US capitalism nervous about Bahrain as home to US Navy's Fifth Fleet. But things will never be the same since Tunisia

Bahrain is home to the US navy’s Fifth Fleet so the protests there are of some concern to US capitalism. With the corrupt US supported dictators in the Middle East falling like flies or under threat of being toppled the decline of the influence of US imperialism on the global stage continues.

Much of the disdain at the arrogance of US government representatives like Clinton and Obama traipsing around the world lecturing others on the benefits of democracy as they prop up murderous dictators from Mubarak to the Saudi’s as well as give uncritical support to the Zionist regime in Israel, is being more openly expressed. The uprisings in the Arab world broke the fear barrier in these states but also the fear of challenging mighty US imperialism.  Even in Argentina, the willingness to confront a global power grows as the Argentine government seized cargo from a US plane that it considered violated Argentine law.

“Just imagine what would have happened if an Argentine aircraft had taken the same kind of material to the United States”, said Anibal Fernandez, an Argentine cabinet member,  The Argentine’s “would all be in Guantanamo in orange overalls.” The US government’s concentration camp in Cuba is detested throughout the world and the treatment and lack of democratic rights for the inmates considered a war crime by most observers. The issue has caused a minor dispute but is a reflection of the changed global relations.

Even here in the US today, major protests broke out in Wisconsin where the governor is attempting, as are other states, to eliminate collective bargaining rights for Unionized state workers. The times they are a Changin’----for the better. All of this is good for us as US workers as we are actually the first victims of the unrestrained power of US capitalism in more ways than one.

Bahrain is an absolute monarchy despite having a parliamentary body, “The ruling family still holds near-absolute power” writes the Wall Street Journal.  US capitalism has no problem with dictators or the lack of democratic rights when it's ability to loot the resources of a region are allowed to contunue unhindered. Bahrain is also a major banking and financial center where no doubt much of the stolen loot from the oil wealth is distributed among the various thieves that expropriate it. It is also a playground for the neighboring ruling class that preaches devout Islam in their home countries, beheading and publicly whipping women for adultery or leaving home unaccompanied by a male relative. Alcohol consumption, that they declare a sin against Islam is OK in Bahrain where rich Saudi’s can visit, a sort of Monte Carlo of the Persian gulf, another favorite spot for wealthy Saudi princes

The majority of the demonstrators in Bahrain are Shia Muslims who have traditionally been discriminated against by the Sunni royal family that rules. The Shia are also sizeable minorities in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia and US capitalism and its Saudi and Kuwaiti clients are concerned about unrest spreading and the influence of Iran. But Sunni Muslims have also been on demos and there does not yet appear to be sectarian violence.

The Mullahs in Iran are also very nervous as protests have broken out there at the repressive and crude nature of the regime. The Mullahs threatened today to execute protest leaders as a means of driving them from the streets. As we wrote earlier, the 41 year-old regime of Gadaffi is also facing some open calls for it to step down.

It appears so far that the popular movements are unstoppable and are undoubtedly an inspiration to all workers, or should be. But as we have also explained, a revolutionary situation cannot exist forever, the two sides cannot co-exist and either the revolution or the counter-revolution must prevail. There will most likely be some limited reforms come out of all this, hopefully more, but the counterrevolutionary forces, the Arab bourgeois and their imperialist allies will not sit this out. Whatever happens, important lessons are learnt through struggles like these, lessons that will help determine the strategy and tactics for future battles.

The struggle for state power is the road that has to be taken and through that the formation of democratic socialist states and a democratic federation of socialist states throughout the region. It is the only way the looting of the areas wealth by the local ruling class and their imperialist masters will be stopped.

The Egyptian military as with any military, are not there to protect the interests of workers but to protect the interest of capitalists. But the military is governed by the officers from the ruling class while its troops are from the working class so like society as a whole, there is class tension and division that will be strengthened as the class struggle breaks in to the open as it has over the last two months. This is why class appeals to the rank and file of the military and forming of rank and file military committees and linking them to the strike and community committees that have arisen throughout the region is crucial to success and the security of workers and our families in the future.