Overview

"What happens when democracy produces ""bad"" outcomes? Is democracy good because of its outcomes or despite them? This ""democratic dilemma"" is one of the most persistent, vexing problems for America abroad, particularly in the Middle East--we want democracy in theory but not necessarily in practice. When Islamist parties rise to power through free elections, the United States has too often been ambivalent or opposed, preferring instead pliable dictators. With this legacy of democratic disrespect in mind, and drawing on new interviews with top American officials, Shadi Hamid explores universal questions of morality, power, and hypocrisy. Why has the United States failed so completely to live up to its own stated ideals in the Arab world? And is it possible for it to change? In The Problem of Democracy, Hamid offers an ambitious reimagining of this ongoing debate and argues for ""democratic minimalism"" as a path to resolving democratic dilemmas in the Middle East and beyond. In the seemingly eternal tension between democracy and liberalism, recognized by the ancient Greeks and the American founders alike, it may be time to prioritize one over the other, rather than acting as if the two are intertwined when increasingly they are not."

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"Shadi Hamid is a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, research professor of Islamic studies at Fuller Seminary, and a contributing writer at the Atlantic. He was named one of the world's top 50 thinkers by Prospect magazine in 2019. Hamid is the author of Islamic Exceptionalism: How the Struggle Over Islam is Reshaping the World, which was shortlisted for the 2017 Lionel Gelber Prize for best book on foreign affairs, and coeditor of Rethinking Political Islam. His first book, Temptations of Power: Islamists and Illiberal Democracy in a New Middle East, was named a Foreign Affairs Best Book of 2014. Amin El Gamal (he/they) is an Egyptian American actor originally from the SF Bay. He's perhaps best known for playing fan-favorite Cyclops on Fox's Prison Break revival, which made him the first openly queer Muslim actor to play a leading role on television. His other work includes The Newsroom, Shameless, Transparent, The Librarians, Good Trouble, Message from the King, Namour, First Love, Breaking Fast (now on Hulu), and numerous theater credits on stages across the country. With a playful, expressive voice, he has recorded titles for Penguin Random House, Harper Audio, Hatchette, Macmillan, Recorded Books, Brilliance Audio, Elephant Audiobooks, Realm, and Audible Studios, among others. AudioFile magazine has called his work ""masterful,"" ""haunting,"" ""engaging,"" and ""a suspenseful treat."" He's a Stanford University and USC MFA in Acting grad."

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