College of Political Knowledge
Subject: Revolution/Despots/ Dictators
The recent election in Iraq has shown that democracy is possible….all that before the present day dissent took hold…..the problem was that Maliki had to form a government out of warring factions….he did so and now we can be proud that we forced democracy onto the Middle East……
With all the dissent in Tunisia, Egypt, Yemen, Syria, Algeria and Libya, though Libya is more of a revolution than a call for democracy, they want to do away with Qadafi…..but we can hope that if Qadafi gets whack then maybe democracy will be the next stage…..
But this post is more about the country in the Middle East that McCain said would never see protests like the rest of the Middle East because it is now democratic….
Don’t you just hate it when events make you out a complete idiot?
Well, McCain was mistaken…..riots, protests and armed intervention have come home to Iraq….their “Day of Rage” consisted of police intervention the deaths of several, the burning of buildings, etc…all the usual acts when people are fed up….but the Maliki government hads turned to the tactics of a despot…..
The government is rounding up the usual suspects in Iraq….this from a report in the WaPo:
Iraqi security forces detained about 300 people, including prominent journalists, artists and lawyers who took part in nationwide demonstrations Friday, in what some of them described as an operation to intimidate Baghdad intellectuals who hold sway over popular opinion.The Iraq protests were different from many of the revolts sweeping the Middle East and North Africa in that demonstrators were calling for reform, not for getting rid of the government. Their demands ranged from more electricity and jobs to ending corruption, reflecting a dissatisfaction with government that cuts across sectarian and class lines.
Yet the protests were similar to others in that they were organized, at least in part, by middle-class, secular intellectuals, many of whom started Facebook groups, wrote and gave interviews supporting the planned demonstrations.
The democracy in Iraq that McCain is so proud of does not act like a democracy…..it does not allow dissent, jails intellectuals and uses force to quell dissent…is this what 4000+ Americans died for….is this the democracy to be proud of? Is this what McCain considers a good democracy?
And the US still has NOT addressed the violence in Iraq……we have condemned everyone else in the area but since this is our butt boy…..we will remain silent……..
These are the tactics of a despot….a authoritarian leader….we have seen this time and time again……jailing anyone that could form an opposition…..sorry NOT a democracy! It may be McCain’s definition of a democracy….but it is NOT mine!
Absolutely! Good post! But then democracy (MY definition) doesn’t to my knowledge exist anywhere in the whole darned world – not even close!
However, that said, you cannot rule a people made up of wildly differing and extremely violent factions by being Mr. Nice Guy and certainly not by appeasing the baser instincts of those highly aggressive factions… (does that, incidentally, sound like anyone near you, Chuq)
Much as I wish it were not so, the only answers in such circumstances are: anarchy, tribalism, or a despot – of wait, there WAS one of those in Iraq a few years ago and someone got rid of him, didn’t they?
Yep and a fairly stable country at that…….and we Americans cannot have that we prefer the despots to be on our side and we will ignore their transgressions…..
Of course
The US media is fixating on Qadafi’s mental condition or his nurse with big boobs and ignoring what is going on in Iraq…..a place which 4400 Americans did to bring democracy and now they are changing things….this sucks!
Don’t blame the Iraqis – blame GWB and his henchmen.
Nope…I blame the American people for stupid!
If the people were all wise and capable, why would they need leaders? It’s those leaders who have shit on the people, not the other way round. The people perhaps weren’t savvy and cute enough (even educated enough) to understand, but the leaders don’t HAVE to cheat and scam, they just always DO!
There has got to be a good explanation…but I have yet to hear it……
I think the media is focusing on the his “eccentricities” (behaviors associated with psychosis) because he is the despot du jour. And you have to make it entertaining. If it bleeds, it leads.
Not saying it’s right, but it is what it is.
Sad but true
@SpinnyLiberal: You are probably right, but his “eccentricities” have always been there to see for a very long time. The UK media HAS reported on them in the past, but no one apparently wanted to run much with the story.
Was that fact political? I suspect so – no one wanted to face up to the reality that we were supporting a lunatic in Libya (one amongst many?).
Mccains problem is he believes we, the americans are too stupid to notice whats going on in iraq. And hes right, but so is he. This gun point democracy was destined to evolve and if we want to claim victory in iraq, then has to evolve. It has to become the iraqis democracy. Good for them for standing up and giving a damn! Mcain should be proud …. By the way, im not convinced mccain wasnt talking about sumeria, he gets confused
Not just McCain, seems lots of Repubs get a bit confused when it comes to geography……poster children for why we NEED public education
Or maybe QUALITY education of ANY sort!