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Cairo grappling with bread crisis
Rachelle Kliger
Published: 17.03.08, 23:28
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19 Talkbacks for this article
1. If they worked harder at being more
Joe ,   Ohio, USA   (03.18.08)
productive in all fields other than reproduction they wouldn't have to worry aboyt the price of bread.
2. if only joseph was running Egypt not Hosani Mubarak
zionist forever   (03.18.08)
What a shame today they dont have a jew running the government anymore. When Joseph was in charge he knew when there was going to be famines and made plans to prepare for the famines in times of plenty so there would not be any problems when the famines came. Politicians in Egypt today are now only interested in the here and now. They have no interest in preparing for future problems that may arise. Hosani Mubarak right now is concentrating on making sure his son takes over when he dies and supporting terrorists, Iran and Syria in their wars against Israel but he just does it using the kind of wording that sounds like its peace and Israels interests he is out to look after.
3. Bets accepted...
Enzo ,   london,uk   (03.18.08)
How long before they start blaming Israel?
4. Is this the Egypt that supplied grain to the entire Roman Em
Jake   (03.18.08)
Empire?
5. #3 it is Israel's fault
jerome ,   basalt, co   (03.18.08)
it's the occupation of the Sinai
6. rising price of food & commodities
(03.18.08)
this is a global problem, not just an Egyptian one. get used to the future
7. Fire Mubarak the dictator!
Hamza   (03.18.08)
8.  THE WRITING ON THE WALL SAYS..." OH DEAR..NOT.CAKE AGAIN" !
(03.18.08)
EGYPT,THE CAUSE OF MANY ISRAELI DEATHS,BECAUSE IT HAS NOT ADHERED TO COMMITMENTS TO ISRAEL, WITH A BLIND EYE TO THE "TUNNELS"TO GAZA , IT HAS BEEN THE CAUSE OF MANY ISRAELI DEATHS BY THE SMUGGLING OF WEAPONS TO MAKE "KASSAMS".... THIS ... IS... THE... BEGGINING... OF... THE ...DOWNFALL... OF... THE ...REGIME,AND ISRAEL HAS NO PART TO PLAY TO RELIEVE THE MUBARRAK REGIME OF A PROBLEM THAT SHOULD HAVE BEEN SOLVED LONG AGO...FOR THIS "PHARAOH",UNFORTUNATELLY THERE IS NO "JOSEPH" TO GET HIM OUT OF TROUBLE.HE WILL HAVE TO WATCH THE CAKE SITUATION !
9. THE WRITING ON THE WALL SAYS"wHAT,CAKE AGAIN"?
ROLAND SEENER ,   LONDON ENGLAND   (03.18.08)
THE MUBARRAK REGIME COULD SEE ITS OWN VIOLENT DEMISE...UNFORTUNATELLY IT HAS SOUGHT A COLD PEACE WITH ISRAEL.BY DOING SO AND HAVING ASSISTED BY TURNING A BLIND EYE TO THE WEAPON SMUGGLING TUNNELS TO GAZA,IT HAS LEFT ITSELF WITHOUT THE CHANCE OF A"JOSEPH" ITO BALE IT OUT OF TROUBLE....UNFORTUNATELLY FOR THE MUBARRAK REGIME IT HAS WASTED ITS GOOD YEARS AND THERE IS LIKELY TO BE MORE THAN SEVEN LEAN YEARS.OF TROUBLE AHEAD.
10. killing for bread
Igor ,   Munich, Germany   (03.18.08)
that shows their cultural and intellectual level, killing each other in queues for bread; even in the former Soviet Union, shortly after its collapse, people didnĀ“t resort to such actions. I wonder when they ask Israel for help or start blaming it.
11. over population
Josie ,   Israel   (03.18.08)
population growing faster than food supply.
12. Burning ethanol in the gas tank
Bert ,   USA   (03.18.08)
Is burning food.
13. Egypt's bread crisis
Millicent ,   Israel   (03.18.08)
What did you expect when farmers found out that they could make more money growing wheat for fuel than for human consumption? Bio friendly fuel might be good for the environment but many poor people around the globe will suffer starvation because of it! Seems to me that we have to strike a balence between grains used for food and grains used for fuel and farmers must be paid the same for both! Otherwise what we saw in the Movie MAD MAX maybecome reality in the near future!
14. # 13 Millicent, to be fair
petra ,   usa   (03.18.08)
the Brazilians use all of the sugar plant to produce ethenol. I saw a report that one of Americas universities is using 'switch' grass, ( a common weed grass) in experiments that proves that this grass( and all of it )can produce enthanol at almost zero cost, as it grows wild, and there is no cost to raise it. We are learning what plants produce the most efficient means of extracting fuel and NOT use the seeds from other plants which are so expensive to consumers.( and the fuel itself) Corn, for example, is far les efficient than this 'switich' grass. Be a bit patient, we are playing catch up ( which we should have done over 30 years ago) with technology to rising oil prices. Brazil started this cane fuel 30 years ago to be energy independent.They pay $ 1.19 a gallon for gasoline. We can too. This one fuel can reduce oil imports and oil wars. Time is all we need. We are at fault by waiting so long. But, the means are there and when our desire to extract the fuel from cheap sources is a reality, the oil producers will be using these fuels instead of petroleum. The reason we haven't is greed. Greed by the oil people and greed by all who refuse to become independent from this diminishing source of fossil fuels. It's now an economic reality. Used cooking oil is now being used for gas. Watch for more inventive ways to make fossil fuels obsolete and soon.
15. "Let them eat cake"
Jack ,   San Diego, USA   (03.18.08)
16. #3
Khalil ,   Cairo, Egypt   (03.18.08)
This is why I myself blame Israel. The Egyptian establishment chose to sign peace accords with Israel brokered by the USA. Stipulated in these agreements is that the US provide $2 billion annually to Egypt. However these funds must be used to buy American wheat which would otherwise have no use. Think about it, there is a reason why Egypt - which as mentioned supplied the whole Roman Empire with wheat - fails to grow its own wheat these days. The reason being the establishment which has aligned its interests with those of the US and by extension Israel. Its not your fault, its ours, however you are the focal point of the problem. Think: if Saudi Arabia can be self-sufficient in terms of wheat and Egypt cannot then something must be wrong.
17. To Joe From Ohio
Sandy ,   Canada   (03.18.08)
Wow thanks for your brilliant insight. Your quite a speller. Did they teach you that in the old USA. How about that economy and that american dollar. Maybe the Egyptian govt. can learn a thing or two from your govt. on being productive.
18. subsidised bread in Egypt
Philip ,   Las Vegas/USA   (03.20.08)
how strange - Egyptians are free to riot when Government removes subsidies fpr basic food items. Here in America, not only are basic food items not subsidised - their prices are articifially inflated by generous subsidies to their producers! One egregious example is sugar, another is dairy products. And will Americans riot? Hardly. From my own experience, even if you write against Government policy on the Internet, they will break into your home, open your mail, and seek to arrest you without warrant or evidence. Before you riot, you'll be infiltrated and any actual rioting will be carried out in your name by agent-provocateurs. You will be eating nutrition-less white bread in prison, and not have to worry who is getting rich off this practise.
19. egypt - bread
sas ,   israel   (03.21.08)
lived there more than 20 years ago. situation has not changed at all.
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