: re: Democracy Is in Recession

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: barry levine
Date: Wed, Feb 18, 2015 at 11:54 AM
Subject: re: Democracy Is in Recession
To: "letters@nytimes.com"

To the Editor:

   I'm sure the plight of Botswanans weighs heavily on Thomas L. Friedman. But who's missing from his list of countries in which democracy is in retreat? How about 84 million Egyptians? When I read "All Men...inalienable Rights" I don't find a clause exempting Arabs. Perhaps Tom didn't like president Morsi. But el-Sisi's coup ousted the president whom the Egyptians has chosen, and el-Sisi has been gunning down political protesters in the streets, and torturing and imprisoning and hanging those who disagree with him. Yeah, democracy is in retreat. But it's not served when the U.S. or Tom winks at "our son-of-a-bitch".

Barry Haskell Levine

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/18/opinion/thomas-friedman-democracy-is-in-recession.html?_r=0