|
|
#2 (permalink) Wed Aug 04, 2010 5:40 am Democracy |
|
|
The US has successfully forced democracy on Germany twice, and the second time it stuck, and I doubt there are many Germans alive today who would prefer to live under a dictator. The US forced democracy on Japan, and that has also been a great success. The US has done the same with other countries, either by forcing democracy on them or helping them develop it themselves.
However, in all of those cases, democracy took root, because the Germans, Japanese and others are civilized people. Unfortunately, most Arabs are not very civilized, and are in fact quite primitive in their thinking and behavior. This is why the experiment is harder there. As one of my many Iraqi friends once told me, "The US made the mistake of thinking we're civilized, but we're actually animals." |
|
Jamie (K) I'm a Communicator ;-)
Joined: 24 Feb 2006 Posts: 6646 Location: Detroit, Michigan, USA
|
|
#3 (permalink) Wed Aug 04, 2010 9:20 am Democracy |
|
|
| Jamie (K) wrote: |
| most Arabs are not very civilized, and are in fact quite primitive in their thinking and behavior. This is why the experiment is harder there. As one of my many Iraqi friends once told me, "The US made the mistake of thinking we're civilized, but we're actually animals." |
I can,t imagine a response more rudeness, brazen, arrogant and pettiness than yours. |
|
Eihab I'm here quite often ;-)

Joined: 26 Dec 2009 Posts: 125
|
 |
#4 (permalink) Wed Aug 04, 2010 14:54 pm Democracy |
|
|
| Eihab wrote: |
| Jamie (K) wrote: |
| most Arabs are not very civilized, and are in fact quite primitive in their thinking and behavior. This is why the experiment is harder there. As one of my many Iraqi friends once told me, "The US made the mistake of thinking we're civilized, but we're actually animals." |
I can,t imagine a response more rudeness, brazen, arrogant and pettiness than yours. |
However, as you'll notice, the opinion came largely from Iraqis.
And it is true that Arabs generally live primitively and have primitive beliefs and social values. After all, that preference for a dictatorial tribal system is a sign of a primitive society that has not changed in a thousand years. |
|
Jamie (K) I'm a Communicator ;-)
Joined: 24 Feb 2006 Posts: 6646 Location: Detroit, Michigan, USA
|
 |
#5 (permalink) Wed Aug 04, 2010 21:18 pm Democracy |
|
|
| Jamie (K) wrote: |
| Eihab wrote: |
| Jamie (K) wrote: |
| most Arabs are not very civilized, and are in fact quite primitive in their thinking and behavior. This is why the experiment is harder there. As one of my many Iraqi friends once told me, "The US made the mistake of thinking we're civilized, but we're actually animals." |
I can,t imagine a response more rudeness, brazen, arrogant and pettiness than yours. |
However, as you'll notice, the opinion came largely from Iraqis.
And it is true that Arabs generally live primitively and have primitive beliefs and social values. After all, that preference for a dictatorial tribal system is a sign of a primitive society that has not changed in a thousand years. |
How the United States Destroyed Democracy in Iran in 1953
Re-print of 16 April 2000 New York Times article; with an introduction by Francisco Gil-White
Historical and Investigative Research, 5 Jan 2006 http://www.hirhome.com/iraniraq/iran-coup.htm ________________________________________________________
“...[Central Intelligence] agency [CIA] officers orchestrating the Iran coup worked directly with royalist Iranian military officers, handpicked the prime minister's replacement, sent a stream of envoys to bolster the shah's courage, directed a campaign of bombings by Iranians posing as members of the Communist Party, and planted articles and editorial cartoons in newspapers.”
The above is a quote from a 16 April 2000 article in the New York Times, giving an account of how the CIA destroyed Iranian democracy in 1953, and which HIR reprints below. This episode, like many others, demonstrates the colonial attitude that the US ruling elite has towards the rest of the world, and just how little respect for democracy it has.
NOTE: You may have noticed in the quote above that the CIA "planted articles and editorial cartoons in newspapers" in order to deceive the US citizenry about what it was doing. A companion NYT article (at right »»), from the same day, by the same author, reveals the near-total control over the US press that US Intelligence had already in 1953, and how it used this in the Iranian coup, though the NYT's editors try hard to prevent the reader from drawing the obvious lesson. http://www.hirhome.com/iraniraq/iran-coup.htm _________________ Any day you wake up on "the right side of the dirt" is a good day. |
|
Political Lurker I'm a Communicator ;-)

