Democracy is Inconvenient

This week poor Prime Minister Tony Blair had to face questions about his government's policy, including his handling of the economy and his support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Well, Debra Saunders wants to point out the inherent unfairness of this situation, commenting, "How it must weigh on Blair to have helped liberate an afflicted people, to have brought down a regime that had been responsible for as many as a million Iraqi deaths, and to have worked to allay the threat that WMD would be used outside Iraq, and here he is stuck answering question after question from petty pols carping about the paperwork."

Of course, Ms. Saunders is right. What could be more undemocratic that questioning the actions of our leaders? Once our leaders are voted in, we have a patriotic duty to support the path they choose. You can't call the British Parliament's decision to question Mr. Blair's choices support can you? And deceiving the British people as to the nature and depth of the Iraqi threat, well, that's just so much paper work.

On the other hand, perhaps if informed citizens are going to get involved in the process of ruling that might have positive effects as well.