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To: Steel Wolf
Steel Wolf is wrong,

Lets talk about how we "prop up" Arab dictatorships. Start by being specific about exactly which country.

Bahrain - Constitutional monarchy w/ an elected parliament
Comoros - Democracy
Egypt - Democracy. The last dictator, Nasser was always backed by USSR.
Iraq - Democracy. US invaded specifically to depose the last dictator.
Jordan - Monarchy
Kuwait - Monarchy w/ an elected parliament
Lebanon - Democracy
Oman - Monarchy w/ an elected parliament
Palestine - Islamist Democracy
Qatar - Monarchy
Saudi Arabia - Monarchy
Syria - Dictatorial Republic
UAE - Monarchy. Bin Laden used to (mid 90's) take its princes hunting i Afghanistan)
Yemen - Democratic (although pro-US govt is viewed as corrupt by Islamists)
Iran (if you want to count it as Arab which it is not) - Islamist Democracy.
37 posted on 08/23/2006 12:55:01 PM PDT by RC51
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To: RC51
Oh, geet. The Middle East is awash in democracy. Let's have a look. (Any numbers I toss in are from https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/)

Bahrain - Constitutional monarchy w/ an elected parliament

Bahrain is nice. Basically the Las Vegas of the Middle East, and not much larger. That said, monarchs are dictators. Poltical parties are outlawed in Bahrain, although political 'societies' are now allowed to congregate. Population: 700k.

Comoros - Democracy

I'll give you that one, even though 98% of Americans couldn't find it on a map. Population: 700k.

Egypt - Democracy. The last dictator, Nasser was always backed by USSR.

Come on, now. If Egypt is a democracy, so was the Soviet Union. All parties and candidates must be government sanctioned, and political repression is tight. Go make a 'Mubarak must resign' poster and walk down the street in Cairo. Record me how many steps you make it before Egyptian police beat you senseless, and get back to us. Population: 79 million.

Iraq - Democracy. US invaded specifically to depose the last dictator.

Iraq is democratic. That's two. Population: 27 million.

Jordan - Monarchy

Monarchs are dictators. Population: 6 million.

Kuwait - Monarchy w/ an elected parliament

Monarchs are dictators. Kuwaiit is a constitutional hereditary emirate, with all positions except for elected 50 legislators being appointed by the Amir. Population 2.5 million.

Lebanon - Democracy

Lebanon is nominally a democracy, albeit in reality it's a failed state run de facto by neighboring dictatorships and local terrorist groups. I'll give it to you, I guess, if you want to claim it. Population: 4 million.

Oman - Monarchy w/ an elected parliament

Monarchs are dictators. The Omani parliment is bicameral, on side being appointed, the other elected. Both have only advisory powers, and do not make law. Population: 3 million.

Palestine - Islamist Democracy

All you. Population: 2.5 million.

Qatar - Monarchy

Monarchs are dictators. Qatar does have some elected officials, who have advisory powers only. Population: 900,000.

Saudi Arabia - Monarchy

Monarchs are dictators. Saudi Arabia is one of the worst dictatorships on the planet. Population: 27 million.

Syria - Dictatorial Republic

Syria is a dictatorship. Population: 19 million.

UAE - Monarchy. Bin Laden used to (mid 90's) take its princes hunting i Afghanistan)

Monarchs are dictators. Population: 2.5 million.

Yemen - Democratic (although pro-US govt is viewed as corrupt by Islamists)

Yemen is democratic. Amusingly enough, the government is nominally pro-US, but Yemen is one of the most openly pro-jihad countries anywhere. Population: 21 million.

Iran (if you want to count it as Arab which it is not) - Islamist Democracy.

It is not Arab, but for arguement's sake, let's include it. Iran is a theocratic republic. Political parties and candidates must be approved by the government. Population: 69 million.

So, out of all of your examples, we have Comoros and Iraq leading the pack, with Lebanon, 'Palestine' and Yemen tied for 2nd. Combined population: Over 50 million. So which of the five would you like to move to first, to see democracy in action?

Any of the other countries named are centrally controlled, with political power given out in either symbolic or minor doses to the elected officials. Political repression is harsh, and open criticism of the government leads to violent reprisals, imprisonment, torture, or death. Call it democracy all you want. Just don't call it anything else while you're there, unless you want a visit from the local cops.

41 posted on 08/23/2006 2:03:53 PM PDT by Steel Wolf (- Islam will never survive being laughed at. -)
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