When the people of Egypt took to the streets to demand the ouster of Mohammed Mursi, they garnered much respect around the world for their courage. They then did the work Americans wouldn’t do; they called out the Obama administration for its obvious support of the Muslim Brotherhood. Perhaps we have two microcosms that demonstrate this disparity perfectly. Let’s contrast the cases of the family that was rescued from an overturned vehicle by George Zimmerman and a young Egyptian boy named Ahmad Osama Sayyed.

Gerstle and Sayyed

After George Zimmerman was acquitted, the left-wing mobs were re-agitated and doubled down on calls for his hide, not to mention calling on Attorney General Eric Holder to file federal civil rights charges against him. Four days later, Zimmerman came out of hiding to help rescue a family from an overturned vehicle.

While the family is ‘grateful’ for what Zimmerman did for them, they don’t want to be associated with him and have canceled a press conference. Via the Daily Mail:

The family rescued by George Zimmerman after a rollover crash in Florida are terrified they will become targets for hate mobs who have made death threats to the neighborhood vigilante.

Mark and Dana Michelle Gerstle told friends they do not want to talk publicly about Zimmerman for fear they will be accused of portraying him as a hero – and face a backlash from those who consider he got away with murder.

‘They are very grateful to Zimmerman for what he did, but they do not want to get involved,’ said a friend, who asked not to be named.

We concede that it’s not easy for Gerstle to go through with the press conference but that doesn’t make it any less right. Perhaps Al Pacino said it best in Scent of a Woman:

The paradox for Gerstle is that while it may seem to him that he is doing what’s best for his family, he may ultimately be doing the opposite. Consider these words by Edmund Burke:

“When bad men combine, the good must associate; else they will fall, one by one, an unpitied sacrifice in a contemptible struggle.”

Now, let’s take a look at a young boy in Egypt named Ahmad Osama Sayyed. After being beaten unconscious by pro-Mohammed Mursi protesters in the streets, young Ahmad didn’t go into hiding; he went on Egyptian television and identified his lead attacker by face and by name. According to Ahmad, the mob that assaulted him was led by Yahya Hamid, who had been Mursi’s Minister of Investment.

Perhaps Gerstle has to worry about a left-wing mob in the U.S. but a young Egyptian boy has to worry about a very agitated Muslim Brotherhood mob in the Middle East:

We urge Mr. Gerstle to find the courage to go through with the press conference. In the long term, he will not regret it. In fact, if he doesn’t, years from now, he’ll probably wish he had.

In Gerstle’s defense, politicians who should be leading the charge in this area are also stricken with fear.

It’s long past time for good men to associate.