In Egypt, politics by protest

Mona El-Ghobashy argues that continued demonstrations set the country's agenda:

Many inside and outside Egypt have frowned upon continued protests, seeing them as obstructing progress toward democratic politics. Egyptian political analyst Amr Hamzawy has said that each Egyptian must now “transfer . . . from being a protesting and striking citizen into a participating citizen.” But street demonstrations are participatory politics by other means. They don’t compete with or undermine standard democratic procedures; they deepen democracy by enabling more forms of participation and ensuring that more conventional forms of participation are effective. Now that the uprising is over, Egyptians will not confine their politics to the ballot box. They will enthusiastically vote if elections are free and fair, but they will continue to take to the streets to keep their new rulers in check. 

Also: the role Twitter has played in the Egyptian revolution.