Carnival Of Revolutions

Monday, August 15, 2005 Carnival Of Revolutions Revolution! 'Revolution' no longer means trading in the old tyranny for a new tyranny. Nowadays, it means glorious democracy. However, the path to democracy often leads to dead ends, false turns and steps backward. Sometimes big steps backwards such as developments this week in Iran. For those of you keeping score at home, I present this week's Carnival of Revolutions: Armenia A Step Forward. Onnik Krikorian at Oneworld Multimedia examines the Likelihood Of Revolution In Armenia, and tells us about the launch of the Armenian Independent Media Center, a very welcome development. Belarus A Step Forward. Gateway Pundit reports that Lech Walesa has given Belarus, the 'most repressive state in Europe', a piece of his mind. Georgia and Ukraine A Step Forward. Krikorian also tells us about the growing democratic solidarity between Georgia and Ukraine, and their further orientation toward the West. Iraq A Step Backward. The Sharpener gives us coverage of some disturbing developments, following up on revelations of a fundamentalist takeover of Basra as reported by the late Steven Vincent. Palestine A Step Backward. Different River compares the impending Israeli pullout from Gaza to the ethnic cleansing in the former Yugoslavia. Syria A Step Forward. Kirk H. Sowell brings us an interview that uncovers some surprising Syrian arab views regarding America. Is the term 'Syrian arab' redundant? Hardly. The main thrust of the interview deals with Syrian Kurds. Yemen A Step Backward. Jane continues her important coverage of unfolding events in Yemen. President Saleh moves to improve his image, while at the same time possibly giving refuge to Iraqi ex-Ba'athists in al-Qaeda run training camps. Not new this week, but I cannot help but also post to the dramatic photos of Yemeni riots at WILLisms.com. All in all, not the best week for democracy. Upcoming Hosts: August 22: Coming Anarchy August 29: One Free Korea September 5: Thinking-East September 12: Quid Nimis Thanks to Will Franklin at WILLisms.com for the privilege of hosting this week's Carnival of Revolutions. 4:58 AM | | |