As much as I'm a liberal-ass democrat who is ALL FOR civil liberties, I think it's kind of impossible for other countries to go into another country and try to force change. Gradualism is the only effective way for countries to turn to true democratic systems with some degree of a market economy. All the people have to want it in order for the change to last.

But then, Germany comes to mind, which is the biggest exception to my belief that countries shouldn't be forced into democracy. It's tough. Holocaust was bad, but there were millions of people who elected Hitler. So in that case, the masses were making the "wrong decision." Was it justified that the Allied Powers intervened? Definitely, at least in retrospect. So maybe we'll look back on these past few years and feel that American intervention, which some people call imperialism (negative connotation), was the right thing to do?

It's so hard to study the present and be objective. People get caught up in the heat of the moment and passions affect how situations are received. That's why history is awesome.