Most Americans might define a “democracy” as a form of government in which the people have their say, typically by way of free and fair elections.
And most Americans would probably agree that a democracy is better than, say, a dictatorship.
For generations the United States has actively encouraged and nurtured democracies around the world, but with mixed success. And that may be because of a fundamental misunderstanding of what a democracy is.
Journalist and political commentator Fareed Zakaria has long been a student of democracy and other forms of government, how they work and how they succeed or fail.
And in a 2003 book called The Future of Freedom Zakaria explained why American-led democracy building often fails.
And at the time that he and I talked about the book it was more than just an academic exercise. The interview you’re about to hear took place just days after the fall of Baghdad in the early days of the Iraq War.
So here now, from 2003, Fareed Zakaria.
Fareed Zakaria is 61 And lives in New York. You can see him on CNN and read him in the Washington Post.