HRW argues that the aid has become subject to "political capture", with the doling out of donor funds at local level used "to control the population, punish dissent, and undermine political opponents both real and perceived".
Officials were stationed around the conference hall, each with copies of the text indicating the points at which they should cheer and chortle.Mr Minkin raises valid objections to such methods: they can shut off dissent and undermine trust in politics.
He may, it is said, want to use the KGB's domestic successor to deter political dissent and to undermine his legitimate opponents.
While France and Germany split with the rest of Europe and the U.S. over the war in Iraq, Putin took advantage of the world's distraction to crack down on internal dissent and to undermine the independence of his neighbors.
While it remains a small group, its dissent continues to undermine papal authority.
As Justice Breyer wrote in his dissent, the ruling may undermine the enforcement of many laws protecting the health and safety of state employees.
The 15th-century priest was predicting that the printing press would shake the foundations of his church, that portable texts and popularized messages would undermine the authority of orthodox religion, stimulating dissent and encouraging independence.
Mike Farrell, the actor who played B. J. Hunnicut on "M*A*S*H" and who is outspoken in support of liberal causes, said such tactics amount to "an orchestrated attempt to undermine free speech and the right to dissent".
But Justice Felix Frankfurter persuaded Murphy not to dissent, arguing that it would undermine the "great reputation of this Court" if Murphy were to accuse his colleagues of betraying the Constitution and "behaving like the enemy".
Making choices about winners and losers is bound to encourage dissent, but prizes also seem to undermine some of the basic assumptions about how science works.
