Inspired Election Edition: Michael Mergen

Today is Election Day (Go Vote!), and Slate's Behold photography blog featured some of these photographs from Michael Mergen's piece called Vote. Mergen, while covering Election Day from 2008-2010, captured these images of unusual polling places  around the U.S. He writes on his site:

"Vote investigates the spaces where the ideals of our political system meet the mundane realities of participatory democracy. The photographs consider the collision of private and public, consumer and citizen, and the incongruity between the functionality of the spaces and that of the voting booths."

These are a few of my favorites:

Precinct 10, Saugus, MA, 2009

Precinct 22020, Corona, CA, 2010

Precinct 9, Shelby Township, MI, 2010

Ward 40, Precinct 32, Philadelphia, PA, 2008

District 4-2, Murfreesboro, TN, 2010

Precinct 28080, Providence, RI, 2010

All photos belong to Michael Mergen

P.S. Go out and VOTE!

What's happening in Libya and Egypt

Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens, photo by Ben Curtis, Associated Press

As an International Studies major, I like to keep up on my news, and I've been following the events unfolding in Libya and Egypt. I thought I would share some of the better articles I have found describing the events of the last 24 hours and their significance, along with the significant reactions to these events from key U.S. political figures.

An overview of the last 24 hours from Al Jazeera (my go-to news source) 

This Foreign Policy article on the Salafi Movement provides a good primer on some of the conflicts going on between groups within Islam and questions of governance

An Egyptian blogger responds to the protests in Egypt

Slate's Fred Kaplan analyzes the events in Libya and Egypt and the US response

The New York Times coverage, BBC coverage, Newsweek coverage and the Guardian's coverage of the Libya attack

The Secretary of State's statement regarding Libya 

The President's statement regarding Libya and tribute to Amb. J Christopher Stevens

The Republican presidential nominee's statement regarding Libya and Egypt

The official twitter feed of the US Embassy in Cairo

Bernard Henri Levy remembers J. Christopher Stevens

I hope this is informative.