Comments on: Death of the Arab Nation-State?

By: Sean Hackbarth

Sean Hackbarth — Thu, 11 Jan 2007 23:58:35 +0000

While not a democracy Dubai is growing by leaps and bounds and they're Arab. The investment and tourism it's drawing in is a sign they're doing something right. That nation-state's situation and experience may be too unique, but lessons could be learned.

By: Prometheuss

Prometheuss — Thu, 11 Jan 2007 22:36:12 +0000

This analysis ignores the fact that Saddam himself was moving toward more reliance on Islamic fundamentalism to keep his regime in place. The secular Saddam who modeled his rule on Stalinist Soviet Union was giving way to a Saddam who increasingly emphasized his support of Islamic fundamentalism including funding terrorist attacks. The 'beer in the parks on Saturday' Saddam gave way to the mosque and palace building Saddam writing versus from the Koran with his own blood on the walls and empowering local councils to enforce Sharia law.

By: Beldar

Beldar — Thu, 11 Jan 2007 19:58:34 +0000

Further bolstering your France example, see also, for example, the histories of other developing nations in the Philippines, Kenya, and Malaysia. None has become a perfectly enlightened democracy, but then again, France hasn't either, and all have found some surcease in their civil wars given enough time.

By: James Joyner

James Joyner — Thu, 11 Jan 2007 17:35:46 +0000

m1EK:

I'm not arguing that, on the present course, things will work out great. Merely that, even had we done it all as well as possible, the job might well not be over.

By: Kenny

Kenny — Thu, 11 Jan 2007 17:22:37 +0000

right on James. Thomas Barrnett states it takes at least 10-12 years for a nation state to fully develop

By: M1EK

M1EK — Thu, 11 Jan 2007 17:21:50 +0000

Despite significant cultural advantages when compared with Iraq, France took decades to emerge demonstrably better off from the Revolution. It doesn’t follow that they should have remained a monarchy for all time.

No, but it follows that another nation that invaded, killed the monarchs, and then did a crappy job building the rule of law from the bottom up ought to be viewed as incredibly irresponsible bordering on evil. We didn't depose the Emperor, stick a few troops here and there, and then hold national elections in Japan. In Germany, we didn't maintain order with just a few troops and show off voters with purple fingers - in both cases, we built the rule of law from the ground up - not from the top down, and certainly not half-assed.