The irony of democracy.

In today's world 'democracy' is the biggest irony perpetrated on 'we, the people'. East Germany was known as the German Democratic Republic, which was a communist dictatorship, kept in power by the dreaded secret police, the Stasi. Robert Mugabe has been elected continously since 1980 which surely makes him the most democratic leader in the world today. He is great friends with Kim Jon-un, despite the difference in age. Mugabe won a landslide victory in general elections in 2013, showing that he still has support in the country. Western countries instigate 'regime change' in countries ruled by dictators but will resist any change of a democratic government unless through legitimate elections. South Africa could protect the people of Zimbabwe from economic collapse by asking Mugabe to step down but will not do so because he has been elected democratically. President Obama condemned a military coup in Honduras in 2009, precipitated by the president trying to cling on to power by amending the constitution. " It would be a terrible precedent if we start moving backwards into the era in which we are seeing military coups as a means of political transition, rather than democratic elections," said Obama. Recently, Hillary Clinton, who is the Democrat Party candidate for president in November's election, said that although it was a coup in Honduras it was not a military coup. Back in 2002, when the military imprisoned Hugo Chavez of Venezuela the Bush adminstration refused to call it a coup. It is another matter that the socialist policies of Chavez have reduced Venezuela's economy to near collapse so that its citizens are crossing into Colombia to buy food and medicines. An armed coup by extreme right Svoboda and Right Sector groups, supported by the west, forced the elected president, Viktor Yanukovych to flee the country but instead of levying sanctions on the unelected government in Kiev western countries applied sanctions on Russia which supported the democratically elected government of Ukraine. Couple of days back there was a badly organized army coup in Turkey. Obama was quick to condemn the coup and support the 'democratically elected' government of Recep Tayyip Erdogan, never mind that he is an Islamist thug, who supports terrorist groups in Syria and broke a peace deal with the Kurds, the only group fighting ISIS on the ground, to win elections last year. Turkey is apparently holding 1,500 US soldiers inside Incirlik Air Base as hostage to force the US to extradite Erdogan's enemy, Fethulah Gulen, who is in exile in Pennsylvania. Ironically, Erdogan defeated the coup attempt by calling for democracy over social media. Thugs, liars, assorted low lifes, are all accepted as long they have won elections. Only we, the people are the mugs. That is the irony.