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Once upon a time,
citizens wrote letters to their government.
Or they signed petitions and waved their picket signs.
Some even travelled great lengths to climb
the Parliament buildings.
And then, there's the vote.
The people in Egypt have recently had their say and,
no, it didn't involve heading to the polls.
They proved to have powerful voices by being on the cutting
edge of, you guessed it, social media.
Now if I were to tell you exactly just what happened,
I would have to back up a little and give you a recipe
for what I call a modern-day social revolution.
First, create a country where only one person
can call it my space.
Second, ensure that nearly half the population lives
on less than $2 a day.
Third, stifle any kindle or flicker of discontent
with your loyal minions.
And if all else fails, unplug the Internet.
So how did Egypt vote and why now?
Well, the youth of Egypt hit the control-Alt-delete button
on their government and it all began on Facebook, of course.
That's where the social networking really came out
and took the driver's seat.
If the world has learned anything,
surely it must be this: a platform is not a stage.
It's a Facebook page.
The repercussions of going off line will put you on the line.
Twitter, well, it's for self-promotion and media
consumption and if you prefer not to tweet,
perhaps you're barking up the wrong tree.
Blogging is the new scrapbooking
but slang is a new language.
Books are for libraries, but Facebook and Macbook
are for people.
Phones are made smart for you,
but sometimes their technology can outsmart you.
Fido is not a dog and a BlackBerry is definitely
more than just a fruit.
And while we're at it, an iPod is not just
some genetically modified bean.
And remember, a Mac is more than just a burger.
Now, this is where we get to the moral of the story.
What this world needs is the dislike button,
because let's face it, voting for your country's leader
might just be the next big thing for Facebook.
Kudos to Egypt for being a trendsetter.
Hum, what about this one?
Ow! My eyes!
Did somebody actually think that looked good?
Now this is more like it.
Um, not very detailed though.
Yeah, and...
What?
But that last site just said,
well, this looks more promising.
$35 subscription to read this one page?
I don't think so.
I don't need a history.
I just need to know how to do it.
Is that so hard?
Ugh!
I don't have much time left.
Could it be?
Is this really it?
Yes, yes!
Yes!
I'm saved!