Joined: 17 Jul 2009 Posts: 1924
|
 |
#6 (permalink) Sun Aug 08, 2010 1:23 am Democracy |
|
|
The New York Times isn't at all biased. _________________ Billie Jean is not my lover. Hee. |
|
Prezbucky I'm a Communicator ;-)

Joined: 07 Nov 2006 Posts: 2621 Location: Nashville, TN (USA)
|
 |
#7 (permalink) Sun Aug 08, 2010 8:30 am Democracy |
|
|
| Prezbucky wrote: |
| The New York Times isn't at all biased. |
Attack the messenger every time - when ever the truth is touchy _________________ Any day you wake up on "the right side of the dirt" is a good day. |
|
Political Lurker I'm a Communicator ;-)

Joined: 17 Jul 2009 Posts: 1924
|
 |
#8 (permalink) Sun Aug 08, 2010 10:29 am Democracy |
|
|
I wonder what was democratic having the choice between two miseries every 4 years. While in the meantime some rich cheaters have the occasion to fill their accounts by pressing huge amounts from governments and most politicians only see the chance to make a fortune by helping them.
How does that differ from ugly dictators or islamist terrorists. I only have to admit that people aren´t genocided that obvious and straight.
.
This is just a sequence of a movie that might help to see how incumbent democracy does work. Isn´t there really another way for humans to live together? _________________ "Ho ho!" said the clown |
|
Foah I'm a Communicator ;-)

Joined: 20 Apr 2006 Posts: 1358 Location: next to Dortmund , Europe
|
 |
#9 (permalink) Mon Aug 09, 2010 3:18 am Democracy |
|
|
1. The New York Times is known to slant things in a manner by which the US -- motives, results, etc. -- is made to look less than savory. Doubtlessly they have world-class Weather and Sports sections... but when it comes to geopolitical news involving the US, well: it's "all the news that's fit to serve as a substitute for toilet paper."
Any op-ed or news-editorial copy in that liberal rag requires cognitive-lens scrutiny.
2. What is wrong with making money? Shouldn't people be free to make a fortune, as long as they do so within the framework of the law? Would you rather have NO or LITTLE economic freedom and rely on a bumbling government -- with interests of its own -- to take everyone's money and spit it out arbitrarily?
Free Enterprise is the best economic model because it rewards ingenuity, risk, perseverance. It punishes sloth, stupidity and (ultimately) failure. Would you take money out of the pockets of people who know how to maximize its utility -- jobs, investment opportunities, good products, etc... aside from the deserved reward of personal wealth -- and redistribute said funds to failures?
Really?
Leave the money in the hands of the person who earned it, and he'll create opportunities for others; steal his money and give it to morons, and they will waste it... and, if you're in the US, they'll have the gall to demand more of other people's money.
To answer the question of democracy:
- When people vote for dictators, they deserve the results - When people vote for Communism -- as long as they retain that right to vote -- they deserve the results - When people vote for a representative multicameral republic, they deserve the results.
Regardless of the type of government for which they vote, or those whom the voters choose to run said government -- democracy is best because people VOTE to choose their rulers. People here -- in the freest country on earth -- bitch about not having their voices heard. To me, the personal voice is most effectively represented by suffrage. Adults, men and women alike, vote to show their opinions. And I cannot think of a better way.
I disagree with probably every American on (at least) one issue. Even those with whom I hold all major points in common, well, we vary on degree. The ability to apply your arguments quantitatively, in a peaceful manner, is the best way to make sure all voices count.
IE, via the vehicle of democracy.
I am sad that the insurgents in Iraq and the Taliban in Afghanistan haven't yet caught on to the concept of peaceful democracy. If they dropped their weapons and decided to vote, we'd have no reason to be there. People blame us for lots of shit, but I have yet to hear a convincing argument in favor of armed resistance to DEMOCRACY.
What the FU$K kind of issue do you have with a person's right to vote? Are you stuck in a cave, using a club to decide your leaders? Assimilate yourselves into ancient Greece, fer cryin' out loud, drop your guns, and vote your opinion into law. It's not too difficult a concept, really... and then we can get the hell out of your country.
We aren't there for oil: I don't see US supertankers stealing Iraqi oil, and besides, there's all of OPEC to deal with. Russians have oil; heck, we have oil in Texes, the Gulf of Mexico, and Alaska. We have access to oil from countries other than Iraq.
We were in Iraq to remove their WMD (not found, but...) and Saddam, and in removing Saddam, to bring democracy. We are in Afghanistan to remove the despotic Taliban. Women there don't have many rights: girls don't go to school, girls don't learn to read, women don't vote. Aside from all the other benefits of freedom/democracy, those Afghani females' rights will increase tenfold. It is time to eradicate despotism from Earth, and I'm so sorry, but we're in Iraq and Afghanistan to do just that.
Like any human endeavour, democracy isn't perfect: sometimes voters get it wrong on any or multiple levels, and to varying degrees. The voters are human, and the politicians are human... a recipe for potential disaster, really. But it's the best system available. _________________ Billie Jean is not my lover. Hee. |
|
Prezbucky I'm a Communicator ;-)

