Wednesday, December 06, 2006

Policy Making The Matrix Way



First you decide on the policy silos. One would be foreign policy, another would be health care, a third education and so on. For each policy silo, you create a matrix. 10-10-10. The difference between the organizational matrix and this one is, here the members likely do not meet in person. Each has a blog that is likely multimedia.

Here the campaign has a much greater control than with the organizational matrix that is pretty much bottom up. Here the campaign controls membership. The campaign is the manager for each group blog, although member blogs stay independent.

There is a hieararchy, sure, level 1, level 2, level 3. But here the one voice concept rings supreme.

We blur the lines between academia and a presidential campaign, something never attempted before. The policy making matrix is going to be major fodder for the organizational matrix. It will also allow the candidate to engage the electorate in a serious conversation on a wide range of policy issues.

The 3-4 Formula

Obama has been home three days and on the Hill four days as Senator, roughly speaking. He should continue with something similar for the presidential campaign. But until the end of November 2007, he should stick to it.

So he is in Chicago for three days, one of which is completely off, but the other two he devotes to the policy making matrix. Preferably policy wonks will be invited in. He will have bull sessions, perhaps choreographed, that will be videoblogged. These two days will also be to cultivate the sample 100 Americans in the Greater Chicago area that I have talked about here: A Different Kind Of Campaign, A Scientific Campaign.

Money, Message, Organization

The organizational matrix gives him the organization and the money. The policy making matrix guides him in the message department.

Stump Speeches, Interviews

You can have all the bull sessions you want. But when it is time to hit the podium, you better speak simple language. Every American should be able to understand what it is that you are saying. Lincoln had that nailed down real good.

A Matrix Victory

It is the matrix concept that will turn Obama 2008 into the first internet campaign. It is that concept that will help him go beyond the latent sentiments of race in the country. It will allow him to bypass the old guard, and the established channels of fundraising. It will help transport his unmistakable individual appeal unfiltered to the individual voter. That is how he will win.

The Matrix looks so simple as a concept, but it is going to be dazzling once it goes live. You will see patterns that you don't yet see.

An Aside

A few days back Obama was in New York City. Paterson was the only prominent Democrat who showed up. The countermove is easy. You just remember. I mean, if you are going to be the most powerful person on earth. These whities don't know basic arithmetic, that they are outnumbered both locally and globally.

They come around to the idea, or they stand to be shunted. I mean, you are going to act progressive, or you are not one of us. You pay the price. Race is a litmus test on that one that I am extremely comfortable with.

The Matrix

Barack Obama: Time For A Generation Shift
Next Stop: White House
On November 7: In Harlem: For Obama
Democratic Vision For The 21st Century
The Energy Solution: Nuclear Energy

The Audacity Of Gravitas: Restore Intelligence To The White House
Barack Obama: This Is A New Century
Barack Obama: New Approaches To Old Problems
Middle East: The Final Map
Three Pillars, Draft 2
Immigration, Duh
The First Major Revolution Of The 21st Century Happened In Nepal
blac
The Spectrum Concept: Wide Applications
A Different Kind Of Campaign, A Scientific Campaign
The Spectrum On Gender
Nepal Message To Top Democrats
Soviet Health Care In America
Politics At The Speed Of Thought
Social Progress: Show Me The Money
Money, Message, Organization
Blacks, Hispanics At The Core Of The Democrat Rainbow Coalition
The Spectrum/Dialogue Concept Is Key To Power
Blogging Is Scalable Media
The Saudi Royal Family Has Got To Go
The One Voice Concept
Takes Two Arms And Two Legs To Swim
2008: Some Themes
2008: Some Thoughts
To: The Good White People In The South
The Three Pillars

