Blogging the democratic revolution
A thoughtful analysis by the excellent Cafe Hayek on The Thug Of Caracas and His Master Below In Havana is analysed very well, showing a good grasp of human nature. It also includes a link to an impressive editorial by a banker in Ithaca. Read it all here.
France is such a benighted backward place that could be so otherwise. The broadest, brightest light in all Western Civilization in recent years seems to have given all of that up to pursue America-hating instead. It’s insane. Not even the May 29 referendum on the EU constitution was entirely good in results, given the provincialism…
Right now I am in the midst of a three-part series on the aftermath of the London bombings of July 7. I just finished part two early this morning, and part three will be a progress report on both current progress and failures in the global war. Two things I have read recently have prompted…
It’s going to be a horror show. Sumate, the voter-rights civil society group whose leadership is now headed for Hugo Chavez’s dungeons on treason charges, warns that the next election will not be fair. Hugo Chavez has gerrymandered and manipulated it already in his favor. He can’t lose. But that doesn’t mean Venezuelans aren’t trying…
No sheet Sherlock, Papillon’s qualified to vote in Venezuela’s next election. Yeah, that guy, the Devil’s Island movie guy, Butterflies Are Free – him – dead since 1973, he’s on the Venezuelan voter rolls. It’s that bad. Don’t believe me? Read it here. Daniellllllll!!!!!!!!!!
Franco at Barcepundit reports that it’s official – al-Qaida had every intention of influencing the Spanish election with its atrocity in Madrid last year. They found the evidence and what we suspected was true. It’s well worth reading in the wake of London’s terror bombings as well as the current wretched political situation in Spain….
It’s disgusting to watch Assad, knowing that he’s going to lose in the end, as he continues to kick and scream all the way to the graveyard. Yet the man just can’t help himself. You have to wonder how some “experts” can still consider this guy a reformist when he is doing every thing he…
Last Tuesday I posted an entry about Egypt, Egypt Legalizes Moderate Islamist Movement, which suggested a watershed event for the Wasat (Center) Party, a moderate Islamist front. I also posted the same entry on my blog, and a reader who is apparently from Egypt made the point that there is still a level of review…
According to Al-Hayat, the Jordanian government of Prime Minister Adnan Badran is having further problems surviving a vote of confidence due to recent increases in the price of basic foods (see “The Badran Government Seek the Confidence of Representatives and Opposition Parties Call for Him to Leave,” July 15, but no longer on the paper’s…
Danish protest babes are out in full force, waving the American flag. You have to see it to believe it. They don’t make many protest babes like that, but there they are, standing up for U.S. democracy. Our friend Gateway Pundit has it here. Hat tip: Instapundit
Big Pharaoh posts what he thinks each religion should do in order to make the world a better place. There are many I don’t agree with, but then again, I find some of them both agreeable and hilarious. Allah does not give a dead rat’s ass about a girl’s hair. If you’re sexually excited when…
In the latest people power demonstration in the Philippines, the government was able to organize a rally that seriously dwarfed the opposition rally this past Monday. MANILA — Matching masses against masses, supporters of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo held their own “people power” rally on Saturday to counter suggestions that all Filipinos want her to quit…
An interesting poll was released the other day that shows terrorism has lost its clout among Muslims in the Middle East, while democracy has made solid gains. Ed Morrissey has more thoughts on this, which I agree with. So the question begs: Are we witnessing the beginning of a dramatic shift of opinion against extremism…
Presidential elections are due in Belarus come September 2006, which may see a popular velvet revolution as a result. In 2004, Lukashenko falsified a referendum to give himself the ability to run for president as many times as he wants, effectively making him president for life since all elections are rigged. The following is a…
The monster at our door is keeping hurricane aid out from devastated Cuba, as protest grow. The only aid he’s taking is politicized aid, the kind that his agents pick and choose to deliver. Where is the outrage? Read it here.
The following is a translated letter from Akbar Ganji, courtesy of the Free Ganji blog. It is an interesting read, from a man who is becoming the largest rallying cause for human rights inside Iran.
Now, let’s be all dramatic like most of the headlines which say, “Middle East Ceasefire Shattered.” Because honestly, the truce was a big lie anyway. Now the possibility exists that the Palestinian government will have to succumb to more terrorist leadership or kill it outright. Policeman of the PA and Hamas terrorists are fighting now…
I seem to have a fetish with separatist conflicts this week, but it’s not coincidence that plans for peaceful settlement are popping up all around the same time. This is because the GUAM alliance countries are working together to reunite their respective countries after the collapse of the Soviet Union left a little fragmented. Today,…
I got this note from a reporter in Caracas: Hoy hubo una protesta de los estudiantes de la USM, por el aumento de matriculas. Fue en la entrada, en el mismo sitio que la semana pasada manifestaron por los compa?????eros asesinados. Hoy hubo mas estudiantes…. Translation: Today there was a student protest at University of…
Eurasianet reports on a leaked memo (perhaps deliberately) that shows Russian policy makers worried about the situation in Dagestan, which has seen increased separatis sentiments and terrorist attacks of late. The increasing rebel attacks in Dagestan (see EDM, July 7) have finally forced Russian authorities to focus on the problems of the republic. Officials in…
Usually this wouldn’t be a story to me as I’m sure this happens at least a hundred million times a day somewhere in the world. But I’ve never heard of someone calling our president the equivalent of Hitler for supporting democracy movements. About 20 youths have gathered in front of the U.S. Consulate in St….
Besides democratization, and all that it implies, the government of Georgia must deal with separatist governments in Abkhazia and South Ossetia. While the former will likely prove much more difficult in general, Saakashvili’s governmet has just released a comprehensive plan to reconcile with South Ossetia. Most striking about the plan is how it deals two-fold…
Hugo Chavez and the communist thugs and barefoot Neanderthals one step removed from white sheets who oppose CAFTA are all about to be dealt a stinging defeat. The House leader reports that CAFTA is likely to be approved before the end of July. This is the scent of victory, because defeat is unthinkable. This is…
Think I’m kidding? Read what respected Miami Herald columnist Andres Oppenheimer, in a well researched article, has to say. It’s disturbing. Read it here. UPDATE: Link fixed.
Kirk let me know about this a couple of days ago. It’s interesting, because you see several groups ranging from the Muslim Brotherhood to Kifaya coming together to put a crack in the current system. This is a trend in all authoritarian countries with emerging oppositions, but nonetheless, these are some unlikely temporary bedfellows. In…