I read recently about Bin Laden saying that democracy's big flaw was that it gave power to men and not to God. This made it inferior. A dubious argument this if ever there was one because I think the opposite is true. It is liberal democracy that recognises that humans don't have all the answers and only have marginal insights into the truth. From this, political systems have been invented that impose limits and consistently give others a chance to come in with alternative perspectives. The fundamentalists by contrast cite their god as the final authority and elect themselves as the voice. They claim to know absolute truths and demand total authority.

I have noticed often that the powerless can be prone to absolutist claims almost as if it reflects that very lack of power. The sheer strength of belief that ensues can be a motivator and so compensate their deficiency. Taking a simplistic, all-embracing position absolves them of the responsibility of dealing with the complexity in the human condition. You're either good or bad; there is no middle ground; which side are you on etc. It smacks of immaturity which is why young men are so easily co-opted by their leaders for suicide missions.

A more developed humanity is one that understands its ignorance and cultivates systems that respect that. These are societies that are tolerant and open, respectful to the broad ideas and interpretations that come from others.

Surely the main benefit offered by democracy over other systems of government is limitation of power. No one gets to hold on to it for too long. I believe that the future belongs to a world run along these lines. God help us if it is left to men who think they speak in the name of the divine, men who believe that flying airliners full of people into buildings, designed for maximum destruction, pain and suffering is a worthwhile accomplishment. When it gets to this something has gone seriously wrong. The very committing of such acts disqualifies them of any moral position. These types have never learned that however wronged one feels the response is a further contribution in itself and measured accordingly. An eye for an eye makes everybody blind eventually.