In light of the recent revolution/coup in Egypt, commentary is in abundance. Two of the most helpful pieces I have come across were by Guardian journalist Jonathan Steele and the BBC's security analyst. (Phyllis Bennis also has a very good opinion piece on Al Jazeera.)
Concerning Egypt's short-term future, the situation is basically nothing but question marks, among them: (1) how the interim leadership will operate and fare, (2) whether the military will (finally) step back and allow the political process to decide the country's fate, and (3) what the ramifications will be for the military cracking down on the Muslim Brotherhood.
I'm not the first to point out that Egypt is starting over again; except this time square one exists in the context of a questionable precedent. General Sisi and the military asserting themselves as the primary political power in the country has placed Egypt in a potentially dangerous situation. By doing so they have, in many Egyptians' eyes, rendered the political process irrelevant. Egypt's democracy is young and far from perfect, but it was off to a decent start - and an immense improvement on the previous model. When people become politically disenfranchised, however, the response can be destabilizing. One need only look at Syria to see just how bad things can get.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2013/jul/03/egypt-coup-ruinous-army
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-23184605
