Wilma de Soto wrote:
As far as I can tell, most of the Islamic world has been governed byMost of the Western world hasn't been very different. Democracy is a relatively recent concept in human history, i.e., less than 300 years old. Prior to that, we were governed by kings, emperors, dictators and churches.
Sultanates and Caliphates throughout their history. Their society has
traditionally been strictly socially structured and their politics
intertwined with their religion.
But as I'd suggested in my ealier post: if we were having this conversation in 1770, and you told me that revolution against the Crown was unworkable because the colonies were "culturally disinclined" to have this theoretical thing called democracy, you;d be making the same argument as you're m,aking now. In fact, you'd have better historical evidence to stand upon. So why are you making this argument now?
Democracy is a largely Western European concept. Those influences wereDemocracy is, at root, a system of government based on the principle that all citizens deserve a say in the policies of their nation. It doesn't seem to me that its cultural origins as a "Western European concept" make it any more or less valid or desirable. You might as well dismiss the novel as an art form because its "Western European" origins. Or argue that jazz and movies aren't wanted in other countries because both were ore or less invented in Imperialist America. Or, dismiss relativity theory as "Jewish physics" because of Einstein's ancestry.
prominent in the development of the Republic of South Africa, and Nicaragua
(even though "caudillismo" was a cultural by-product of independence from
Spain throughout most of Latin America) and of course in the US colonies.
Whether or not you or I think it is worth it to establish a Democracy thereAnd many people in many parts of the world dislike democracy because it undermines many of their existing structures of power-- say, dictators, militarists, religious fanatics and fascists.
is not at issue. Unfortunately, many people in that part of the world
consider Democracy to be very closely aligned with Imperialism and
Colonialism.
If the insurgency is not enough for you to see that we are not wanted there,Are you making the argument that the people of Iraq _preferred_ governance under Saddam Hussein?
perhaps you would present some evidence that people are waiting anxiously
for a Democratic type of government in Iraq.
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