This Week in Peace and Democracy

[flwyd]

On June 3rd, 1989, the Chinese army massacred an unknown number of pro-democracy supporters. The Chinese government remains unrepentive to this day, and arrested many people who tried to publicly mark the 15th anniversary. One strike each against peace and democracy.


6/6/4 marked the 60th anniversary of D-Day. It was an incredibly bloody battle, so it's not the greatest anniversary of peace. However, it was a major turning point and led to the end of a warmongering and violent regime. A good day for democracy and not terrible on the peace scale.


Ronald Reagan died on Saturday. His affect on peace and democracy was somewhat ambivalent. On one hand, he demonstrated that anybody can become president of the United States, even if you don't know what you're talking about. In all seriousness, though, he mastered the ability of getting people to like him, which is how democracy works. His administration supported anti-democratic governments or rebels in Iran, Iraq, Nicaragua, Honduras, South Africa, Indonesia, and elsewhere. His election was helped by a secret deal to exchange hostages for weapons. A strike for both peace and democracy there. His primary contribution to peace was outspending the Soviet Union on nuclear weapons, though it takes the paradoxical (but well-reasoned) logic of nuclear brinkmanship to see this as a step for peace. That said, his death is neither a loss nor gain for democracy. After ten years of Alzheimer's may he rest in peace.


All in all a fairly bleak week. Let's hope this week is a better weak of peace and democracy.