13 readers online now

99,258 comments by 26,347 readers

Go to Mobile Site

Democracy
Reader comment on item: The Freedom Crusade, Revisited: A Symposium

Submitted by yehuda Ben-Asher (Israel), Jan 15, 2006 at 13:10

Dear Daniel ,

Why would the Americans think that a conservative, moralistic, faith based society like the arabs want to import a system that has only led to the complete breakdown of morality, ethics, family values and physical health. They see that the unrestrained freedom only lead to the emphasis on the materialistic, self-indulgence and passions, leading to the social breakdown that America exhibits at the present time. Only the Islamic threat lead to a revitalisation of the American spirit, nationalism, values, community, but has rapidly dissipated. Only a blind fool, or a person who lies to himself (because of other interests) would think that the export of American democracy would work in the Levant. I, an American in Israel, see the toll that it has taken on our society's morals, leading to the social breakdown, fatigue of values, the rampant egoism, all leading to the repeating disastrous governmental policies that you describe so well. I see that the only salvation of our society is a break from the moral and ideological degeneration of the west.

Our society was not stable or strong enough, because of the break from tradition, to accept democracy without the negative attributes. That, in addition to the rotten foundations of the socialist-communist systems that the original Zionists imported, we didn't stand a chance when western materialism and liberalism entered. The Moslem leadership sees that here, and 1)see that as our weakness, strengthening their continuing fight against us, and 2) fear down deep deep inside that it'll happen to them.
You should use your influence to build your home base before thinking of exporting anything other than cars.

In response to your previous article, on the mystics. More indigenous societies, connected to the forces of nature and the world, understand that there are mystical forces at work behind all that we see. The west, dominated on industrialised cities, and reductionalistic science, and moral relativism, became disconnected from those mystic forces. As the Talmud teaches us, that it's very hard for a city dweller to be spiritual or honest. Abraham Lincoln, in, The Mystic Chord of Harmony, understood that the United States, with all its haphazard history, was also based upon those forces, leading it to a union, with a purpose from Heaven. The fundamentalistic Christians in the States also understand this, leading them to understand the mystical basis of their present battle with Islam. The deeper sources within the Torah and Kabbalah, in Judaism, described all that now befalls the United States and Israel in their battle with Islam. They describe that the battle will lead to a place called Basra, coinciding with the continuing war in Iraq and the takeover of the government of pro-Iranian Shiites. The game with the Iranians over nuclear weapons will lead to Iraq, and a confrontation will come. It was obvious from the time of his first election that a return to faith like Bush was picked to eventually fight the same enemy that so easily bought his valueless father. Again, it's more important for the American people to build the home base to worry about political philosophical debates regarding 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.

Submit a comment on this item

Search by Enter name or date
Search Forum Comments:

Reader comments (9) on this item

Title By Date
What about societies of fear? [71 words]David W. LincolnJan 17, 2006 11:48
⇒ Democracy [519 words]yehuda Ben-AsherJan 15, 2006 13:10
Yes, but . . . . [502 words]John Edward PhilipsJan 15, 2006 08:44
The Problems And Drawbacks Of Democracy. [489 words]Seamus MacNemiJan 14, 2006 02:12
من أجل مصلحة أمن أسرة المجتمع الدولي [269 words]mohamed.mJan 13, 2006 12:33
This is WAR [65 words]SirSethJan 12, 2006 22:53
America is not a "Democracy" [417 words]Alan NitikmanJan 12, 2006 18:35
So what? [160 words]Alain Jean-MairetJan 13, 2006 03:17
Stability [86 words]JonJan 12, 2006 15:38

Comment on this item

Name
Email Address (optional)
Title of Comments
Comments:

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.

See the 25 most recent outstanding comments.

ADVERTISEMENTS

Premium Links by Wikio

Computers
Electronics
Communication
Appliances

eXTReMe Tracker

All materials written by Daniel Pipes on this site © Daniel Pipes. Email: MeqMef@aol.com

You can help support Daniel Pipes' important work by making a tax-deductible donation to the Middle East Forum.