Waging NonViolence - Maria J Stephan

When I read a an article like this I begin to really appreciate what a privilege it is to vote and what a difference it makes about who gets elected and how that may determine how "free we really are" to express ourselves.

From the introduction about the author ... and what she was writing about last August

Maria J. Stephan is a strategic planner with the U.S. Department of State and co-author, with Erica Chenoweth, of Why Civil Resistance Works: The Strategic Logic of Nonviolent Conflict. Formerly she served as director of policy and research at the International Center on Nonviolent Conflict (ICNC) and as an adjunct professor at Georgetown University and American University. She has also been a fellow at the Kennedy School of Government's Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs.

Libya’s Revolution: A Model for the Region?

by Maria J. Stephan | August 29, 2011, 3:25 pm

The final paragraph ... worry about Syria

A turn to armed struggle, which might seem like a good idea given all of the positive media coverage of Libya’s armed revolt, would decrease the likelihood of an opposition victory in Syria while increasing the chances of prolonged post-transition violence. I can only hope that the international community, including the U.S. government, will continue to do whatever possible—diplomatically, politically, and through sanctions—to support the gutsy nonviolent protestors in Syria and incentivize defections amongst erstwhile regime supporters. In short, while the U.S. government and our allies in the international community will strongly back the Libyan people’s quest for a democratic future, I hope that Libya’s revolution-in-progress does not become a model for the region.

 WI 1848 Forward: Waging #NonViolence - Maria J #Stephan : #Chenoweth : Gene #Sharp #99% #47%

WI 1848 Forward: Waging #NonViolence - Maria J #Stephan : #Chenoweth : Gene #Sharp #99% #47% #Honduras #Latino vs #1%