[Congressman Billybob]

Why do you persist in contending that history is irrelevant? You are aware, I hope, that the Framers looked back as much as 2,000 years into the history of Roman and Greek city states, in deciding on the proper forms of American government that they were creating.

Were they wrong to do that? Or, are you wrong to ignore George Santayana's caution, "Those who forget their history are condemned to repeat it"?

If you want more recent history that even you could not decry as irrelevant, look at the "nation-building" which General MacArthur in Japan and General Eisenhower in Germany, after WW II. Germany is especially relevant, in light of the assassinations and sabotage that the werewolves carried out for years after being created by the Nazis to do exactly that, after the end of the war in Europe.

Congressman Billybob

Latest column: "My Friend, Gene McCarthy, 1916-2005"

[billbears]

Why do you persist in contending that history is irrelevant? You are aware, I hope, that the Framers looked back as much as 2,000 years into the history of Roman and Greek city states, in deciding on the proper forms of American government that they were creating.

Indeed they did. But they also had 500 years of democratization to build on. It was within their culture and had been growing for close to half a millenium. Care to tell us what the Muslim community was doing 500 years ago? Being that history is so relevant, I would look to their past to see if they are ready for a Republic. As there are few if any Muslim writers praising the aspects of democracy in the past 500 years, one may question whether or not it will work, or even if they want it to work. BTW, how many Muslim run nations are Republics, Democracies, or any form of Western government again? Out of how many?

Were they wrong to do that? Or, are you wrong to ignore George Santayana's caution, "Those who forget their history are condemned to repeat it"?

Alas, I am not the one ignoring. Rather the past 100 years of history in Iraq could have taught us, westernization in several forms has been tried, and failed. But carry on. They will be a theocracy within a generation

If you want more recent history that even you could not decry as irrelevant, look at the "nation-building" which General MacArthur in Japan and General Eisenhower in Germany, after WW II. Germany is especially relevant, in light of the assassinations and sabotage that the werewolves carried out for years after being created by the Nazis to do exactly that, after the end of the war in Europe.

Simply sad. You paraphrased Santanyana's statement and yet you yourself forget both Japan and Germany had started, and had a working form of, republican government before intervention by these United States and prior to WWII. Also you are missing that aspect of religion controlling one's whole life in both nations.