The May 31st issue of The New Republic has a letter-to-editor from a professor of anthropology and he reminds readers that with regards to Iraq, "maybe, just maybe, democracy is not for export." He takes the stance that big badboy USA is imposing its will "upon conquered peoples" and perhaps the way of America is not suitable for everyone around the globe.

I think the more interesting point that could come from this observation is that perhaps societies deeply rooted in a religion may find it very difficult to then adopt to a more secular form of democratic government. That's not to say that Iraq was a theocracy under Saddam's thumb, however it goes without saying that most citizens in Iraq are Muslims, with Islam the state religion.

I can't help but see how this parallels with what's going on in our country. We supposedly have a secular democracy, but with the Christian Right making huge inroads into our way of life thanks to GW, DeLay, and Ashcroft to name a few, I firmly believe that democracy as we've known it, and as the founding fathers intended for it to be, is in great jeopardy. Those at the religious extreme in this country are attempting to curtail our rights and democratic freedom the same way democracy serves as a primal threat overseas in those religious-dominated countries such as Iraq, Afghanistan and Saudi Arabia. Democracy only works if tolerance and acceptance exists in the society. The irony is knee-deep.