The New Yorker: Democracy is not a given
âDemocracy is dangerous anywhere,â he said. âWe talk sometimes as if democracy were the natural human condition, as if any deviation from it is a crime to be…
âDemocracy is dangerous anywhere,â he said. âWe talk sometimes as if democracy were the natural human condition, as if any deviation from it is a crime to be punished or a disease to be cured. That is not true. Democracy, or what we call democracy nowadays, is the parochial custom of the English-speaking peoples for the conduct of their public affairs, which may or may not be suitable for others.â
- Bernard Lewis
‘for a man who inspired the neoconservative firebrands, some of Lewisâs ideas are surprisingly cautious.’
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