In The News

New ideas for Iraq but no guarantees of success Monsters and Critics.com
Bihar to have a nuclear power plant soon Daily News & Analysis
Spitzer Visits Capitol Hill With Long List New York Times
NEPAL: Leprosy to be eliminated in two years
Reuters AlertNet
Intel shows off mobile WIMAX chipset Inquirer
Intel Answers Back: Centrino Duo to Incorporate WiFi, WiMAX
BetaNews
Mr. Spitzer goes to Washington _ and sees no Republicans Newsday
Fiji Tribal Chiefs Refuse to Recognize New Regime
FOX News
Admirers Swarm Bill Clinton in Hanoi ABC News
Cisco To Triple Workforce In India By 2011, Plans New ... InformationWeek
US-India nuke bill bogged down in Congress
Jerusalem Post
Strongest evidence water still flows occasionally on Mars San Francisco Chronicle
France24 News Channel to Give French Spin on World Affairs
Voice of America
2006 Women’s Soccer Wrap Up
Yellowjackets Athletics

Nepal’s Newly Peaceful Maoists Set Up Camp and Wait New York Times
Maxis selects Alcatel for WiMAX field trial
The Edge Daily
Amitabh Bachchan & Om Puri ideologies clash again
IndiaGlitz
Yahoo! Makes A Move
Forbes
Few own most of the world's assets: Study
Toronto Star
Google offer takes on PayPal
USA Today
Google targets schools with Docs & Spreadsheets
ZDNet
World Powers Fail to Reach Iran Accord
Forbes
Dell sees Tamil Nadu unit onstream by mid-2007
Business Standard
Chip design industry in India set to nearly quadruple by 2010 ...
DigiTimes
Cisco chief may announce India manufacturing unit
Reuters
Nasa unveils plans for moon station
Independent
MySpace.com Moves to Keep Sex Offenders Off of Its Site
New York Times
Pakistani Says Concessions Could Produce Kashmir Pact
New York Times
US encourages Iraq to have security dialogue with Iran, Syria
People's Daily Online
Eddie Murphy Kicks Spice to the Curb, Demands Paternity Test 247gay.com
New York Bans Most Trans Fats in Restaurants
New York Times
Ban on Trans Fat in Restaurants Is Approved by New York City New York Sun
NJ. warehouse linked to E. coli outbreak
Monsters and Critics.com
Taco Bell to Reopen Restaurants After Washington Post
E. Coli Outbreak In New York And New Jersey Fast Food Chain Medical News Today

