Originally Posted by
Pannonian
Not by western standards they weren't secular. But then Israel is insanely religion-ruled by western standards, yet is by far the most secular state in the region. If you judge these countries by western standards, they'll always fall short. By the standards of the region though, is different. And experience after experience has shown that, when you topple these relatively secular (yet unsatisfactory to you) tyrants, Salafist nuts take over. However much you may wish for their people to see the sense of liberal democracy. In that region, liberalism is going to be hard pressed anyway. Introduce democracy, or upset the status quo so that the groundswell can decide their own destiny, and liberalism will die off altogether. It's how that region is, and neocons and their descendants should stop wishing otherwise in the face of all evidence.