of them don't, and that has a chilling effect."

The early excitement of the pioneers of the social media movement has been dimmed as a tool to bring democracy to Egypt.

"That first generation of bloggers and activists has been deeply frustrated. Many of these people thought that there was a chance for change, and they found out that they were wrong."

At 34, Wael Abbas is part of the first generation of bloggers. He lives on the outskirts of Cairo. The most prominent furnishings in his sparsely decorated apartment are a computer and a large TV.

Keeping the lights low against the summer heat, Abbas spends his spare time watching Arabic translations of the cartoon SpongeBob SquarePants -- a hero, he says, because SpongeBob is an ordinary guy doing good things.

Abbas,one of the oldest bloggers, says he tried to do good things, too, but now he's pessimistic about a movement he helped to define.

"I know the limits of social media," he says. "I know what we can win and what we can lose."

He knows because he's been arrested for his online journalism. And he's often detained for hours at the airport when he returns to Egypt, as the government increases surveillance of activists and Web sites, Abbas says.

"They are getting smarter, and they are getting tougher and stronger," he says. But his complaints are also against the international community, and especially the U.S. government, for diluting support for the democracy movement in Egypt.

"Nobody gives a damn of what's going on in Egypt," Abbas says. "Mubarak is a friend,