Chavez storms to re-election victory Reuters
Venezuela's Chavez celebrates re-election, promises 'revolutionary democracy' AFP
Chavez Wins Easily in Venezuela at The New York Times invoking figures from Jesus Christ to Pancho Villa as influences for his ambitious plans ...... supporters for Mr. Chávez and Mr. Rosales each using American polling companies ..... International observers in various parts of the country .... said the election took place without signs of wrongdoing. ...... “It was a lesson in participatory democracy.” ...... Chavez has redirected government spending by creating an array of social welfare programs that benefit the poor. ...... his “Bolívarian revolution,” which espouses distributing oil revenues to the poor ...... “The political battle that is unfolding within Venezuela is now conducted through democratic institutions.”
Venezuela's Chavez Wins Decisive Victory at The Washington Post
'We have spoken. The revolution will continue' at Daily Telegraph (UK)
Party turns sour for Venezuelan expats at BBC
Continent of the left at The Guardian (UK)
There's no repression of the media in Venezuela at The Guardian (UK)
As Trucking Rules Are Eased, a Debate on Safety Intensifies New York Times America’s most treacherous industry
Rudd wins Australian Labor party election Financial Times
Oil and gas may be Bihar's manna Monsters and Critics.com
Spitzer must lead reform of campaign funding Albany Times Union
Amitabh Bachchan – Tom Cruise, Sean Cannery, Clint Eastwood ... Apun Ka Choice British newspaper The Sunday Times has described mega superstar Amitabh Bachchan as "Tom Cruise, Sean Cannery and Clint Eastwood rolled into one.”
Why Vista might be the last of its kind Seattle Times "Suddenly, the market changed and competitors started delivering technology at the speed of the Internet," said James McQuivey, professor of market research at Boston University. "In some cases, they do it for free, and that's painful for Microsoft." ..... If we assume Microsoft's costs per employee are about $200,000 a year, the estimated payroll costs alone for Vista hover around $10 billion. ...... only 20 percent of businesses plan to upgrade to Vista in the first 12 months after its release. ....... it has no direct parallel competitor.
Memo to Rumsfeld: Too little, too late MSNBC
In Nepal, Maoists keep eyes on guns - and jobs International Herald Tribune
Nepal's royal road to disaster
Asia Times Online The king's information minister was found to have spent vast sums of money to bribe journalists associated with the country's influential newspapers, radio and television networks. ...... his planned move to mobilize rightwing parties and elements - with "moral" support from Hindu nationalists in India - to stage a comeback. ..... Men and women occupying senior positions in his party have consistently voiced their views against Koirala's occasional utterances that Nepal may still needed a "ceremonial" monarchy. ...... everything started to go wrong once King Gyanendra reinstated a defunct parliament, on April 24. "The agenda coming from the south [India] was to remove the king, weaken the army and weaken religion," The Australian newspaper, The Age, quoted a royal adviser as saying ..... Koirala, though his supporters want himto receive the Nobel Prize for Peace ..... Surya Bahadur Thapa ... told this correspondent recently that misdeeds of one or two individuals must not be allowed to make a revered institution suffer .......... Addressing a Hindustan Times leadership summit on November 18, Prachanda described parliamentary democracy as "farcical" as it was based merely on formality and elections. ..... unilaterally passed a law granting Nepali citizenship to several million aliens. ..... They have only changed gears," a high-ranking officer of the Nepal Army told Asia Times Online. He said it was unfortunate that the politicians in power did not understand their strategy and got carried away by their hollow promises. ....... there is no immediate threat of an army takeover in Nepal ...... the Maoist leadership does not appear fully confident about the situation. Had that not been the case, top Maoist leaders, including Prachanda, would not change his shelter every day. If a visitor has seen Prachanda (or his deputy Baburam Bhattarai) coming out of a tourist hotel today he or she is likely to find him at a relative's home the following day. Armed security personnel drawn from their People's Liberation Army are seen escorting their comrades round the clock. ........ the editor did not rule out a royal attempt to regain the powers lost since April. The Koirala-led government is advised to remain ready to immediately send the king into exile if he is found to be engaged in undesirable activities.
Lessons From Nepal New Model For Conflict Resolution Gorkhapatra
Nepal asks Maoist splinter group to join peace process
Hindu
Obama converts evangelicals to Democrat cause
Independent
Christian morality can help stop AIDS, but not alone, Obama says Associated Baptist Press
Obama Talks AIDS To Power Donklephant
Trend Setters or Sell Outs: Obama, Warren , and Brownback
Town Hall
OBAMA JOKES ABOUT 2008 RUN ON ‘LENO’: Host recalls ...
Eurweb.com
TEXT-Israel's Alvarion gets Fiji Wimax deal
Reuters
Nortel trials WiMax in Delhi
DQ Channels
Spitzer Looks to Remove Hevesi
Gothamist
Big B's shoes too big for me: SRK Times of India
Clinton takes steps towards presidential run
The Age
Clinton Dogged by 'Electability' Questions Washington Post for activists eager to recapture the White House after eight years of George W. Bush, electability remains a crucial yardstick by which Clinton, especially, seems to be measured ...... "She's a senator, she'd be the first woman running, and she's Hillary Clinton," he said. "All of that is almost insurmountable for a general election." ....... there are plenty of others who wouldn't vote for her if she promised to eliminate the income tax and give free ice cream to everyone. People have made up their minds about her, and that doesn't give her much room to maneuver ...... Clinton has not yet declared she plans to seek the presidency, and aides say the question of whether she can win tops the list of considerations. She's also said she is eager to return to the Senate, where, come January, she'll be a member of the new Democratic majority. ........ Clinton has a good sense of self ..... "I don't think she makes this race unless she thinks she has a pretty good chance of winning the whole thing." ....... her husband is the Democratic Party's best campaign strategist and biggest fundraising draw. ........ Clinton's reputation remains deeply rooted in her polarizing eight years as first lady ....... "Everyone knows Hillary Clinton can raise the money and that she has a good team, but it's mitigated by all the mumbling that she's not electable," said Joe Trippi ........ last month, Clinton won 73 percent of the women's vote, compared with 61 percent of men's ....... states that were close in the past, from Arkansas to Colorado to Florida to Ohio, could well move to the Democratic column ...... Everyone is looking at how she compares to McCain .... Clinton already runs about even or just slightly behind McCain in most polls.
Clinton, Mayor Edge Toward 2008 Race New York Sun
Debate over Segregation in Schools to Hit Supreme Court Today ABC News
Affluent Families Have Ways to Sway School Assignments Wall Street Journal
Supreme Court revists school integration case MSNBC
Google enrolls teachers in online software crusade
Boston Herald
Google navigates an offline course
Financial Express
Australia's Labor gets new leader
BBC News
Dell may open retail stores in the UK
Pocket-lint.co.uk
Dell claims new servers save on electric bill
Computer Partner
Vogue to launch India edition in 2007
Monsters and Critics.com
Astronauts arrive for Discovery launch
NDTV.com
Is it worth it to say hasta la Vista to XP?
Virginian Pilot
Health a hot tech market: Ballmer NEWS.com.au
US marine sentenced to 40 years for rape in Philippines
Globe and Mail
UN chief tells of Iraq war sorrow
MRT online
Annan: Life Worse for Iraqis Now Than During Saddam's Rule Fox 8 News WJW
Iraq 'worse than civil war' Melbourne Herald Sun
Artists Lauded at Kennedy Center Gala
New York Times
5 honored at Kennedy Center Los Angeles Times
Models fight over surgeon's affection
Contra Costa Times
Brit's Gift: Paris' Big F**K You to Billboard TMZ.com
'Shaolin Soccer' star to play Bruce Lee in Chinese TV series
DailyIndia.com
Very thin women at higher miscarriage risk
Reuters.uk
Underweight women '72% more likely to miscarry' Times Online
Chocolate lowers miscarriage risk Vancouver Sun












