Before entering the course, I believed that democracy in the Middle East was a viable option but that, because of many cultural reasons, was not the best option for that region. Now, having taken this course and learned about the different aspects of Middle East governance, I do not think that democracy is a viable option at all. It is not the matter of democracy cannot succeed in the Middle East or anything like that, it is the matter of democracy not being properly suited for societies like those in the Middle East. The agenda of the United States to turn a lot of these nations into democracies has really gotten nowhere. I would say that they actually caused more problems in this region than actually solved during their quest for democratization.
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Democracy, as most nations in the world have it today, is not properly suited for the Middle East. Their deep roots in Islam and the western world influence on them makes it hard for democracy to become stable. I believe this region needs to be left alone by the western world when it comes to politics. The past century has seen constant intervention by the western world in their quest to ‘fix the problems’ and to ‘make the middle east a stable nation’. The Arab World has the chance to become a big powerhouse and to thrive like we saw before the Crusades. Back then; they were not being influenced by any outside nation. They developed beautiful cities, influenced many of the smartest people in history, and become very wealthy in the process. This could easily be achieved again if they stop being influenced by the powerhouses in the western world and start fixing their own problems. How is a region supposed to succeed if they cannot even stand on their own two feet without help from the western world? The solution to their problems is something that many nations have done; develop their own type of governance. The United States became what they are today from taking the democracy that France had, and developing it into their own. The Middle East must now do the same. They need to take bits and parts from different forms of governance and make their own system. A system that will give rights to their people, prevent widespread corruption in their government, fix the problems they have now, and allow Islam to be rooted in their nation. The Middle East is such a special case, when it comes to governance, that I cannot see them adopting a current ideology and having it work to their advantage. The Middle East has all the necessary resources and characteristics to become a prosperous nation again, they just need to find themselves to get
Democracy, as most nations in the world have it today, is not properly suited for the Middle East. Their deep roots in Islam and the western world influence on them makes it hard for democracy to become stable. I believe this region needs to be left alone by the western world when it comes to politics. The past century has seen constant intervention by the western world in their quest to ‘fix the problems’ and to ‘make the middle east a stable nation’. The Arab World has the chance to become a big powerhouse and to thrive like we saw before the Crusades. Back then; they were not being influenced by any outside nation. They developed beautiful cities, influenced many of the smartest people in history, and become very wealthy in the process. This could easily be achieved again if they stop being influenced by the powerhouses in the western world and start fixing their own problems. How is a region supposed to succeed if they cannot even stand on their own two feet without help from the western world? The solution to their problems is something that many nations have done; develop their own type of governance. The United States became what they are today from taking the democracy that France had, and developing it into their own. The Middle East must now do the same. They need to take bits and parts from different forms of governance and make their own system. A system that will give rights to their people, prevent widespread corruption in their government, fix the problems they have now, and allow Islam to be rooted in their nation. The Middle East is such a special case, when it comes to governance, that I cannot see them adopting a current ideology and having it work to their advantage. The Middle East has all the necessary resources and characteristics to become a prosperous nation again, they just need to find themselves to get