It is safe to assume you are considered an enemy of a nation when even its televangelists are urging your assassination. Such was the position of Venezuelan president Mr. Hugo Chávez in August of 2005, when former presidential candidate, founder of The Christian Coalition, and televangelist Pat Robertson suggested good U.S. foreign policy would be to "take out" the controversial Chavez.

His justification, that Chávez was actively working to make Venezuela "a launching pad for Communist infiltration and Muslim extremism all over the continent," was coupled with comparisons to Saddam Hussein and Adolf Hitler. While both the allegations and the comparisons do not stand up to much scrutiny, they are certainly in keeping with the rhetoric much of the American press employs. It is in our interest to understand why he receives such treatment.

Today the New York Times is reporting (free registration required) that two people will face international war crimes trials at The Hague for their role in the continuing genocide in Darfur. Is this progress? The two charged, Ahmad Harun and Ali Muhammad Ali Abd-al-Rahman, are described in the article as follows:

Mr. Harun, currently Sudan’s deputy minister for humanitarian affairs, was a senior government official in charge of the military and police and intelligence forces in Darfur as civilians were killed, raped and chased from their homes in the region, the prosecutors said.

His “unlimited” budget, the prosecutors said, allowed him to arm and finance Mr. Rahman, also known as Ali Kushayb, the militia leader who led fighters in a brutal campaign of violence against civilians. “We have focused on some of the most serious incidents,” Mr. Moreno-Ocampo [the prosecutor] said.

Of course, the main actors in this genocide have yet to be brought to justice, and of course the people accused would not be handed over by Sudan because it does not recognize the court's jurisdiction.

New York's Raul Mendez, alias DRO, has been charged with criminal mischief and making graffiti after being picked up at� a homeless shelter in Brownsville. As expected from a member of the ACC, the All-City Crew, his tag can be seen in the four subway-running burroughs: Queens, Brooklyn, the Bronx, and Manhattan. Anyone who keeps an eye peeled for such things has seen the name before. Good luck beating the charges DRO.

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Read this blog.

The downfall of hip-hop continues.

PBS wonders about the future of newspapers.

Wordsource, a new social dictionary, just launched.

Open Congress is a great resource, check it out.

Hilarious. Supreme Court questions Gore's Oscar.

Atheism is on the rise among the 18-25 set in the U.S.

Prime Minister Macky Sall announced this morning that Wade is in the lead with approximately 57% of the vote. Again, reactions have been calm in Dakar.

The elections were, regardless of how one views the results, conducted with an admirable degree of transparence. Voters entered their precints and took 15 slips of paper, each with a candidate's name and photo, and headed into a private booth. They then placed the card of their choice into an envelope, and disposed of the other 14. Envelopes were then placed into ballot boxes which were themselves literally transparent. Following poll closings and final counts, results were posted outside of each polling station. Though this process has its potential drawbacks - voters were allowed to keep the other candidates' cards, which could offer proof in case of vote buying - most Senegalese appeared to have a high degree of confidence in the fairness of the process.

The importance of Senegal's elections was outlined in an earlier post, but to restate it here, Senegal is one of the most stable democracies in Africa and, now that Cote D'Ivoire is in a period of decline, arguably the shining star of West Africa. When democratic mechanisms work effectively here, they establish a positive example for the rest of the continent, and counter stereotypes that all African politics center around coups and revolts. The relative smoothness of these free and open elections in a 95% Muslim country should also send a message to those who argue that Islam is incompatible with democracy.

Earlier today, Senegalese voters cast their ballots in the first round of national presidential elections. President Wade of the Parti Democratique Senegalais faces 14 challengers. Local radio stations began announcing results soon after polls closed at 6pm Senegal time, and having heard reports from a number of districts, it appears that Wade may have captured the majority percentage needed to secure immediate victory without going to a second round.

