Re:Soldiers watch the US withdrawal from Bagram through the ...
by inglor_cz on Saturday July 03, 2021 @06:11AM
(#27720567)
To be a bit contrarianish:
Afghanistan probably had a better shot at a flawed democracy than Iraq. The country is decentralized by the very nature of the geographical obstacles it sports, and the Pashtun culture has a concept of collective decision making. Look up "Jirga", it isn't that different from other ancient decision bodies that predated democracy in European cultures [0]
On the other hand, Iraq has a long tradition of absolute rule by ruthless powerful figures, going well back to antiquity. It is much easier to concentrate resources and build a standing military to steamroll your opponents in a flat agricultural country.
Afghanistan probably had a better shot at a flawed democracy than Iraq. The country is decentralized by the very nature of the geographical obstacles it sports, and the Pashtun culture has a concept of collective decision making. Look up "Jirga", it isn't that different from other ancient decision bodies that predated democracy in European cultures [0]
[0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jirga
On the other hand, Iraq has a long tradition of absolute rule by ruthless powerful figures, going well back to antiquity. It is much easier to concentrate resources and build a standing military to steamroll your opponents in a flat agricultural country.