Nation-Building

Marc Lynch aka The Father of the Aardvark is an expert on Arab media and politics. He has done exhaustive research and journalism on the Muslim Brotherhood of Egypt, and has argued quite persuasively that the MB is indeed serious about its commitment to democracy . Unfortunately, the United States has largely looked the other way while the Mubarak regime systematically persecutes the MB invoking the rhetoric of state security - rhetoric that is revealed to be a lie when moderate, liberal and pro-Western members of the Brotherhood are imprisoned and or prohibited from leaving the country . Lynch laments, “I’ve grown tired of debating the finer points of the Brotherhood’s party platform searching for clues as to their true feelings about democracy at a time when large numbers of their members are once again being arrested for the crime of trying to participate in elections.” For more of an inside look at the Brotherhood, read Lynch's interview with Abd el-Moneim Abou el-Fattouh , ...

On May 17th, 2003, Joe Trippi posted a blog entry at the unofficial Dean Nation weblog entitled simply, The Perfect Storm . In that post, since reprinted many times elsewhere, he wrote like the prophet he is: never -- until now -- would there ever have been any hope of 1 million Americans contributing $100 each to take back their country and promote a common vision for the future of the nation. Maybe it will be 2 million who contribute $50. But the Internet makes that possible. Or maybe it will be 5 million Americans contributing $20. The tools, energy, leadership and the right candidate, are all in place to create the Perfect Storm of Presidential politics -- where millions of Americans act together and organize their communities, their neighborhoods and their precincts. It is ironic I think that the Perfect Storm may indeed be made possible by the internet -- but in the end the real storm it may create is the largest grassroots/election day get-out-the-vote -- shoe leather/door knock...

Interesting website devoted to liberalizing the middle east: The Project on Middle East Democracy (POMED) is dedicated to examining how genuine democracies can develop in the Middle East and how America can best support that process. While there are numerous advocacy groups influencing American policy toward the Middle East, few have consistently and credibly called for the U.S. to support genuine, authentic democratic reform in the region. Democracy is both a moral imperative and a fundamental concern for American national security. While President Bush's rhetoric shifted dramatically to support a "forward strategy of freedom," the government's actual policies toward reform remain largely unchanged. This has too often meant turning a blind eye toward the repressive acts of friendly autocrats while using 'democracy' as a weapon to threaten our enemies. Democracy should not be so frequently subordinated to other interests that speak with greater power or contri...