[eater-of-toast]

Very true. The Islamic countries of the Middle East are not going to be free in any case; the best we can hope for is political authoritarianism that is not unduly abusive and that supports a reasonably modern society. Jimmy Carter thought Khomeini would make a better leader for Iran than the Shah because the Ayatollah was a deeply religious man. Boy, did that naive fool Carter learn, and boy, did we all. Bringing full democracy to a backwards country, especially one full of Islamic fanaticism, is likewise a bad idea. You're liable to set up a situation of one man, one vote, once. Good thing Carter, with his foolish human rights program that undermined a number of our (necessarily) hardnosed allies, was unseated by Reagan, a wise realist who understood the need to support some unpleasant authoritarians when the alternative was not freedom, but rather the far greater evil of totalitarianism. Of course, he had at his side the brilliant Jean Kirkpatrick, the author of Dictatorships and Double Standards.

[ScottinVA]

Boy, did that naive fool Carter lea

Actually, judging by his recent, decidedly pro-muslim and anti-Israeli statements, I don't think Carter learned anything at all.