Friday, December 01, 2006

December 12 DL21C Bash

On November 7: In Harlem: For Obama













More ....

Tuesday, December 12

8:00 pm

Get ready to celebrate with:

Capitol D * Caucus of Color * Council of Urban Professionals * Democratic Leadership for the 21st Century * Democrats on the Heights * Dominican Womens Caucus * Eleanor's Legacy * LUlivo USA (Democrats from Italy living abroad in the U.S.) * and The BlueFund

As we invite you to our:

10th Annual Holiday Party

With Special Featured guest:
The Hon. Charlie Rangel
Member of Congress
Chairman of the Committee on Ways and Means

and other special guests!!

We are very excited that this years party will be at the elegant and opulent:

Manhattan Center Grand Ballroom
311 West 34th Street

Music by DJ Lightning

A special thanks to our honored sponsor The Coca Cola Company!

Please RSVP!



dl21c ny
Democratic Leadership for the 21st Century (DL21C)
Democratic Leadership for the 21st Century
tins ::: Rick Klau’s weblog » Campaign training for the DL21C
dlc homes for sale apartments at dl21c.com
DL21C - What does DL21C stand for? Acronyms and abbreviations by ...
DL21C -Democratic Leadership for the 21st Century | Democracy For NYC
Cosmopolity - DL21C
DL21C : Blogging and Politics | The Daily Gotham

www.myspace.com/58423191
Sooner Thought » Blog Archive » lowercase d democrat: Capitol D’s ...

NYS Young Democrats Caucus of Color (New York, NY) - Meetup.com
New York State Young Democrats Caucus of Color
New York State Young Democrats Caucus of Color
New York State Young Democrats Caucus of Color
Queer People of Color Caucus Statement - National Coalition ...

