Freedom Minute: Episode 99

In late June, large scale protests erupted in Egypt, as protesters demanded Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi restructure his cabinet and call early elections. On July 1, CNN reported one supporter said, "the president is staying. We believe in democracy. If people don't like him, they can vote him out in three years." That sentiment was echoed by Abdul Mawgoud Dardery, a representative for the Muslim Brotherhood, saying the opposition “failed in the previous five elections we had in Egypt since the revolution, and they don't want to fail a sixth time. That's why they're going to street politics. Street politics is not an end in itself. It is a means to achieve democracy.” In other news: The government of Venezuela has extended an offer of asylum to Edward Snowden. Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro said Snowden's only crime was telling the truth adding, "We have decided to offer humanitarian asylum to the American Edward Snowden to protect him from the persecution being unleashed by the world's most powerful empire." The governments of Nicaragua & Bolivia have also reportedly extended asylum offers. USAToday reports, "President Barack Obama has publicly displayed a relaxed attitude toward Snowden's movements, saying last month that he wouldn't be 'scrambling jets to get a 29-year-old hacker.'"