In the 11 years since the end of the gulf war, Kurds in northern Iraq have built their enclave into a surprisingly prosperous democracy.... the Kurds can argue that they have built the only democracy that has ever existed on Iraqi soil, one that could be a model for the rest of the country.

--article in the New York Times Week in Review section.

The Bush administration argues that a "liberated" Iraq will be a shining example to the Arab/Muslim world, a democratic city on a hill. But Iraq's Kurdish region already has democratic institutions, and is doing quite well. And Turkey is a real democracy. These cities-on-hills aren't inspiring the region to rise up and spontaneously throw off its shackles. Why should we believe that a post-Saddam Iraq will be any more inspirational?