Islamism, a political cabal masquerading as a "gimme that old time religion" movement, has long been an open wound in Middle Eastern countries

I must admit that events over the past ten days have dissipated much of my optimism since the revolution.

The opening scene-setter for the 1996 film "Independence Day" might serve as a metaphor for what Egyptians could face if a draft constitution written by a panel dominated by Islamists and based on Sharia law wins

Back in March 2011, I bought a T-shirt in Tahrir Square with a bold Arabic “no” written in black on the front and in red on the back, a message to vote against the constitutional amendments proposed in a referendum that took place one month after Hosni Mubarak was ousted. Some of the ink was slopped on the white cotton because it was made in haste, but the script was elegant and unequivocal.

The Muslim Brotherhood and its supporters accuse us [the opposition] of laying in wait to pounce on President Morsi and of rushing to judge him without giving him a chance to perform his duties.

Cairo, Al-Qahira, is literally The Vanquisher, or the vanquishing city. Max Rodenbook, in the title of his delightful history of the Egyptian capital, rendered it, “Cairo: City Victorious”. And for a great part of its millennium-long history, Egyptians have equated Cairo with the Arabic name of the whole country. Cairo was Misr, and was umm el-donia, or the Mother of the World, which provided the title of yet another marvelous history of the city, the late Desmond Stewart’s “Great Cairo: Mother of the World”. For his part, Andre Raymond titled his outstanding scholarly history of the Egyptian capital: “Cairo: City of History”.

The political economic system that the revolution rose up against was not successfully eliminated because it is built on an alliance between political despotism and unreserved capitalism, monopoly and association.

In periodic visits to Egypt since the revolution, I have been startled by the deteriorating public discourse and the manner in which various ideological camps ensconce themselves in bubbles, circulating the most lurid rumors about their opponents and treating them as fact.

Most discussion about women’s rights in the draft constitution focused on Article 68, which guaranteed women’s equality with men as long as this did not violate Sharia rulings. Removing this article from the draft strengthens women’s rights, since conditioning women’s equality on conformity to Sharia rulings could undermine existing women’s rights laws and hinder new ones.

In the last couple of days, Egypt has seen the birth of a new kind of regime. With President Mohammed Mursi’s latest decree, there is a new constitutional reality, and near-absolute powers have just been placed at the disposal of the Egyptian president. The question is: will Egyptians benefit from it, or not?

Since 25 January 2011, Egyptian women have entered a new phase of struggle. Analyzing the constitution-drafting process, currently one of the most significant fronts of women’s struggle, could help us understand the sociopolitical gender dynamics women face.

Overall men have been getting the short end of the stick in the past couple of years. I know I am calling the wrath of every feminist on my head by saying this, but especially in the west, men have been set a target they are almost sure to fail. Men should be strong, yet sensitive, we want them to be professionals and make a good living, but not a lot more than we do.

Overall men have been getting the short end of the stick in the past couple of years. I know I am calling the wrath of every feminist on my head by saying this, but especially in the west, men have been set a target they are almost sure to fail. Men should be strong, yet sensitive, we want them to be professionals and make a good living, but not a lot more than we do.

A few days ago I met with some friends to read the draft constitution that the Constituent Assembly is about to finalise, the first copy of which was published in the press a few days ago.

“Nobody knows anything about us, neither the liberals nor the Islamists. They are just busy with the constitution and other things,” a worker at an informally built industrial area near Abu Zabaal, Qalyubia, said on a TV show.

Bashing the Egyptian state for its utter failure in Sinai is no longer news. But some microcosmic incidents still illustrate the state’s impotence in dealing with the tumultuous border area.

Like many of my compatriots, I aspired that after the elimination of Mubarak and his constitution there would be an honest and sophisticated debate about the constitution that would outline the principles and fundamentals that must be the foundation for the existence and continuation of the Egyptian people.

Salafis might accept procedural democracy — that is to say the vote and the ballot box — as a means that allows them to attain power. But do they accept the core values of democracy? Do they respect personal freedom, diversity, coexistence and mutual understanding? In this debate with a Salafi friend, Amr Ezzat pinpoints 12 contentious issues that attempt to shed light on conservative Islamist thinking.

It is the first anniversary of the death of Essam Ali Atta - an occasion to revisit the issue of torture and ask what President Morsi has done so far to confront this serious issue.

The constitution is the ultimate legal document that will be the foundation, along with the laws based on it, for Egypt to either move forward to install proper democratic rule or regress to tyranny wrapped in the cloak of superficial Islamism.

In the wake of the Arab Spring, Tunisia and Egypt are in the very early stages of constructing theocratic democracies