Now, three years later, many of the actions foreshowed in these two articles are taking place throughout the Arab world. Revolutions in Egypt, Libya, Tunisia, Syria, and Yemen are the most apparent examples of their citizens desire to create free democratic governments within their countries. However, these moves toward free democracies are deceiving, for although they are authentic and truly represent the desires of these Arab countries to embrace democratic principles, they differ drastically in some major fundamental ways that might put these countries on a collision course with the United States. Actually it is the other way around: Their forms of free democratic government will put the United States on a collision course with them.
In order to understand the impending collision course between the United States and the nations of the Arab Spring, it is important to understand that corporate and political leaders in the United States have never understood that a “free democracy” in the Arab world doesn’t mean a “liberal democracy:” Arab “free democracy” are unlikely to embrace the bulk of the social secular practices of the western world. Instead, they are more likely to remain religiously conservative, while putting in place many of the practices that American political groups, like the Republican Party and the Tea Party, consider to be forms of socialism. For example, Arabs’ “free democracies” are likely to spend more money on public education, universal health care, and social security type programs for their elderly. They are also likely to spend more money that the United States on programs that promotes “family values” ― particularly those values that in accordance with their core Islamic faith. Additionally, Arab countries are also more likely to protect their citizens and the natural resources –especially oil, against foreign exploitation. Moreover, and most importantly, the middle class citizens in the Arab world are more socially and politically literate about domestic and world events than middle class citizen in the United States. They have excellent understanding about American capitalism. They are aware of the results our economic and social policies have produced. This means that our corporations are less likely to fool them, subjugate them or exploit them. This also means that many of their markets will probably remain closed to us. And this fact, more than anything, will put us (and our brand of capitalism) on a collision course with them.
It also means that in time these Arab countries will probably join Norway, Switzerland, Sweden, China, and the other countries whose social and economic policies have enabled their citizens and their corporations to surpass ours.
By
James A. Porter
