DEMOCRACY.main.

Democracy at the Tipping Point An Integration Site tipping point noun./I> In epidemiology, the concept that small changes will have little or no effect on a system until a critical mass is reached. Then a further small change "tips" the system and a large effect is observed. POLITICAL ANALYSIS Democracy, Threats, and Political Repression in Developing Countries: Are Democracies Internally Less Violent controlling for the level of threat, states with intermediate levels of democracies—semidemocracies—have the highest level of political repression Political Portals and Democracy - How party-based portals can skew the truth by constraining information and biasing discussion. "Political portals pose two main threats to good democratic practice. The first is opacity -- blocking or obscuring information about the motivations, biases and policies that guide the sites' production. The second threat is redlining: declaring some candidates, issues or positions "out of bounds" and not providing coverage of them." Threats to Democracy Mexico - Democracy: Threats to Democracy Is Patriotism a threat to democracy? Making Patriots by Walter Berns From the Review: "American Patriotism means a love of the universal, philosophical principles of human equality and the inalienable natural rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, upon which the United States is founded, argues Berns. Patriotism implies a willingness to sacrifice for these principles, which imbue U.S. citizenship and democracy with much resonance. To ground his argument, Berns explains conceptions of patriotism held by the ancient Greeks, Montesquieu, Rousseau, and, most importantly, Locke, and he explores the relationship of patriotism to religion, education, economic competition, free speech, and private rights. His argument shines best in Chapters 5 and 6, when discussing how Americans, led by Abraham Lincoln, the poet of patriotism, and Frederick Douglass, the abolitionist patriot, enriched patriotism by destroying slavery and expanding citizenship and democracy. Berns engages readers, especially conservatives, to think critically about patriotism's core values. Highly recommended."—Library Journal American Patriotism means a love of the universal, philosophical principles of human equality and the inalienable natural rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, upon which the United States is founded, - from the review - Is this truly what American patriotism is all about? Has it not devolved into Corruption and Democracy: Threats to Development, Opportunities for Reform - by Michael Johnston Inter-national Democracy Is it time to negotiate the flows of power? Roots of Democracy History and Context RESOURCES Online Library on electoral reform and related topics Democracy Organizations FairVote *** eDemocracy International - International E-Democracy Global Exchange Global Exchange is a human rights organization dedicated to promoting environmental, political, and social justice around the world.