Exporting Democracy-as bad as exporting Socialism

In Iraq the USA has made the same mistake the erstwhile USSR made earlier, that is trying to export its brand of government.

No doubt democracy is a better form of government, but we should also remember what Winston Churchill said-Democracy—the worst form of government except all the others.

The erstwhile USSR tried to export communism in the guise of revolutionary socialism and got away with it for a long time, but in the end failed to sustain it in different nations. The end of cold war put paid to the notion of socialism in the USSR itself, and now it lies dismantled into different nations.

USA has been looking after its oil and money interests and is leading the Western group in propagating democracy in the third world, with Britain as its major ally. But they have failed to read the Islamic Middle East properly (in spite of Britain's earlier experience in that part of the world).

USA might have done well to play its money, trade and weapons exporting game only. But George Bush pushed the envelope when he dethroned Saddam and started indulging in the game of regime change and taking unilateral military action. He has not remembered the lessons of Vietnam. The result is one more country is being laid waste, thanks to the American invasion and the subsequent botched attempt to govern and bring democracy to a people who are more concerned with staying alive.

Now America will find some means to get out of Iraq (may be following the Vietnam example of cutting the losses and running away) but the damage to Iraq may take decades to repair and restore.

What a tragedy brought on by one (or may be two) democratic leaders and confirming Churchill’s statement about Democracy.