At the age of 5 years old, she began to compete at regional and national competitions.

"At the age of 5, I cared so much about dance. I did other things such as soccer, basketball, swimming, softball. But with dance I wanted to be perfect."

One evening in 2001 while leaving the dance studio, Tarrah told her mother about a constant pain in her right quad. After seeing her family doctor she was told it was a pulled hamstring. Surprising the pain didn't stop there. It began in her left leg, then the back, even her neck, and soon it was her whole body. Tarrah explained, "I broke my ankle before, but this pain was worst." Soon she was bed stricken, unable to move without excruciating pain.

Tarrah kept dancing, but doctors believed dancing caused her pain. She took 6 months off, to see if the pain would stop.

At the age of 12 she felt confused, as her teachers told her to keep dancing. "I remember my teachers use to tell me, just because your leg hurts doesn’t mean you can’t do your arm movements. I thought to myself, I am! Until one day my mother filmed me in practice, when I watched the video, I couldn’t believe what I saw. I was devastated, I thought I was doing everything, but it looked like I wasn't even trying." Tarrah explained.

At this point Tarrah's mother took her to a pediatrician,  knowing there was something wrong other than a pull hamstring. The pediatrician sent her for blood work, and to see an orthopedic,http://orthopedics.about.com/  who believed the back pain was from crutches.  The blood test results tested positive for ANA.
The pediatrician believed this was a type of rheumatic disease.( http://www.webmd.com/rheumatoid-arthritis/an-overview-of-rheumatic-diseases) He sent Tarrah to Children's Mercy

Rheumatology

November 2002 the Rheumatology Department diagnosed this as dermatomyositis disease. ( http://www.dermnetnz.org/immune/dermatomyositis.html )To jump start the treatment two things were to be done, one being a weekly infusion of steroids which would take approximately five hours. The other orally, take two steroid pills Prednisone, and Methotrexate. This made her hair fall out, and weight gain. She explained, “I was freaked out when my hair would come out as I brushed it, but I took the medicine because I just wanted to be better."

In 2003 the constant pain continued in her whole body again leaving her bed ridden. This pain was described by the doctors as a flare-up. Her mother called her doctor and explained the pain she was going through. The doctor responded, “That makes no sense to me, that’s just weakness.” This left Tarrah with many of emotions.

Tarrah’s seventh grade year of school during spring break, herself and mother went to New York to the Hospital of Special Surgeries. To see Dr. Lehman who wrote the book “It’s not just Growing Pains.” Dr. Lehman did more tests, and had no answers for Tarrah. He stuck with the original diagnoses. Dermatomyositis.

In the past year the doctors have diagnosed Tarrah with Pompe http://www.pompe.com/en/patients/about.aspx .She is still searching for answers, and to understand this disease in more detail. There currently is a movie called Extraordinary Measures a staring Brendan Fraser and Harrison Ford, about a dad and a daughters diease, that best realates to what Tarrah is going through.

At this point more emotions, and un-answered question where on the mind of the Bossert Family. “I can remember the day I was diagnosed, I had one question to the doctor, am I going to die?” The doctor look at Tarrah in her eyes and said, “ No, we're going to put you on treatment. A third of people become crippled, a third are fine, and a third die.”

In 2008 Tarrah flat lined during a flare up. http://www.ehealthmd.com/library/crohnsdisease/CD_dealing.html

Due to this disease, Tarrah has lost overcome many obstacles, losing friends, missing school, and flexibility restraints. Through this Tarrah believes complaining is not the cure of her disease. “I dance.” She says.  “I don’t let this hold me back, I love to dance. We all have challenges we face, but it doesn’t have to set you back.”

           Extradonary Measures Trailer

Next: A follow up interview will be conducted along with doctor interviews. Tarrah has seen more than 32 doctors since she had her first flare-up. Still she and her family believe she is diagnosed wrong.

Tarrah Bossert

                       My first future Story.. Tarrah Bossert a Daughter, Sister, Friend, A Dancer.  
                                          "All I want to do is Dance" Tarrah Bossert