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Fiction,
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General,
Espionage,
Political,
Egypt,
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Cairo (Egypt),
Egypt - Social Conditions - 1952-1970,
Cairo,
Coffeehouses - Egypt - Cairo
alliance with America and a severance of all ties with Russia. They would be quite happy with a peaceful solution in spite of all the painful and humiliating concessions we would inevitably have to make. Their dream is to get rid of our current regime and return to a traditional form of democracy and liberal economic policy.
âNext we have the Communistsâand the Socialists are essentially a subdivision of the same group. Theyâre interested in just one thing: ideologyâstrengthening our ties with Russia. They believe that the national interest and progress are best served through ideology, even though the process may involve a very long period of waiting. In consequence, they favor whichever solution anchors the move toward Communism and Russia, whether itâs peace, or war, or the current situation which theyâre calling âno peace, no war.â â
Remarkable though it may seem, his popularity improved after he had left. Many people valued the survey he had just given and admired his rich store of secret information. Some people even went further and defended the man himself, claiming that he was not the one who was responsible for the crimes he had committed; either that, or else he was not the one primarily responsible.
It was Qurunfula who finally felt compelled to react. âGo on then!â she said angrily. âShift the blame from one person to the next. Itâll finish up with Gumâa, the bootblack!â
However, once Khalid Safwan did decide to join the café community, he found a ready welcome.
In just three months we forgot all about the person he had been. He used to appear on the arm of his helper at the same time every evening. He would be accorded the same kind of welcome as everyone else; it was almost as though there was absolutely nothing unusual about him. However, he felt somewhat isolated, so he was the one who opened the conversation.
âAre you all still talking?â he inquired, thus intruding on our general disinterest.
âAs usual,â was Zayn al-âAbidinâs reply.
âEarlier I told you about what other groups are thinking these days,â he said, continuing his intrusion. âBut I havenât told you what I think myself.â
âAbout the war, you mean?â asked Munir Ahmad.
âThat seems to be the point that has everyone baffled,â he responded in a rush. âTo me it seems perfectly simple. We were defeated. We were totally unprepared for war. Thatâs the problem we have to solve, and quickly, even if it involves paying the price. We should be spending every single penny we have making ourselves more advanced culturally. But I really wanted to talk about our way of life in general.â
By now he had everyoneâs attention.
âIn the minutes I have left here,â he continued, âIâm going to give you all a frank summary of my experiences. Iâve emerged from the defeat, or letâs say from my past life, strongly believing in a set of principles from which I will never deviate as long as I am alive. So what are those principles?
âFirstly, a total disavowal of autocracy and dictatorship. Secondly, a disavowal of any resort to force or violence. Thirdly, we have to rely on the principles of freedom, public opinion, and respect for our fellow human beings as values needed to foster and advance progress. With them at our disposal it can be achieved. Fourthly, we must learn to accept from Western civilization the value of science and the scientific method, and without any argument. Nothing else should be automatically accepted without a full discussion of our current realities. With that in mind, we should beprepared to get rid of all the fetters that tie us down, whether ancient or modern.
âSo there is the philosophy of Khalid Safwan,â he said with a yawn. âIâve learned its principles from within the deepest recesses of hell. Iâm
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