How to produce change-makers
We need to shift the focus of public policy education programs from training policy analysts to educating leaders who can accomplish things in the real world, argues Francis Fukuyama, senior… Read more »
Author Archives: DemDigest
McCain passing the torch at democracy institute
For the first time in 25 years, the International Republican Institute will have a new leader. Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), who is battling brain cancer, has decided to step down… Read more »
Corruption the ‘soft spot’ of post-Cold War authoritarians
The corruption of mafia-like elite circles are the soft spot of post-Cold War authoritarian states, argues AEI analyst Clay R. Fuller. “All authoritarian states are kleptocracies because by definition, authoritarians maintain an artificial monopoly on… Read more »
Disinformation – ‘dictators learning from each other’
The activity of the Internet Research Agency (IRA) is just the “tip of the iceberg” when it comes to Russia’s hacking and disinformation efforts, security and social media experts told the U.S…. Read more »
From protest to politics: Taiwan’s Sunflower Movement’s ‘activist legacy’
Taiwan’s 2014 Sunflower Movement unleashed a wave of youthful activism that has profoundly reshaped the island’s political landscape, showing how activists can effect change through elections, notes Ming-sho Ho, a… Read more »
Zimbabwe poll ‘charade’ proves ZANU-PF leopard can’t change its spots
Zimbabwe police stormed the headquarters of the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) in the capital Harare on Thursday and detained 16 people after sealing off the building earlier, a… Read more »
West’s Iron Curtain ‘would be most effective tool against Putin’s kleptocracy’
There is a major difference between former Soviet leaders and senior Russian officials today, including Russian President Vladimir Vladimir Putin and Foreign Minister [Sergey] Lavrov, whose families are abroad, former… Read more »
Is Cuba’s vision of ‘market socialism’ sustainable?
In short, no – at least, according to William M. LeoGrande, professor of government at American University in Washington, D.C. “The constitutional reforms recognizing private property and the new regulations… Read more »
Partnership in Peril: how to repel populist assault on transatlantic community
The threat of authoritarian populism will not recede unless a new generation of political leaders offers a credible agenda for improving people’s lives that is more appealing to the public… Read more »
‘The Road to Unfreedom’ critiqued and explored
In ‘The Road to Unfreedom’, Timothy Snyder traces the intellectual roots of modern authoritarianism in Russia and how its influence has spread, not least in the West, notes Eurozine.* In… Read more »