I read recently an interview with the President of Iran. In it he discussed the conflict between the Western idea of democracy, and how it is practised in his country. I don't know enough about the government of Iran to speak at length about it, but one thing that struck me was that in Iran the church and the state are bound together. It seems that no secular law can be passed that is in disagreement with the Koran. And this is one of the things that the Bush administration touts as a example of the lack of freedom in Iran. I find this ironic from a man deeply entrenched in the agenda of the religious right.
So I have begun thinking about the idea of democracy and freedom. Does one really equal the other? And is democracy the only path to freedom?
At this moment, our military is engaged in conflicts in two different countries, and we seem to be gearing up for coflicts in two others. Outside of my brother and one friend, no one I know supports these actions. I will grant you I don't know 250 million people, no where near that, so I cannot speak for the rest of the country.
But it brings up an interesting point about the notion of Democracy and freedom. If 51 % of the people say to do something, does it make it right just because thay are in the majority? Does that make the other 49% wrong? Or do you need 66%? Or 75%? Or 99%? And even if you get 99% of the people to agree on something (good luck with that), what happens to the rights of the other 1%? Do we not accept anything less than 100%, and thus make even the most basic decisions impossible?
Of course not. In this counrty we rely on a system that bargains and compromises, making concessions to the other side.
And in this counrty, we still have crime, violence, bigotry, poverty, inequality. We have a government continuing to engage in military action despite the majority of the country not being in favor of it. We have a government that has passed legislation allowing the seizure of property without due process, the detainment of individuals without counsel and without charging them with a crime. And we have a government that has effectivley removed this nation from the rest of the world community by it's assertion we are not bound by the terms of the Geneva Convention regarding the treatment of prisoners. We have used these sorts of actions on the part of other governments as an excuse for invasion, all in the name of liberating the opressed people.
So while our government is out touting "Freedom and Democracy" and in the mean time telling Iraq and Afghanistan to accept our form of government while we hold a gun to their heads, it might be best to contemplate whether "Democracy" is really as free as we make it out to be.
1 comment:
I am in agreement with what you've written, but we don't live in a democracy. "I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the republic, for which it stands..." The current admiistration has whitewashed their agenda in the blanket of "democracy and freedom", of course they've bastardized the meanings of those two words to suit their own purposes and agendas. We, as Americans have no business telling other countries how they should govern themselves, we can barely handle our own bureaucratic problems.
I truly understand what you're saying but most Americans aren't aware and I'm not too sure that they ever will be.
Post a Comment