Joined: 07 Nov 2006 Posts: 2621 Location: Nashville, TN (USA)
|
 |
#10 (permalink) Mon Aug 09, 2010 5:32 am Democracy |
|
|
| Prezbucky wrote: |
We aren't there for oil: I don't see US supertankers stealing Iraqi oil, and besides, there's all of OPEC to deal with. Russians have oil; heck, we have oil in Texes, the Gulf of Mexico, and Alaska. We have access to oil from countries other than Iraq.
We were in Iraq to remove their WMD (not found, but...) and Saddam, and in removing Saddam, to bring democracy.
|
So, you weren't there for the oil; you just wanted to remove the WMD and establish democracy. -- yeah, right
Did you watch Tony Blair's inquiry on the Iraq war? If you did, then you'll know that he never gave a single concrete proof about the presence of WMD, nor did he mention that the Americans supplied him any such proof. The whole operation was based on a hypothesis that there were WMD in Iraq.
This seems like the typical American excuse, "Oh, we want peace. We just wanted to give the people freedom. We want democracy." Yeah, tell that to the relatives of Hiroshima and Nagasaki victims. Tell that to the Vietnamese. Ask them what is their opinion.
I have a question for you. What do you think is better, people "living" under a dictator (note the word living), or people getting "killed" so that their "patronizing big brother" can help them achieve freedom?
How the hell can you ever justify killing people for the sake of offering them freedom?
Look, I've got nothing against America. I think most people are nice out there. I also didn't like Saddam. I live in a country where freedom is a fundamental right. But you must know that there are bad elements everywhere.
Your argument was nicely built until you let your emotions or whatever get in the way and started making stupid claims. Think before you talk, and make a point to substantiate your claims.
Have a nice day! |
|
Thirdgoblin I'm here quite often ;-)
Joined: 16 Jul 2010 Posts: 135 Location: India
|
 |
#11 (permalink) Mon Aug 09, 2010 8:43 am Democracy |
|
|
| Prezbucky wrote: |
| 1. The New York Times is known to slant things in a manner by which the US -- motives, results, etc. -- is made to look less than savory. Doubtlessly they have world-class Weather and Sports sections... but when it comes to geopolitical news involving the US, well: it's "all the news that's fit to serve as a substitute for toilet paper." |
Ok Prezy so you dont like the NYT Toxic legacy of US assault on Fallujah worse than Hiroshima 24 July 2010 - Dramatic increases in infant mortality, cancer and leukaemia in the Iraqi city of Fallujah, which was bombarded by US Marines in 2004, exceed those reported by survivors of the atomic bombs that were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945, according to a new study.
US Marines first besieged and bombarded Fallujah, 30 miles west of Baghdad, in April 2004 after four employees of the American security company Blackwater were killed and their bodies burned. After an eight-month stand-off, the Marines stormed the city in November using artillery and aerial bombing against rebel positions. US forces later admitted that they had employed white phosphorus as well as other munitions. Link: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/toxic-legacy-of-us-assault-on-fallujah-worse-than-hiroshima-2034065.html
July 2, 2010 - Results of a population-based epidemiological study organized by Malak Hamdan and Chris Busby are published tomorrow in the International Journal of Environmental Studies and Public Health (IJERPH) based in Basle, Switzerland. They show increases in cancer, leukemia and infant mortality and perturbations of the normal human population birth sex ratio significantly greater than those reported for the survivors of the A-Bombs at Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945. Link: http://wsws.org/articles/2010/jul2010/fall-j23.shtml
Cancer, Infant Mortality and Birth Sex-Ratio in Fallujah, Iraq 2005–2009 Chris Busby 1,* , Malak Hamdan 2 and Entesar Ariabi 3 1 Department of Molecular Biosciences, University of Ulster, Cromore Rd, Coleraine, BT52 1SA, UK 2 100 Tanfield Avenue, Neasden, London, NW2 7RT, UK 3 82 Goldsmith Road, London, N11 3JN, UK Link: http://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/7/7/2828/ PDF: http://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/7/7/2828/pdf
Fallujah:The Flame of Atrocity Using filmed and photographic evidence, eyewitness accounts, and the direct testimony of American soldiers who took part in the attacks, the documentary – "Fallujah: The Hidden Massacre" – catalogues the American use of white phosphorous shells and a new, "improved" form of napalm that turned human beings into "caramelized" fossils, with their skin dissolved and turned to leather on their bones. Watch: http://www.chris-floyd.com/fallujah/
US forces 'used chemical weapons' during assault on city of Fallujah Powerful new evidence emerged yesterday that the United States dropped massive quantities of white phosphorus on the Iraqi city of Fallujah during the attack on the city in November 2004, killing insurgents and civilians with the appalling burns that are the signature of this weapon. Link: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/us-forces-used-chemical-weapons-during-assault-on-city-of-fallujah-514433.html
Docs Blame U.S. Weapons for Fallujah Birth Defects Link: http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503543_162-6266684-503543.html
Controversial US Weaponary Used in Iraq: Fallujah Birth Defects, Cancer - Interview of Dahr Jamal and Dr Muhammed Tareq al Darraji Link: http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=18068
Our Cruel Legacy in Iraq: Birth Defects in Fallujah’s Children Link: http://blogs.alternet.org/speakeasy/2010/03/04/our-cruel-legacy-in-iraq-birth-defects-in-fallujahs-children/
How The U.S. Murdered a City Link: http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article8093.htm
What is White Phosphorus (WP) Link: http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/systems/munitions/wp.htm
American citizens should be outraged. #00 million people and you elect George W Bush, the most inept, dumb, elitist fraternity scumbag this side of 1000A.D.
Fallujah is a drop in the bucket. The US (and Israel) must be prosecuted for War Crimes for their illegal invasion of Iraq. That was a utility scale crime. We must not cheat the hangman.
Does anyone know what the mental giant W does today? This man and his trolls ruined so many lives and then walk away. Love to be there on W's death bed, cocaine induced mutterings of Black Ops gone so wrong. Time to wake up America. You people are dropping the ball. Start throwing some elbows, jump in there and grab the xyz thing. Take your gooddamned country back. _________________ _________________ Any day you wake up on "the right side of the dirt" is a good day. |
|
Political Lurker I'm a Communicator ;-)

