To: jeevacationegmaiLcomrjeevacation©gmaiLcom] From: Office of Terje Rod-Larsen Sent Thur 2/2/2012 5:29:36 PM Subject: February 2 update NYT The Politics of Dignity Thomas L. Friedman January 31, 2012 Dateline: Moscow Memo to: Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and President Dmitri Medvedev Subject: Russia and the Arab Spring From: A traveler to Cairo and Moscow Dear Sirs: You may think that the situations in Egypt and Russia have nothing in common. Think again. Yes, these two countries have starkly different histories. But having visited both in recent weeks, I can tell you that they have one very big thing in common: the political eruptions in both countries were not initially driven by any particular ideology but rather by the most human of emotions — the quest for dignity and justice. Humiliation is the single most underestimated force in politics. People will absorb hardship, hunger and pain. They will be grateful for jobs, cars and benefits. But if you force people to live indefinitely inside a rigged game that is flaunted in their EFTA_R1_00527874 EFTA02021871