Revolution in the Near East

Democracy cannot be imported to a country just because the people want to rule their own affairs. The United States was able to be democratic only because the British had a tradition of democracy. It was that tradition of democracy that allowed Freemasonry to exist in Britain. It was that tradition of democracy that allowed colonial parliaments in the United States. One cannot import American or other democratic systems to countries which have no democratic institutions.

The United States is unique among the world in that it has a functioning, although much weakened, Bill of Rights. The Bill of Rights protects the minority from the tyranny of the majority. The idea of tolerance inherent in the Bill of Rights is unique to the United States and has spread to many other democratic countries where it has more or less functional importance. 

Tolerance is not a Muslim concept. When one replaces a Hussein or a Qaddafi, what are we supporting instead. Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, Bahrain, Yemen, and Syria have no tradition of tolerance. The NATO no fly zone is suppose to protect civilians and yet civilians on both sides of the conflict are being harmed and it is hard to claim that there are civilians in Libya today. By giving the Egyptian majority control, who is going to protect the Coptic minority? Who is going to protect the Alawite minority in Syria? Who is going to protect the Sunni minority in Bahrain? Who is going to protect the Hashemi minority in Jordan? Iraq is close to being a failed state and its failure center on the Shia majority's unwillingness to protect the rights and liberties of Kurds and Sunnis in Iraq. 

The United States should stay out of the way while these events occur. It is not clear that the changes which are occurring is good for America or Israel. I support the removal of Qaddafi only if he is replaced by a body committed to tolerance, to secularization of institutions, and to protecting the supporters of Qaddafi from war crimes like the one which happened in Benghazi yesterday. I do not support removing the Khalifi regime in Bahrain. I do not support the removing of the Hashemite King in Jordan and replacing him with Palestinian interlopers. I do not support removing Bashar if there is no institution left to protect the Alawites, which he does now. The proposed democratic movements are tyrannical and incompatible with the beliefs of a modern civilized society. Just as Turkey, which came so far under the secular rule of the military, is now on the verge of becoming a Islamic state and losing every connection with Europe, so we see what has happened in Lebanon and Gaza. 

A curse on democracy without a Bill of Rights.