The Facebook revolution is changing how ordinary people relate to political activism

Waseem Wagdi, an Egyptian protester in London, tearfully described his feelings last month about the uprising in Egypt, saying: "It is something I had hoped against all hope to happen in my life time. I have hoped and I think with millions of people that our children will live in a more humane society...".

Wagdi's emotional statement would be echoed by Wael Ghonim, the former Google executive, who also broke into tears while describing his commitment to the Egyptian democracy movement in terms of liberty or death.

When Hosni Mubarak's resignation on Feb. 11 marked the birth of a new democracy, all of Egypt erupted into noise of cries and tears. These expressions of emotion, amplified by traditional as well as new media, will play a significant role in the making of new politics in the Middle East. From now on, any account of historical events without consideration of public display of emotions by ordinary people will be rendered incomplete.

In many ways, such expression of emotions in public places like Tahrir Square have shaped a new life in the virtual world, where emotional scenes of everyday people like Wagdi and Ghonim are quickly circulated and watched by millions around the world. The "Facebook Revolution" is the radical change in political activism. Social network websites like Facebook and Twitter are changing how people can relate to dramatic experiences with unprecedented influences across the globe, creating worldwide social solidarity in cyberspace.

While the future of Egyptian government is an open question, there is no doubt that passion echoed in satellite TVs and social media was the engine of the social uprising in Egypt. (Vice President Suleiman warned the protesters on Feb. 10 not to listen to satellite TV.)

Of course emotions did not run in a vacuum. As the image of Ghonim green wristband appeared on the TV and computer screens, the much repressed Green movement activists in Iran are bound to feel an upsurge of emotions that might instigate yet another collective protest against their own system of governance.