Gold Ankh Pendant
Photo Credit: Hieroglyphic Jewelry.com

During the early Bronze Age of Egypt (c. 3100 BC, also known as the Early Dynastic Period of Egypt) the pharaohs were melting more than just bronze, they were fashioning gold into bars to be used as currency in commercial transactions.

Today, Egypt's currency is on the brink of collapse. This past summer Khairi Abaza, a former senior official of Egypt’s Wafd party, warned that if Egypt’s current military leaders failed to allow the Egyptian pound to float the country was likely to come close to having no hard currency reserves by the end of the year and in addition, "risk sparking a new round of uprisings by the hungry and the unemployed." ¹

Well, the end of the year is near and so is the collapse:

Spengler, Looting the Egyptian Currency: Democracy in Action

The ugly denouement of the so-called Egyptian Spring is visible in the collapse of Egypt’s stock exchange (down 11% in the first three days of this week) and the impending collapse of the Egyptian pound, as residents and foreigners flee to hard currency. A unique sort of brutality characterizes Egypt’s currency crisis: banks cannot meet the demand for currency because it is impossible transport bank notes. Mobs hijack the armored cars, as Al Ahram reported today:

“Armoured money transfer vehicles were not safe anymore because law breakers take advantage and target the vehicles for a hijack,” Khalil said. “Transferring dollars between banks and exchange companies has become worrying more than ever.”

Now, that’s something new and nasty under the sun. I’ve observed first-hand the collapse of national currencies in Peru, Nicaragua, Russia and other blighted countries, but a breakdown of the rule of law to the point that banks cannot transport currency is something new.

Things will only get worse, but don't expect to read about it in the mainstream press - such reporting will only show how inept President Obama really is in foreign matters, especially Muslim matters. Recall it was only a few years ago in Cairo that Obama said Egypt represented "the harmony between tradition and progress."

Now we see that Egypt may soon destroy the ancient artifacts of the country - so much for tradition.

If early elections are held, the Muslim Brotherhood is likely to be the main victors who will install the Shariah as the law of the land - so much for progress.