Carnival of the Decline of Democracy - Edition 2.18

Welcome to the Carnival of the Decline of Democracy, Edition 2.18 - Blogging 'till the secret police take us away.

This week I received far more entries than I usually do (nearly double), so the task of selecting posts was especially difficult. Sometimes really important, well-written, and thought provoking posts don't get selected because they don't relate to the topic of declining democracy. Hopefully, what's left here will inspire you to not just be depressed about the attacks on our liberties, but to do something about it.

The first two postings this week each have to do with the passage of the Real ID act, perhaps one of the most frightening restrictions on our liberties yet:

Ian Welsh presents Is The US an Operating Democracy Any More? posted at The Agonist.
... and ...
Blue Dog presents Will China Show the Department of Homeland Security the Way? posted at Blue Dog Thoughts.

Also concerned about the demise of the Bill of Rights, Barry Leiba presents Searching the constitution posted at Staring At Empty Pages.

Jim Booth looks at the outsourcing of our war effort (and what it means for control and accountability) in There's no business like war business posted at Scholars and Rogues.

Phil examines how our apathy feeds in economics in The Predicted Economy of the United States of America posted at Phil for Humanity.

Madeleine Begun Kane offers a poll this week in Why Is General Petraeus Letting The White House Write His Iraq Progress Report? posted at Mad Kane's Political Madness.

Riversider updates us on an ongoing local battle across the poind in Council Votes To Ignore Flood Risk to Preston Residents posted at Save The Ribble.

This final posting is not about the decline of democracy, but is a fitting tribute to the fact that today's carnival falls on Labor Day: Maria Marien presents Labor Day Means More than a Day of Rest posted at A Passerby's Trail.

I'll be back in two weeks (September 17) with the next edition of the Carnival of the Decline of Democracy - Submit Your Posts Here. More information on future carnivals can be found on our carnival home page.