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Originally Posted by Zeld2.0
Democracy, like all other governments, however, come down to human nature - even a well built democratic nation can be bent under the will of the masses no matter the size as long as its the majority. A government ruled by one man can rise and fall as his emotions go. Checks and balances of course are there to limit the possibility of such things happening but ultimately in the end its how the people think and act.
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I think that democracies are less likely to see extreme measures introduced than any other type of government, simply because everyone has a vote. It's *very* difficult to get a majority of people to support a cause. It's much easier for a strong leader to force his people to do something, than to persuade them. If the USA had a democratic system like my country, you couldn't have gone to war with Iraq; It takes a strong leader to do that, and democracies generally don't have strong leaders. Not strong enough anyway.
Democracy has good points and bad, just like every other form of government. I just feel that democracy has less flaws and more vices than those other types. I also think that a country the size of the USA couldn't be a democracy if it wants to remain a super-power, so in that case a republic is a better choice. Likewise, if Europe should ever become one country, it would need to be a republic too; that is, if it wants to stay together, and wants to be powerful.
Going back to the original question: is a (pure) democratic system good for every country? No, probably not. But are democratic *rights* good for everyone? Of course! The US may be a republic, but the people still have a (democratic) right to vote.
Let's look at a country like Iraq (or Afghanistan).
There are many different factions trying to gain power. A democratic system of government may be the only way of keeping them in check without force. You should probably create a system like the USA has, with smaller states forming one big government. That way, the factions have their say, but the combined country becomes more powerful. The question then becomes: how much power do the states have, and how much power does the nation have? That is a question that is still being debated as we speak, particularly in the USA...
I can't say that the country should become an "official" democracy (with a pretty much powerless President) or a republic (with a stronger President); that depends on many different things (such as it's neighbors).
An alternative to a democracy would probably be some form of dictatorship, which has it's advantages and disadvantages; But it's not an option that is *better* than a democracy. A dictatorship would need to use force to keep the factions in check, and that produces many problems. Dictatorships also cannot afford much freedom; this has a negative impact on the economy, and on scientific progress. A possible "advantage" is that the country has to create a large army to maintain order, which allows it to be more powerful militarily; but is that really such a good thing???
One last note: some Greek city states had a system where there'd be a democracy during peaceful times, and a dictatorship during war. Think about it...