Joined: 17 Jul 2009 Posts: 1924
|
 |
#12 (permalink) Mon Aug 09, 2010 9:10 am Democracy |
|
|
Hello Tom,
I´m sorry that The New York Times of all things is referred to in the sequence I linked to. But as I mentioned it is just a sequence of the complete movie or report made by an austrian. You should see it completely and you´d see how huge money is made and how the big earnings influence people and landscapes. It´s not the opportunity to make money but the way how outrageous profits are made.
There is nothing wrong with making money, but you´re talking about framework of law. I wonder whether there is one at all? Shouldn´t there be laws against ripping of landscapes and pressing the people living there to work for wages that hardly allow them a visit to their doctor when they suffer from illnesses they gain from work? Is it lawfully to make governments allow some cash-hungry cheaters to spoil landscapes with plants that don´t fit to the countrysite and have them destroy their natural environment for the short fortune and leaving a country that never will recover from that rape?
What useful is it for towns to sell their sewerage to private companies and pay lots of rent in order to be allowed the use? I agree that only stupid jerks can fall for such silly ideas just in order to win the next election. But mustn´t the people (who don´t have a choice than to fall for them/ if they have the choice at all ) be protected against such ugly practice?
I´m not talking about the USA only. There are many other countries where such practice is usual. But the US Gov like some European Govs claiming to be that democratically also claim to fight for human rights everywhere in the world and as soon as some mercenary swindler come to see some profit immediately forget their pledge for human rights and even support them ( ok, admitted: the reason for such exploitation must sound nice......usually is it help for development).
All the average people can do is to vote for their representatives who always keep their eyes closed......... every fourth year here where I live. What I wanted to say only is that democracy should be thought through every now and then.
Btw, dictators usually aren´t elected, neither are terrorist leader. They always use power of pressure _________________ "Ho ho!" said the clown |
|
Foah I'm a Communicator ;-)

