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Building Democracy in Quicksand: Altruism, Empire and the United States

Jean-Paul Faguet
London School of Economics - Development Studies Institute & STICERD

Challenge, Vol. 47, No. 3, pp. 73-93, June 2004

Abstract:
The new era of US empire commenced with decisive military victories in Afghanistan and Iraq. But the aftermath of war has proved surprisingly difficult and violent. Explanations of the US's failure to win the peace have largely overlooked the inherent difficulty of planting democracy in so inhospitable a social environment as Iraq's. This paper examines the prospects for US empire, focusing on the problem of nation building, and in particular the role of a well-functioning civil society in making democracy work.

Keywords: Democracy, civil society, nation building, new institutional economics, democratic theory, Iraq, empire, imperialism

JEL Classifications: D71, D72, P16

Accepted Paper Series

Date posted: May 27, 2004 ; Last revised: May 27, 2004

Suggested Citation

Faguet, Jean-Paul, Building Democracy in Quicksand: Altruism, Empire and the United States. Challenge, Vol. 47, No. 3, pp. 73-93, June 2004. Available at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=550544

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Contact Information

Jean-Paul Faguet (Contact Author)

London School of Economics - Development Studies Institute & STICERD ( email )

Houghton Street
London WC2A 2AE United Kingdom
+44 207 955 6435 (Phone)
+44 207 955 6844 (Fax)

HOME PAGE: http://www.lse.ac.uk/Depts/destin/faguetjp.html