Few serious articles are published in the mainstream press on Bahrain, the small Gulf kingdom that has been a strategic base for the U.S. This piece by Neil MacFarquhar is, in my view, the best piece that I have seeon on island in a long, long time.
In Tiny Arab State, Web Takes On Ruling Elite - New York Times: "Bahrain, long a regional financial hub and a prime example of the power of the Internet to foment discontent, bills itself as a leader of political change in the Arab world. It is a claim echoed in praise from the United States, which considers Bahrain crucial for its many regional military ventures because the American Navy's Fifth Fleet is based here.
But in Bahrain, as across the Arab world, those pushing for democratic change want to end minority rule by a family, sect or a military clique.
The royal family here dominates, holding half the cabinet positions and the major posts in the security services and the University of Bahrain. "
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