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Iraqis will soon need persuading on the virtues of a free society

Howard Hallman, Silverthorne

“You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make him drink.”

It’s the same with humans. Whether it’s an individual, an ethnic group or a nation, we can’t make it think like we do through the use of force alone. Sooner or later, people and nations, whenever given the chance, begin to think for themselves.

We found this out recently with the Germans, whom we helped free in World War II. That’s the thing about freedom, free people are free to not do what you want them to.



In order for freedom to work in Iraq, people must first be given the choice (the freedom) to accept or reject our political and economic way of life.

If we want true converts, people must be persuaded. No matter how great our current military power, we can never hope to dominate the world at the point of a gun. And then again, why would we ever want to?



Thankfully, the war in Iraq has been short, and hopefully, it’s almost over.

The Iraqi horse has been led to water. Soon it will be time to let it drink, (or not) from the river of freedom.


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