An America that is already broke, with unfunded liabilities in the trillions and entitlement that the president himself has described as "unsustainable", is an America that can no longer be the police in all the world's dramas. This, I believe, is a welcome and long-overdue development. But it won't be easy, or clean.
When we talk of democratic systems, we mean, genuine democracy. Democracy is based on respect of all rights for all the people, including freedom of thought and expression, and the right to organize under the umbrella of effective political institutions, with an elected legislature, independent judiciary, government that is subject to both constitutional and public accountability, and political parties of different intellectual and ideological orientations. This genuine democracy requires guaranteed freedom of expression in all its forms, freedom of the press, and audio-visual and electronic media.
Freedom is messy. Attempted revolutions in regions that haven't experienced freedom are guaranteed to have terrifying moments, even years. Although it is horrible on a basic human level to watch from afar as a delusional thug mows down his own people, that does not mean the U.S. or the international community can produce the best outcome for the country. Intervention into a country's internal affairs, as we have learned from the past the hard way, can only end in grave unintended consequences.
America should be a bystander. Let the protesters and rebels seize the means of their own freedom. Let them take ownership of their own future. It's time that we let them.
Samuel Burns
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