[rayiner]

I hate the idea of nation building. But I’ve long thought that if there was any Muslim country where we could pull off the feat we did in Germany and Japan—turning it into a stable democracy—it’s Iran. But that would take boots on the ground, which I don’t support. (I don’t support the assassination either to be clear.)

[1718627440]

> where we could pull off the feat we did in Germany

Germany was already a democracy just 12 years prior and has been a loose union of constitutional monarchies for a century before. Just saying.

[rayiner]

That’s my point. Germany already had a developed state with burgeoning democratic government. So it wasn’t a tall order to reboot it as a stable democracy. Japan likewise had already developed a modern state under Emperor Meiji.