Although democracy might appear to some as being a terrific ideology that everyone should follow, its true reality speaks differently. Democracy holds that the right of judgment lies with the people, and not the Creator. As previously discussed, this kind of belief entails that mankind is wiser and more knowledgeable than the Creator, something that is not logically acceptable.
Is not Allaah the wisest of Judges? [95:8]
Another deficiency that can be found within democracy is that it enables everybody to have an avenue to express his or her “opinion”. Although this might appear to some to be a good thing, in reality, this ideology allows everyone – including unintelligent, uninformed and insincere people – the right to control mankind’s future. Democracy holds the view that millions of people are wiser than one, which caused one Western thinker to state that Democracy is “a pathetic belief in the collective wisdom of individual ignorance.”
On November 2, 2004, The Herald’s Ian Bell wrote an article exposing the flaws of the Democratic process in America. Titling his article “Next US leader to be decided by ‘voters ignorant beyond belief.'” Bell Based his editorial upon the confessions of Peter Oborne, a right-wing journalist who surprisingly criticized the American democratic process on British television. [Peter Oborne, The Dirty Race for the White House, Channel 4, November 1, 2004, 8:00 P.M.]
According to Oborne’s account, Bell mentions that the 2004 presidential campaign “would be decided by a small, decisive, yet ‘largely ignorant’ group of manipulated voters.”
According to Bell, “none of those interviewed could find Iraq or Afghanistan on the map.”
“Asked to identify Britain,” stated Bell, “one man pointed to West Africa.” Another, with his finger on North Korea, said: “Afghanistan is over here, where Russia used to be.”
Westerners often resent Islaam’s classification of people on the basis of belief, yet they themselves classify those who adhere to their beliefs as being “civilized”. If the aforementioned accounts are examples of democracy in what has been described by Westerners as the civilized world, what could be said about the implementation of democracy in what Westerners consider to be the uncivilized world, where most people have little or no education?
Although bell does not share the same staunch political conservatism as Oborne, both of them have come to agree about America’s intent to spread democracy around the world: “Judging on how it works at home,” Bell quoted Oborne as saying, “we should all be very afraid.” [Ian Bell, The Herald, Next US leader to be decided by ‘voters ignorant beyond belief,’ November 2004.]
And if you were to obey most of those on earth, they would mislead you far away from Allaah’s way. They follow nothing but conjecture, and they do nothing but guess. [6:116]
An All-Knowing and All-Wise Creator has informed us that if we were to follow ever-changing opinions of the majority, they would certainly mislead us. People who are not grounded in the knowledge of what their Creator wills them to do – no matter how knowledgeable they may be in certain other worldly affairs – fall under the category of those who mislead people “far away from Allaah’s path.”
People who contradict their Creator’s guidance, “follow nothing but conjecture, and they do nothing but guess.” Their opinions are based on fleeting preferences that never remain constant. As such, their conjecture leads them to speak untruthfully, either out of ignorance, or due to to the following of desires.
Furthermore, many of those who favour democracy as an ideology are still ready to concede that the old saying, “all politicians are liars,” is true. In his article on the American presidential campaign of 2004, Ian Bell spoke about the “dirty race for the White House,” stating that John Kerry tried to appease the “gun nuts of West Virginia after voting for gun control 55 times.” Speaking about how the campaign was “based on fear, lies and black propaganda,” Bell states that both sides “lie about their lies.” [Ibid.]
Making false promises and lying is encouraged in the democratic political system in order to achieve authority. How then could it ever be considered a truthful, correct or morally superior ideology, never mind one that everyone in the world must apply – or else face war?
Source: Sacred Freedom – Western Liberalist Ideologies in the Light of Islam, Haneef Oliver, Westpoint Publishing, pp.66-68
About the book: Are Western Ideologies Aiding or Failing the World?
Sacred Freedom contains a concise and frank examination of the legitimacy of atheism, humanism, pluaralism, democracy and secularism as guiding ideologies for humankind. Discussing the consequences of a pluralistic worldview, Sacred Freedom questions whether the West has examined the realities of democracy before endeavouring to spread it by force around the world.
Are ideologies derived from Western historical experiences universally applicable? Has the West arrived at a balanced understanding of personal freedom? These are only some of the important questions raised in this unique book. Daring to probe the revered and unquestionable, Sacred Freedom gives readers the opportunity to explore these topics from a viewpoint they might otherwise not be exposed to.
