Abstract: There are limits on America's ability to bring democracy to deeply divided societies with little or no history of democracy, and many American, liberal internationalists have succumbed to intellectual and moral paralysis about America's right and ability to spread its system in the rest of the world. The principles of law-governed freedom are in fact important and nearly eternal principles, but they are best spread by America's setting the example as a peaceful democracy. The messianic approach to democracy-promotion… more
