I have been blessed to see many things in my life.

In my short 20 years on this earth, I have seen the collapse of the Twin Towers; the collapse of the Soviet Union; the Rodney King riots; a tsunami that killed over 230,000 people; a hurricane in New Orleans that killed nearly 2,000 people and left $81 billion in damage; the death of Princess Diana, James Brown, and Michael Jackson; the impeachment of President Clinton; South Africa repeal Apartheid Laws; the ugly racism of Jena, Louisiana; the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico; scientist clone a sheep; Halle Berry win her Academy Award; the growth of the internet; 155 people walk away from a plane crash unharmed; a 45-year-old man win the heavyweight championship of the world; and of course a bi-racial man become president of the United States of America.  

And last week we added a new chapter to things that changed the world.

For 18 long days we saw Egypt in a revolt that easily gained global attention. Thousands upon thousands of state employees protested for better pay and wages. For more than two weeks we saw demonstrations of anger and frustration, protesters set up tents, and a great demand by hundreds of thousands for the removal of the regime.

And finally, on Feb. 11,  many Egyptians got their wish when president Mubarak stepped down after 30 years of rule. Gamal Heshamt, a former independent Member of Parliament, would reflect on the event and say “We can breathe fresh air, we can feel our freedom, after 30 years of absence from the world, Egypt is back.”

The events that have taken place over the last three weeks has left me to take a few days of reflection and ultimately come to the conclusion that although he is, was, and forever will be an idiot in my mind, maybe George W. Bush was right for a change.

Before I am attacked for actually giving this guy credit, let me explain. For centuries, the Middle East has been an area where democracy was, for lack of better words, a joke.

No one, including myself, thought that democracy in a region that has been seen as violent and completely out of control would ever work. And when America decided to try and make this joke a reality in countries like Iraq, the typical response was “America needs to mind its own business.”

However, look at what has, and what hopefully will eventually come from our invasion. Of course the negatives are obvious right now. However, what are some of the positives?

Iraq has been liberated from the terrible dictator Saddam Hussein. In addition to that, the spirit of democracy, and the spirit of the voice of the people have spread throughout the entire world.

In Algeria there will be a lift on a 20-year state of emergency in the “coming days,” in Bahrain some are calling for the removal of the monarchy, Egyptians are now fighting for better conditions, Iraq is still struggling, but the democratic process is still ongoing, and Sudan is in the process of peacefully turning over power. All of these may not be flowing as smooth as butter, but the idea of the masses taking control of their own government and leadership process is spreading throughout the world.

The latest news from Egypt is a sign that the future for the world is just as bright or dark as we want it to be. Over the last two decades the world has seen many people fight, die, bleed, cry for freedom, equality, and voice.

And in the last few years I have slowly, but surely seen these things become more and more of a reality.

So I would like to applaud the Egyptian people for their fight for liberation!

It has actually given me a positive outlook for the next 20 years of my life.

• TRUMAINE MCCASKILL