Democracy Hypocrisy, Part 16

“U.S. Must Prove It's A Staying Power”

“On the radio a couple of weeks ago, Hugh Hewitt suggested to me the terrorists might try to pull a Spain on the U.S. elections. You'll recall (though evidently many Americans don't) that in 2004 hundreds of commuters were slaughtered in multiple train bombings in Madrid. The Spaniards responded with a huge street demonstration of supposed solidarity with the dead, all teary passivity and signs saying "Basta!" -- "Enough!" By which they meant not "enough!" of these murderers but "enough!" of the government of Prime Minister Aznar, and of Bush and Blair, and troops in Iraq. A couple of days later, they voted in a socialist government, which immediately withdrew Spanish forces from the Middle East. A profitable couple of hours' work for the jihad.” - Mark Steyn

Mr. Steyn would be mistaken. The Spaniards booted out their current government because they did not want their troops in Iraq, and their current government ignored that fact totally. They said “enough” because they believed that making war on Iraq increased the terrorism in the world, and the reason that terrorism came to Spain. But most of all, they said ENOUGH to all the lying of their current government – like blaming the bombing on the Separatists (Batistas) of Spain.

As we all now know, there was no terrorist attack in the USA to influence the elections (if the al Qaeda terrorists even do that – there is no clear indication that they do, in spite of the bombings in Madrid). Yet this writer thinks we should continue bombing and fighting in Iraq to bring them “freedom and democracy” while he belittles the government democratically elected in Spain – because he sees it as “socialist”. Note how he equates this with what the so-called jihadis want. Pretty amazing to me to think if al Qaeda and bin Laden are promoters of socialism!

But it is totally hypocritical to say you want democracy in one country while you belittle or insult or undermine or overthrow democracy in another country.