Coral Bell Quotes
The idea that democracies never make war on each other rests on very thin historical ice.
The veracity depends on how one defines a democracy. Serbia attacked Croatia and Bosnia—all fledgling democracies. Argentina, claiming to be a democracy, attacked England by invading the Falkland Islands. Hitler was elected in Germany in a free and fair election, and once they started their aggressive war Germany became a Fascist Dictatorship. What appears to be the case is that stable industrial democracies never make war on each other.
Coral Bell, Australian Political Scientist, The Twilight of the Unipolar World, The American Interest, Winter 2005
Sourced by: Eigen's Political and Historical Quotations
This seems to be the origin of the notion that democracies and republics are less likely to war with others than monarchies or dictatorships.
The same sentiment has been attributed to Aristotle.
She and her husband, like many of the "America Firsters", believed that Hitler should be allowed to overrun Europe and Russia.
the modern believe is that democracies are not prone to war, especially against other democracies. Seward, and some others believe that democracies can be pushed into war by politicians you do so for partisan political advantage. Politicians often have to show how tough they are.
While it is true that thus far in human history war has been the only way, that does not necessarily mean that that is the only way. The establishment of free trade used to be only accomplished by force or arms or fear of such, but in modern times, common markets and trading zones are being created for economic and domestic desires for economic development. Even most non democratic countries have wanted to create a larger market for its goods and services and have joined larger organizations irrespective of military defeat and its fear. See {553984} for perspective and hope relating to this quotation.
