we will just have to create a success story in Iraq
Despite all the talk going around, I've seen no convincing ideas on how this is to be done. Have you?
They already have fake elections and a fake parliament. They have a government and civil service.
So the simple thing would be to conquer the country, eliminate Hussein, the Baath party, and the secret police. Then hold municipal elections as soon as possible, administer the country while it organizes some real political parties, assembles an honest, or nearby honest, voters' roll and have an election.
Iraqis are ordinarily intelligent folk. They know what they have now is fake. What makes you think they can't see what's real? And what's possible? They have high levels of literacy and a repressed middle class dying to be free.
Most of the country has no big ideological axes to grind (its fascism would disappear with elimination of Saddam and Baath) -it's secular, and sort of socialist but not in a big way because the money ran out years ago.
Much of the country's poverty is the result of Saddam stealing a vast amount of cash flow in addition to taxation. Get rid of the cash flow theft and there's money for private investment
The real problem for Iraq, post Saddam, is no political institutions at the level of citizens so they'd need some coaching. The northern bunch on the other hand, have been trying democracy for a few years and the exiles have had exposure to it so there would be some coaches available. I expect the Turks would help out with this.
It wouldn't be easy, and would be a bit messy, but a damn sight easier than democratizing Afghanistan. |
