Laying the Foundation

Matthew 7:25
'The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock.'

I think the Bible has it right. One cannot construct something and expect it to hold unless it is built upon a solid base. This is why I believe that the Obama administration should focus on building stability rather than democracy in Afghanistan.

This may seem overly simple, and yet, the questions is also a simple one. Should the Obama Administration focus on building stability or democracy in Afghanistan? This was one of the issues discussed briefly in the article from The Washington Post, titled, "The deflated Arab hopes for Obama".

In my opinion, democracy will follow stability, and not the other way around. Thus, the United States should be doing all in its power to establish the kind of stability that will bring trust between the politicians of Afghanistan and it's inhabitants both of urban centers and rural areas. Stability, not democracy, will build links between the citizens of a country and it's leaders. Farmers will not trust their national army or police force just because the government is democratic; however, if there have been years of peace and, if not prosperity, then constancy within the economy, there will be a greater appreciation for and trust in them.

We have all seen in the recent Afghan elections that democracy will fail without sincerity and honesty. These qualities are not necessarily encouraged by democracy, where a vote can be secured with money, or bent a certain way through force and threats of violence. Stability, however, will mark a peaceful time when leaders are doing what is best for the people. At the very least, stability ensures there are little to no protests, riots, and violence, and therefore less civilian casualties. This cannot be promised with democracy, where everyone wants to have their say.

In the end, it all comes down to a foundation. If we lay the foundation of a stable country, democracy will blossom. The people will trust one another and fear will dissipate, and the government will be able to talk of matters other than war, fraud and elections.

If you are still not convinced, ask yourself this: would you rather see a peaceful Afghanistan, or an Afghanistan with a democratically elected leader? I, for one, think it unlikely that the two will co-exist.