If we are to continue to try and force the square pegs of secular democracy and Western culture into the round wholes of a conservative Muslim society, then we will continue to see escalating resistance and escalating allied violence to contain that insurgency. |
The reality is that we are hated not because of our democracy, freedoms, and generous social security system; rather, we are hated because of our involvement in foreign conflicts and quarrels that were never our concern. |
There is no doubt that Iraqis, like Australians and Americans, love and desire freedom. However, if freedom doesn't mean the right to complete self-determination, unfettered by interests other than one's own, then that freedom is less than worthless - it's oppression. |