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I guess this is what passed fo...,
2005-03-18 10:33:53
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wanker of yesterday...,
2005-03-22 07:19:41
sins of omission:
briefly, the US government's (lack of) responses to events in Saudi Arabia (1964), Bahrain (1975), Kuwait (1976), Jordan (1992), and Yemen (1993) that promised to further the democratization of the middle east demonstrate that Washington isn't interested in it. To pick out a quote I have laying around:
Do we seriously want to change the institutions of Saudi Arabia? The brief answer is no; over the years we have sought to preserve these institutions, sometimes in preference to more democratic forces coursing throughout the region. King Fahd [of Saudi Arabia] has stated quite unequivocally that democratic institutions are not appropriate for this society. What is interesting is that we do not seem to disagree. --James Schlesinger, Secretary of Defense 1973-1975, quoted by Alain Gresh, "The Legacy of Desert Storm: A European Perspective," Journal of Palestine Studies 26/4 (Summer 1997).
The numerous instances the USG has intervened to quash democracy in the region (1948 Syria, 1953 Iran, 1958 Lebanon, 1960 Turkey, 1963 and '68 Iraq, 1975 Morocco, etc. etc.) demonstrate that it more generally sees democracy as a threat. Evidence that Bush's rhetoric about spreading freedom and democracy means anything more than Clinton, Bush Sr., Reagan, Carter, Ford, Nixon, Johnson or Kennedys' meant is as yet sorely lacking.
:: posted by buermann @ 2005-03-18 12:17:54 CST |
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