"... it is possible to democratize governments, anytime, anywhere, under any circumstances. This notion is belied by an enormous body of evidence based on the experience of dozens of countries which have attempted with more or less (usually less) success to move from autocratic to democratic government. "
Kirkpatrick goes on to describe John Stuart Mill's 3 preconditions for democracy:
"One, that the people should be willing to receive it [representative government]; two, that they should be willing and able to do what is necessary for its preservation; three, that they should be willing and able to fulfill the duties and discharge the functions which it imposes on them."
She elaborates on Mill:
"...leaders of all major sectors of the society must agree to pursue power only by legal means, must eschew (at least in principle) violence, theft, and fraud, and must accept defeat when necessary. They must also be skilled at finding and creating common ground among diverse points of view and interests, and correlatively willing to compromise on all but the most basic values.
In addition to an appropriate political culture, democratic government requires institutions strong enough to channel and contain conflict. "
From this, it is clear that Iraq fails to have the necessary pre-requisites for democracy and it will take "Decades, if not centuries, ... for people to acquire the necessary disciplines and habits" to support a democracy.
Why have our modern neo-cons ignored this valuable lesson?
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