New York Council of Urban Professionals
Austin Area Urban League Young Professionals Council

Greater Heights Democratic Club
The Heights
CDA :: Siena Heights University Democrats

Amazon.com: "Dominican Women's Caucus": Key Phrase page
Amazon.com: "Dominican Women Against Violence": Key Phrase page
NYC Guide to Women's and Social Justice Organizations
NOW Names New Director of Racial Diversity Programs
First Spanish-Speaking NOW Chapter Forms in the Bronx, N.Y.
DANR - Dominican American National Roundtable

ERLC
eleanor roosevelt legacy committee
Eleanor Roosevelt Legacy Luncheon - jeska's blog

Italian general election, 2006 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Operation Gladio - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
"Think Tanks" bipartisans : acteurs, id¡ologie et structure du n ...

The Blue Fund - Invested in Meaningful Change — The Blue Fund ...
Blue Screening — The Blue Fund - Invested in Meaningful Change
Blue Fund touts investment in Democratic firms - Jun. 16, 2006
Fund that espouses 'progressive values' will leave you blue ...
Managers Investment Group: Brandywine Blue Fund - Overview
Miami Blue Fund
Announcing The Blue Fund - now you can Invest Blue | BuyBlue.org

Congressman Charles B. Rangel | 15th Congressional District
Congressman Charles B. Rangel | 15th Congressional District
Congressman Charlie Rangel's Official Website
Speeches
Charles B. Rangel - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
CNN.com - Rangel introduces bill to reinstate draft - Jan. 8, 2003
YouTube - Rangel Responds to Chavez
President Bush Is 'Our Bull Connor,' Harlem's Rep. Charles Rangel ...
Rep. Rangel Will Seek to Reinstate Draft - washingtonpost.com
Charles Rangel | Congress votes database | washingtonpost.com
Congressman Charles B. Rangel - (NY15) - Cong. Rangel Condemns ...

Grand Ballroom - Manhattan Center Studios
Manhattan Center - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Grand Ballroom at the Manhattan Center New York NY - Music ...

the coca cola company
Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola - Careers
Killer Coke
Coca-Cola - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Coca-Cola Scholars Foundation
Coca-Cola Enterprises Inc.

Thursday, November 30, 2006

Obama's Weapon On Clinton: Iraq




The mood was different back then. 9/11 was recent. The country wanted to hit back so hard, the vast majority of Republicans believed the Dick Cheney lie that Saddam was behind 9/11.

Even since entering the Senate, Hillary has been under pressure to boost her defense credentials. She might have an idea or two on health care, but can she be imagined in the role of Commander In Chief? That is an unfair gender question, but it was/is there. She countered by going hawkish in more ways than one. She might have taken one step too far.

The Iraq War is no longer popular: it might have singlehandedly cost Bush the Congress. Hillary has never taken a stand against that war. Her stand during the election was that Rumsfeld should be fired. Message: the war was right, just its execution got messed up.

Obama, on the other hand, is the original anti-war candidate. He opposed the war back in the days. That is how he became a Deaniac. Dean was anti-war.

Obama and Hillary are my two favorite people in the US Senate. They are both super talented. Both represent the better possibilities despite the constraints of race and gender. Both are left of center pols taking easy strides to the center to win elections. Both are or are going to be strong on money and organization. Both are going to come up with many good ideas.

But Hillary can't wish away her tracks on Iraq. Iraq is also going to loom large for 2008 like it did for 2006. And that is where Obama is going to have to hit hard. There must be too much footage of Hillary speaking for the war option, too much footage of Hillary supporting Bush even after the deliberately faulty intelligence was all over the papers. Therein lies Hillary's weakness.

Obama was not only anti-war ("dumb war") but he has been careful not to take the Murtha position of immediate withdrawal. He wants the troops out, sure, but before that he wants a political solution to the problem. How about engaging the adversaries in dialogue? The fallback countries for the insurgents in Iraq have been Iran and Syria.

