Not being with the program.

• Author: Merry, Wayne
• Position: Debating Democracy - Excerpt

LINKING POLICY to democracy holds the potential for policy hypocrisy. Ninety years ago we declared war on Germany in part to "make the world safe for democracy." At the time, Wilhelmine Germany had a functioning parliament with legitimate multiparty politics and a freer wartime press than Britain or France, plus universal manhood suffrage--something Britain did not achieve until well after the war. Our contribution to the conflict arguably led to a more fragile German democracy than if we had stayed out. In fact, Germany in 1917 had a broader franchise than did the United States itself...