A number of semi-obvious events/statements sparked my line of thinking here, and what I've realized is no huge revelation.  It should be utterly obvious to those thinking about it.

The problem is that we are all personally invested in not thinking about it most of the time.  It is part of our identity, party of our mythology, part of our political dogma as a Americans.

Simply put, it is deep and abiding faith/knowledge that DEMOCRACY IS BEST.  Or that Democracy is inherently better than all other forms of government. Or that Democracy is at its base virtuous, whereas other forms of government are not.

We pick through history to find quotes to support this.  We selectively compare our term "Democracy" in a loose fashion to carefully chosen tyrants throughout history in order to draw the conclusion not that we are right in claiming we have it good, but that we have it BEST. 

And here there be Dragons.

Because we have translated a structural abstract (popular participation in government aka Democracy) into a Dogmatic certainty about life for every culture on the planet.

According to the American mantra, Democracy is BEST, and inherently virtuous.  To have DEMOCRACY (whatever it is we label that to be at the moment) is to excuse all sorts of behaviors because while those behaviors (looting, rapint, torture, bombing, economically exploiting) are all just necessary and sometimes messy bits of Democracy.

And we hear this all over...Rumsfeld and Bush and dumbass callers to radio TV shows repeat this over and over.  "Yes people are dying en mass in Iraq but that's just part of them getting DEMOCRACY".  It's as if they were talking about a truck.  Yes we're paying a bit more but we're getting a FORD!.

And once that is said, everyone is supposed to nod as if the realization that a FORD were involved somehow justifies any cost whatsoever.

But let's reflect on what it's all about.  (I won' t bore you with all the quotes from Plato to Jefferson unless you ask).

Government isn't good.  It's a necessity.  It isn't something people want.  It's something people need.  It is a Tool.  It is a Hammer or a Screwdriver...something which in a vacuum is rather meaningless...but in it's application can be VERY useful.  But what are we doing when we elevate the hammer over the house it *helps* build?

And why do we need tools like government?  We need it because there are too damn many of us.  When too many people are in too small of a space, they compete and some rules need to be set up that moderate the conflict and help resolve the confusion.   Government is, therefore, a means to an end.  Government is supposed to provide us with some things we find jeapordized if we don't have it...somewhat like having the need for transportation makes people look toward buying a vehicle.

And what are these things people want from government?  Well, that changes from place to place to some small extent but some fairly universal needs are things like Safety from crime, safety from invasion, some control of production/business practices, public works, education, security when sick of infirm....the specifics can almost be irrelevant....there is a commonality among the things we expect governments to do...and they do, for the most part tend to do those things.

Some better, and some worse.  However, Democracy is, according to our American Myth, VIRTUOUS.  This is, again, a rather odd way of looking at things because Democracy is a process or structure for getting OTHER things.  Returning to the FORD...if you are Mother Theresa and you need to get out to feed the sick, you may need transportation...your actions there may be virtuous...but doesn't it seem rather odd to elevate, her Truck that she uses to drive to work to a level of Holiness equal to or above that of what she's actually doing?

That's what we have done in America.  We now use BECAUSE WE HAVE DEMOCRACY (I HAVE A FORD) to somehow substitute for acts that have actual virtue.

Now before people think I've left the country let me explain the other part of this formulation.  Democracy (and let's get real, we are calling all sorts of things Democracy these days) is just one or a few forms of governing styles.  Democracy is NOT the only style in which people have some voice.  (do I need to list out all the different types of government?).

But here's the deal...since it's inception...from Plato to the founding fathers...there has been (but no longer appears to be) an understanding that Democracy is a means to an end...but a FAR FROM FLAWLESS MEANS.  Moreover, it is not something intrinsically capable of meeting those ends.

Rather, Democracy is, by learned opinion, simply MORE LIKELY to produce good ends.  And I accept and embrace this.  I believe that given 1000, 100 of 10 different styles, that I'd end up with a greater percentage of well meaning and well acting cultures resulting from Democracy approaches than the others. 

But it's all theory.  There are (if we actually spent the time objecively looking) many examples of benevolent dictators, and virtuous Kings, of happy communes throughout history.  We are not talking about destiny.  We are talking about probability.  And that probability is almost entirely theoretical.  A Democracy can be as uncaring, cold, and corrupt as any other form of government.  PERHAPS it is not as likely to devolve, or to devolve into a corrupt state as fast...but this is an assumption, not a real, or necessary component of any structure of government. 

And we have lost this perspective when we talk about forcing everyone else into OUR Idealized Democractic form of civilization.  One one level the claim itself is suspect because that really isn't our agenda.  But for those dittoheads who believe the propaganda, we must worry that they have taken the abstract structure of Democracy and elevated it above the WORKS of Democracy.  They (and we when we engage in lazy thinking) begin to excuse the most horrific excesses in THE NAME OF DEMOCRACY...when Democracy (and all governments) are really ONLY there to PREVENT those horrific excesses. 

We live in a world that often rejects us...and at times they articulate it enough to reject our democracy...and we cannot understand.  It is because we have failed to distinguish between structure and purpose.  Democracy is structure...and we've been happy to force that down the throats of anyone passing by.  But the PURPOSE...that is what we are lacking.  We lacked it in Vietnam, we lack it in IRAQ, and we're going to lack it in the next unfortunate culture we invade...because we have lost sight (as people...not as the politicians out for money and oil) of why we were embracing Democracy in the first place.  It has simply become our religion...we just pray...don't think about it too much, that's the sin of doubt...

And we all know that OUR democracy is perfect and therefore without sin...so no one can doubt.

"It can't happen here!....The hell it can't"

Critter