Egyptians cast the second round of presidential votes Sunday in the runoff between Ahmed Shafik and Mohamed Morsy.

Under the eyes of the world's media, the election was carried out in a grim atmosphere with little signs of revolutionary victory.

The election has ushered Egypt into an uncertain future. Solutions to economic and social issues that piled up under Mubarak's rule have not been found. The election is a political gamble for this chaos-stricken country. Analysts are taking the view that it will take a long time for Egypt to return to normality.

For a country riven by deep social discontent, a revolution can be electrified by the public's high expectations of democracy. Egypt is a typical example. But the country, without a mature civil society, is facing a challenge in harnessing democratic politics.

The revolution may lead to a rebirth for Egypt. In hindsight, all the pain Egyptians experience today may be worthwhile. After all, Mubarak's authoritarian regime was overthrown. The long journey toward democracy may be painful, but it will not go on forever.

But no generation wants to suffer for the sake of the long term. Politics should first serve the current generation of people, not the future.  The Egyptian revolution is not driven by the ideals of democracy, but out of the belief of the benefits democracy can bring to people's everyday lives.

If the pursuit of democracy leads to long-term disorder and turbulence, the people's expectations would hit a wall, fomenting more disappointment and anger. The country will become disoriented amid the frantic wishes of the public.

Egypt's revolution has been beset by a string of mistakes. It didn't start reforms when it should have. The revolution didn't have a practical goal and model.

Now, facing the challenge of restoring order, society is deeply divided. The revolution has failed to generate a charismatic leader or a powerful political party. During the first presidential election, the highest vote the candidate received was only 25 percent. The country is desperately in need of political cohesion.

In an underdeveloped country, a perfect system may be difficult to implement. Development is a more urgent task. Stable progress has to be realized through economic, social and political advancement.

Democratic pursuits in many underdeveloped countries have been derailed due to a lack of economic and social support. At this point, it is still difficult to tell if Egypt will set a good example for the world, or is a bad example of world politics.