Word: authoritarian
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...Although anger at the U.S. remains high, Arabs are recognizing that the fall of the seemingly invincible dictator has destroyed a powerful myth. Events in Iraq have made clear that the authoritarian regimes that have dominated Arab politics for more than a half century will not last forever. Few Arabs, of course, want democracy imposed by America. Many see a charade in the U.S.-sponsored meetings of Iraqis debating the future. Yet, after 9/11 and especially now after the Iraq war, Arab democrats are sensing an opening. The columns of the Arab press are filled as never before with commentaries...
...Authoritarian regimes don't win many popularity contests, but their one selling point is an ability to control their citizens. Singapore ruthlessly nipped its SARS problem in the bud with draconian quarantine measures?one of the few times the island nation's authoritarian reflexes were cheered by the international community, which rewarded Singapore by keeping it off the World Health Organization's (WHO) travel advisory list. But instead of using its vast autocratic apparatus early on, Beijing's leaders lost key weeks in curbing the disease by pretending there was no problem. Now, China's central government is playing...
...Iraq is not destined to become an Islamic Republic like Iran. Iraq has no charismatic figure like Ayatullah Khomeini. The late Iranian ruler actually rose to fame on the back of a nationalist revolution and then cemented his authoritarian power through a Shiite doctrine called velayat-e fagih, or rule of the Islamic clergy. The doctrine is not widely accepted by Iraqi Shiites, including their most revered leader, Grand Ayatullah Ali Sistani, who favors the traditional "quietist" role of the clergy in politics...
...leadership's desire for full disclosure may be too little, too late. China's mishandling of the health scandal has exposed the contradiction between the country's ongoing global economic integration and the authoritarian government's reluctance to allow the free flow of information. Complicating the problem is the fact that the government is operationally in the hands of tens of thousands of bureaucrats whose objective is often hiding bad news from their bosses, even at the expense of public health and the country's reputation. "The leadership wants the country to be an economic power without changing the political...
Klein wonders why we don't kill dictators with kindness. But our cozy diplomatic and economic relations with China, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and other nations with authoritarian regimes have not resulted in the fall of those governments. It is foolish not to talk with governments even if we do not approve of them, but it is equally foolish to expect our recognition to lead to their fall. RICHARD C. DAVIS Springfield...