The results from one voting bureau in Dakar were typical:

610 registered voters; 487 votes cast

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Wade 287

Ousmane Tanor Dieng (Parti Socialiste, the old ruling party) 83

Idrissa Seck (Wade's former protege and prime minister)� 63

All others 49

Given the vigorous campaigns mounted by several of Wade's opponents, and widespread discontent with his administration, some in Senegal are already questioning the numbers coming in from the polls. A victory for Wade with 55% or higher seems dubious to some, especially given that on the first tour in 2000 Wade only collected something like 25% of the vote, and only won after all of the opposition came over to his side to defeat then incumbent Abdou Diouf.

While the district-by-district style of reporting results is calculated to reduce political tensions, and official results will not be proclaimed until tomorrow, political unrest is a distinct possibility, depending on how results are received by other candidates and the general public. Right now streets seem relatively quiet in Dakar; however, given that candidates such as Tanor Dieng were already vocally warning against the possibility of fraud before the elections, some amount of controversy tomorrow or later in the week seems likely.

More to follow tomorrow.

I have already criticized the wasteful, socially damaging, and unsustainable nature of Western consumerism in past articles, but there are other aspects of the spread of consumer culture that are more positive. Specifically, the spread of technology and certain cultural paradigms are beginning to link together many different parts of the world in a totally unprecedented manner, and the spread of American movies and cultural norms may be helping to break down stereotypes and prejudice around the globe.

You can thank Republicans for making heavy cashflow a necessary evil of the campaign. Clinton raised something like $30 million in 1992. To keep up with Dole in 1996 he had to raise around $85 million and openly complained to his aides that it was “ridiculous” and that he and his wife, along with Al and Tipper Gore, were “exhausted from raising money.” Then along comes good ole Dubya and his oil-loving friends who raised a whopping $200 million in 2000. Between Kerry and Bush in 2004 almost a Billion dollars were raised and spent.

Thanks to people like Howard Dean - and the internet - some money does come in small amounts from people like you (not from people like me, mind you, for campaign cash is what buys my beer…although I have forgone payment on campaigns for the cause). All in all fundraising for campaigns sucks. Candidates don’t like to do it, I don’t like to do it, but it’s a necessary evil.

Fundraising issues came to light recently because of the big Geffen fundraiser for Barack Obama in LA. Although I was not in attendance I’ve been to a few of these swanky ordeals. Sub-par $500 plates of roast beef and stale bread in some done up auditorium (if you can go to one in a hotel it’s a little bit better), talking with celebrities you’ve seen in the nude on TV about politics when all you can do is nod and picture them naked and try to get Scarlett Johannsen’s phone number from George Clooney. It’s like a party from hell. When you work in politics you try to find any excuse to not talk about it when you can, and anytime booze is involved with politics people’s true feelings come out. Granted, as much as I enjoy hearing Ben Affleck break down America’s fiscal policy, I’d much rather have Scarlett’s phone number. But whatever, it’s a necessary evil I try to avoid at all costs.

Texas Governor Rick Perry has been sued for ordering the HPV vaccine.

Please check out Fox Attacks. The name is self explanatory.

David Sirota wishes Joe Lieberman was a Republican.

The Brew Mag is "better thinking on tap." Definitely worth a read.

Swing State Project takes a look at the 2008 Senate picture in terms of retirements.

The video below is a great explanation of the history and implications of Web 2.0.

Iran yesterday, not surprisingly, was found in breach (free registration required) of a UN Security Council resolution giving it 60 days to suspend its nuclear enrichment program. Throughout all this Iran's leaders have said that they intend their nuclear program to be a peaceful one, only enriching uranium to power energy producing reactors, not make weapons.

Disregarding the Iranian logic that enriching uranium is their inalienable right, there are still a lot of questions to answer. Does Iran need the energy? Historically, have countries been able to use nuclear power for peace and not war? Will Iran be able to do the same? Will a nuclear Iran start a Middle East arms race?