No open society-No democracy!
Reader comment on item: The Citizen of the 21st Century: How Far, How Fast?

Submitted by Dan L. Nichols (United States), Jul 22, 2004 at 13:55

The comment that the USA is not a true democracy is correct. I must also add that our government is constantly plagued by interference by religious oriented citizens with their own adgendas . Our First Ammendment was constructed to clearly draw a "line in the sand" between the religious and secular. Many Americans seem to try to read between the lines and come up with unique interpetations.
I, as a freethinker, want and demand all opinions on issues. That includes those promoting unpopular beliefs, doctrines, programs and philosophies. That can only happen in a open society. Once you have it, plan on a constant battle to keep it. We now have a president who wishes to tamper with our constitution in order to eliminate rights for some groups. I wish it were otherwise but I feel that islam is the worst candidate for conversion to a open society. No openness..no democracy.

---

Note: Opinions expressed in comments are those of the authors alone and not necessarily those of Daniel Pipes. Original writing only, please. Comments are screened for relevance, substance, and tone, and in some cases edited before posting. Reasoned disagreement is welcome, but comments are rejected if scurrilous, off-topic, vulgar, ad hominem, or otherwise viewed as inappropriate. For complete regulations, see the Guidelines for Comments. For informational purposes, we identify countries from which comments are sent.