Your logic is folly. The Japs had no democracy to speak of in their history. Up unitl post WWII, they were a warrior culture, of great prowess and prestige, and under the influence of the emporer-gods who ran the place. Not Christian, not westernized, and certainly not democratic.
But by golly, they sure are now, and one of our staunchest allies, at that.
Look what has happened to the communist wet dream of Marx and Lenin. Sure their are a few holdouts still. But it was ONLY Ronald Reagan and a very small handful of others who were wise enough to know that the godless ideology was going to land on the "scrap heap" of history. You must recall how the intellegencia on both left and right, and the Real-politiksnics ridiculed Reagan's vision.
Seems to me the British Empire did very well in changing the culture in India. They are now the World's largest democracy and getting more properous by the day. So obviously the Hindus are accepting of "enlightenment". Look at Turkey, after the fall of the Ottoman empire, Attaturk ruled with an iron fist, yet was wise enough to set up a proper constitution, which is still in place as we speak and Turkey will soon join the EU. They have been a staunch US ally up until the latest Iraq war. But we still share intelligence with them.
Morocco, Libya, Iraq, Afghanistan, Jordan, Kuwait, the UAE, and even Saudi Arabia are starting to moving in the right direction. Away from terrorism. In no samll part due to GWB.
The Cold War lasted 50 years. Expect the WOT to take at least 20, and you can thank GWB for putting the change in motion.
Well-said!
Secondly, the Japanese adoption of changed forms was from their top down. While MacArthur directed certain changes, he had the full cooperation, at that point, of the Emperor, who was the spiritual head of the Japanese people. His surrender to the allies and personal relationship with MacArthur, is not a situation possible to repeat in any of the lands, with which President Bush would arrogantly meddle. Also, prior to the Tojo Government moving in a Totalitarian direction, the Japanese did have popular participation in their Government, during the great modernization, which took place in the late 19th and early 20th Century.
The Japanese people are also more homogenious than those currently under-attack. That makes them far more susceptible to successful adoption of popular government. In lands where there is ethnic diversity, "Democracy" is far more likely to result in ethnic conflict, such as in contemporary Iraq, or out-right genocide, such as occurred in Ruanda, over a decade ago. There is no moral imperative in counting-noses to determine policy in artificial nations, such as Iraq.
As for the British "success" in India, I would suggest that you look more closely. While economic reality has moved India somewhat to the Right in recent decades, the India that the British left in 1947, had a socialistic Government, which for the next few decades was more likely to side with Soviet Russia in world affairs than with the United States and Britain.