Will Iraq learn?

[Gambit]

This is not meant to be an argumentative or controversial thread, so don't get riled up. I'm not pumping for the war in this one. This is more of an "I wonder..." kind of thing.

Given that:
1) Saddam is a not very nice guy, and has firmly held the reins of power for a number of years.
2) He's kept the populace under his thumb.

Will anyone who can do anything about it understand what happened, and try to keep it from happening again, or will there be a power struggle (maybe bloody, maybe just political) which puts Iraq back in a similar situation, though probably not as bad?

I recently re-read the Dune series again. Book 4, God Emperor of Dune, is about an emperor's son who can see the future, and also has the memories and personalities of all his ancestors available to him. He alters his body chemistry to merge himself with a creature that can live thousands of years, and so he will too, but he slowly becomes like one of these creatures in the process. Why?

So he could become a Tyrant. With a capital T. Why?

Because he saw that unless mankind learned how to choose its methods of leadership VERY carefully, it was doomed. And so he created over all human civiliztion an absolute dictatorship that lasted millenia, in order to impress upon the race that it really didn't want to ever be subject to that kind of leadership again. He drove that lesson home. His reign became the heart of legend and myth that would last for ages and ages to come.

Now, he wasn't an awful, greedy, torturing kind of tyrant, but still the restrictions he imposed were enough to chafe the ambitious members of the populace. Intentionally. And they chafed for a long, long, long, long time. There were rebellions throughout his reign, which he put down ruthlessly, until he let one succeed when his plans were ready. It was, of course, the death of him.

So, my question is, do you think that the people of Iraq will learn this lesson of tyranny from the rule of Saddam?

[Stang]

Lets go call one of those big physics and see what they can tell us.

[Gambit]

I SO confused there until I realized you meant "psychics".

[Stang]

Opps

[KitZune]

I'd rather call a physic.

[Spinning Hat]

I hope that Iraq has learned that lesson. but only time will truly tell us.

[Xenocidez66]

It has nothing to do with Iraq learning a lesson, it has everything to do with Sadam getting out of power. The people of Iraq don't "want" the situation they are in (with the exception of a great few). Once Sadam leaves and the regular Iraqi learns that they can live their lives with out the fear of the government it will be a better place.

[Gambit]

Xeno, I don't think you understand my question.

Any ruler governs with the consent of the governed, even if they are a tyrannical despot. The cost of doing anything about it goes up, obviously - but Saddam or any head of government has to have people do things for him, whether because of of fear or loyalty or a power trip. When enough people decide to do something about it, no matter the cost, the government crumbles. What would have happened in China's Tianamen(sp) square, if the military had decided that taking forceful action action those students was just too much? It could have resulted in a coup

The lesson is to not let it get this bad in the first place. To nip this sort of thing in the bud. Do the Iraqis just want Saddam gone, but with all the machinery of his government still operative, or do they want to rework their government to prevent someone else from stepping in where he left off?

That is EXACTLY what the founding fathers of the US did when they drafted the constitution. They saw the ways the monarchy they had lived under could be abused, and so set up our triply-lobed government with its checks and balances to prevent one man from ever being able to have that kind of power.