Many say a larger regional conference is also the right thing to do for the Israel-Palestine thing.

So Obama comes to you with a solution. The guy has a plan. It happens not to be cut and run. It happens to be solve and get the hell outa there.

Perhaps the Iraq War will be over before Obama gets into the White House, but that is not the point. This is a judgment issue.

Democratic Vision For The 21st Century
The Matrix
Three Pillars, Draft 2

Obama Will Announce In January
Eliot Spitzer For Running Mate
A Woman For Running Mate, Perhaps A Governor
Barack Obama: Time For A Generation Shift
New Orleans: 2008 Democratic Convention
Next Stop: White House
On November 7: In Harlem: For Obama
The Audacity Of Gravitas: Restore Intelligence To The White House
Barack Is A Deaniac
Barack Obama: This Is A New Century
Barack Obama: New Approaches To Old Problems
Switching To Obama
Google Video: Martin Luther King
Google Video: Malcolm X
Obama In Africa
Hakeem Jeffries Debate 2
Hakeem Jeffries Debate
Leecia Eve: It’s Time to Reclaim Our Voter Power
Hakeem Jeffries: Principled Compromise
Barack The Glass Walls, Ceilings, Smash 'Em
Obama Votes Nay
Obama, Ethics Reform, And White Dems
blac
Obama Was In Town And I Missed It
Who Is Leecia Eve?

"First Nancy Pelosi, Then Hillary"
Google Video: Bill Clinton
Hillary 2008: Enough White Men
YouTube: Bill Clinton
Hillary In The White House, Bill At The UN In 2010
Advice To Hillary
Hillary's Formula For 2006
Hillary 2008
2008 Countdown: Hillary-Obama
Karl Rove, Hands Off Hillary
Hillary In Person
The Israeli Wall Is Wrong, Hillary
Hillary Speaks Up For NYC

Dean-Hillary-Obama Ticket

No To Neocons, No To Islamists
Iraq Movie, Liberally, But Not Drinking
October 5 The World Can't Wait Rally
Movie: Iraq For Sale
Iraq: Dumb War
Middle East: The Final Map
Nation Building, Israeli Style?
Lamont Victory
Lamont: The Iraq War Ferment In The Democratic Party
Right Wingers In Power In Israel And America
Lieberman, Lamont
The Israeli Offensive
Critiquing A Critique Of The Iraq War Critiques
Can't Take Back Congress Without Strong On Defense
Long War
Iraq Intel: The Spy Who Failed Me
The Larger WMD Question And Iran
Complicated Iraq
Primitive Liberals Need To Stop Attacking Hillary
The "I" Word: Monica And Saddam
The Saudi Royal Family Has Got To Go