Joined: 20 Apr 2006 Posts: 1358 Location: next to Dortmund , Europe
|
 |
#13 (permalink) Mon Aug 09, 2010 17:31 pm Democracy |
|
|
the U.S like any previous empire or any small country, put its interest in the first place, and we don't blame it for that, but even kids can't believe that America has occupied Iraq just for democracy or even to find the chemical weapons. America had known Saddam when it supported him "even before his war with Iran", it had known everything about his bloody history and how he had come to the power. The American government had a good relationship with many dictatorships in Latin America, the Middle East, and in Africa. America is waving a democracy card when its interest has been threaten, and it has the right to defend itself by any way, but it doesn't has the right to support the tyrannies. we hope this situation will change with the president Obama, who I do believe he is an honest man. Proofreading welcomed |
|
Eihab I'm here quite often ;-)

Joined: 26 Dec 2009 Posts: 125
|
 |
#14 (permalink) Tue Aug 10, 2010 12:23 pm Democracy |
|
|
| Jorge W Bush thought that killing people is the way to get democracy and find Saddam. He didn't thought about Iraqi people, how they pass their daily life in this situation. He just thought about his self and how to get Iraqi oil. I think he has no right to make a warble situation in Iraq. He just did it for establish his father wrong way. If we walk in this way in future we situate a terrible world. |
|
Sunny15629 I'm new here and I like it ;-)
Joined: 11 Jul 2010 Posts: 12
|
 |
#15 (permalink) Thu Aug 12, 2010 7:18 am Democracy |
|
|
_________________ Any day you wake up on "the right side of the dirt" is a good day. |
|
Political Lurker I'm a Communicator ;-)

Joined: 17 Jul 2009 Posts: 1924
|
 |
|
| What a disappointment! | Charming your shoes misled in the house - Should others respect your house rule? |