In The News

Bush-Maliki Talks Are Postponed New York Times
Bush, Maliki Meeting Set for Thursday in Jordan Voice of America
Fiji army returns to barracks amid coup fears Washington Post
Bihar allies differ on Muslim quota Calcutta Telegraph
India's BSNL pairs with Intel on WiMax EETimes.com
Spitzer says targets Brooklyn mortgage fraud ring Reuters
Bachchan gets interim relief in tobacco case Daily News & Analysis
Rick Warren defends Barack Obama invitation
OCRegister
Church Is Urged to Disinvite Obama Washington Post Antiabortion groups are assailing one of the nation's most influential evangelicals, the Rev. Rick Warren, for inviting Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) to speak at a conference on HIV/AIDS at his Southern California megachurch this weekend. ..... Phyllis Schlafly of the Eagle Forum, Judie Brown of the American Life League and Tim Wildmon of the American Family Association. ..... the HIV/AIDS pandemic cannot be fought by Evangelicals alone. It will take the cooperation of all -- government, business, NGOs and the church .... A spokesman for Obama said he has no intention of withdrawing from the conference ..... "While we will never see eye-to-eye on all issues, surely we can come together with one voice to honor the entirety of Christ's teachings by working to eradicate the scourge of AIDS, poverty and other challenges we all can agree must be met," a statement from the senator said.
Famed Pastor Defends Invitation to Obama Forbes
Obama meets with Ludacris
Chicago Sun-Times
Senator, rapper Ludacris meet to talk about young people WQAD
Rapper Ludacris visits Northwestern to talk about HIV-AIDSABC7Chicago.com
Iraqi leader under fire from US, Shiite supporters
CNN
Fiji tense after overnight show of force
The Australian
Zune has shot at iPod market share, survey says
Reuters
US moving up to 2,700 troops into Baghdad CNN International
Now, Paris and Britney party in matching Tees! Zee News
Activists urge boycott of the `N-word' Los Angeles Times
UN to send monitors to Nepal to support peace deal Reuters AlertNet
Charges to be dropped against 2 top Nepal Maoists in Bengal jail
Indian Express
Depute ex-Gurkha soldiers in Nepal: Prachanda
Zee News
Nepal Peace Pact an Example to the World OhmyNews International "Dramatic" could be the word to describe the way that Nepali politics have turned in recent times. The entire credit goes to the massive people's uprising in April this year ........ the decade-long insurgency now abruptly comes to an end on the mere basis of popular demand, negotiation, and mutual trust, rather than through forceful or violent tactics, unlike in other parts of the world where rebels and the authorities have several times failed to achieve a lasting and reciprocally granted peace accord. ..... The war crimes committed during the conflict should be addressed properly, and the perpetrators, be it from the rebels or the government security forces, should be brought to justice. ..... other conflict-ridden countries, those bearing similar instances of insurgency and political upheaval, could also learn and follow this outstanding achievement in Nepal, an achievement that was brought about by the people for the people.
Democracy Lacking in Muslim World It is hard to find a purely democratic country in the Muslim world, one that is governed by the people directly or through elected representatives. ...... Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates and Oman are ruled by kings or emirs. Last year, the first local elections were held in Saudi Arabia. The Saudi people showed that they were hungry for unconditional democracy: 700 candidates competed for only seven seats in Riyadh, the capital. Women, however, were not allowed to vote. ....... After the fall of Saddam Hussein's regime and the withdrawal of Syrian solders from Lebanon, Iraq and Lebanon moved to establish democracy. In Iraq, Shia Muslims are busy establishing a religious democracy. ...... Iran is a religious democracy where, except for the spiritual leader, every person, member of parliament, member of local government, speaker and president has to be elected. All of the mechanisms of the state, however, are ruled by a guardian council, which is led by the spiritual leader, who is known as the ayatollah. No one can stand in an election without his permission. .......... Egypt and Libya are ruled in the style of "the one-man show." ...... Sudan and Algeria, known as dictator-based democracies. Democracy in Morocco, Tunisia and Tanzania is not doing well, but is stronger than in other states. ....... Egypt, Libya, Algeria and Morocco have banned religious parties. ...... Turkey's democracy is doing well, but religious parties are not allowed. .... Indonesia, democracy is unstable. .... In Malaysia, democracy is also limited. Pakistan is ruled by its president, Gen. Pervez Musharraf, who took power from an elected government through a bloodless coup. .... Family-based democracy remains in Pakistan and Bangladesh, where major parties are organized by family members. .... Brunei is controlled by a sultan. Dictator Maumoon Abdul Gayoom rules the Maldives. Although elected leaders rule in Bangladesh, there is little room for an opposition party. Afghanistan is a warlord or tribal leader democracy. ..... the "mayor of Kabul." ..... a "puppet democracy." ..... The six central Asian Muslim countries -- Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan -- are ruled in the style of empire. ..... Nigeria, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Bangladesh, which have abundant natural resources, are mired in poverty.
More efforts surfacing to draft Obama as presidential candidate CNN fellow Illinois Senator Dick Durbin sent a letter to political supporters encouraging them to sign a "Run, Barack, Run" petition.
WiMAX Gaining Momentum, But Unlikely to Threaten 3G in Asia ... Government Technology
Wimax in Asia
Euro2day
Iraq Panel to Recommend Pullback of Combat Troops
New York Times
Clinton versus Obama: Is there any difference? MSNBC Right now the two most prominent names in speculation about the 2008 Democratic presidential nomination are Illinois senator and best-selling author Barack Obama, and New York senator and former First Lady Hillary Clinton. ..... a “Draft Obama” web site was launched on Wednesday. ..... would an Obama-Clinton contest largely be determined by intangibles: image, charisma, and personality? ...... Rauh met Sen. Clinton in her state back in 1992 when Bill Clinton was running for president. “She was a bright and dynamic woman, very engaging ...... “Every Democrat I talk to — and even independents — say they really have read a lot about Obama. People are pretty excited about him,” said Fitzgibbons, who works in Spencer, Iowa ...... Iraq as a dividing line. .... “Obama campaigned against the Iraq War when he ran for the Senate, while Sen. Clinton pushed the war”
Obama reaching out to key state leaders United Press International
China bishop ordained without Vatican OK
Houston Chronicle
China ordains non-Vatican bishopCNN
China Quietly Executes Sect Leaders CBS News
China to OK Goldman's Shuanghui buy soon: report MarketWatch
China, Chile to start FTA talks on service trade/investment next ...
Forbes
Shah Rukh Khan to replace Amitabh Bachchan as 'KBC' host
Apun Ka Choice
Wall Street Likes Ford Cuts Forbes
GM Pledges to Make Plug-In Hybrid Vehicle
Washington Post
Oil Is Little Changed Near 2-Month High on Colder US Weather
Bloomberg
Senate GOP Leader Adapts to an Unexpected Role
New York Times
Panel Reaches Deal on US Iraq Policy
Forbes Defense officials, meantime, said the Pentagon is developing plans to send four more battalions to Iraq early next year, including some to Baghdad. ..... Bush said Tuesday he would not withdraw American forces "until the mission is complete." ..... The study group is expected to recommend regional talks involving Syria and Iran. The administration has been reluctant to engage those two countries, which it says have abetted the violence in Iraq. ..... There are currently about 139,000 U.S. troops in Iraq; some 20,000 are in and around Baghdad, the capital.
Joint Chiefs chair says civil war discussion is pointless WHO-TV
Google Is Shutting Down Answer Service
New York Times
NC county gets Google restraining order
BusinessWeek
Google CEO says Internet is key to campaign win
Reuters the Internet, especially video file-sharing sites .... changed the political landscape by enabling anyone to disseminate information widely and instantly. Google chief sees Arab net users doubling Trade Arabia 'Today, this region of 290 million people has only 26 million Internet users. These are expected to grow to 50 million by 2009 making the Arab world a sizeable market,' said Dr Schmidt....... challenged by a severe lack of content in the native language, we expect this to change in the near future, bringing the Internet closer to the general non-English speaking population ..... need for advanced IT capabilities to 'leap frog' into the modern era
Google gunning for Microsoft Blogging Stocks If Google's calendaring, email, spreadsheets, word processing, and possibly presentation software can integrate into a seamless infrastructure, the battle lines will be so obvious
Pope Turns to Church Rift New York Times
Nuke talks end without deals
Shanghai Daily
Report: North Korea Refuses to Unilaterally Abandon Nuke Program FOX News
Get out of nuclear business, US tells North Korea Reuters
Castro's no-show increases doubt about future Washington Post
India Set for Record Wheat Harvest as Farmers Boost Planting
Bloomberg
Threat of Fiji coup has faded
Daily Telegraph
Powerful Typhoon Batters the Philippines
Forbes
Snoop Dogg busted after 'Tonight Show' appearance
Los Angeles Times
NBA: New Jersey 106, Boston 103 Washington Times
Pataki and Spitzer Back Health Care Consolidation Plan
New York Times
AMERICA'S PREMIER SOCCER PUBLICATION
90 Minutes Soccer Magazine