Capitol riots shows how democracy can be fragile - analysis

• Published date: 07 January 2021
• Author: HERB KEINON
• Date: 07 January 2021
• Publication title: Jerusalem Post, The: Web Edition Articles (Israel)

America's friends around the world, like those in Jerusalem, shook their heads in disbelief at that sight and wondered what has become of the world's premier democracy.

America's enemies, like those in Russia, China, and Iran, smiled at that picture, and will present it as proof of the disintegration not only of American democracy, but of American society. The US empire is crumbling, they will gloat.

But the picture of that rioter, and a photo of another sitting brazenly in House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's office with one foot on her desk, only depicts part of what happened in the Capitol, and only tells one part of that dramatic story.

Another picture is of a stern-looking Pence back in his rightful place behind the rostrum a few hours later, certifying the electoral victory of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, and his own defeat, and that of US President Donald Trump. That photo is no less significant, and no less part of the story.

That a mob, egged on by Trump himself, stormed the US Capitol is mind-boggling. But that Congress, unbowed, reconvened hours later to certify Biden's victory, is also noteworthy. That, too, is America.

America's democracy is ailing; it is not dying.

But even an ailing American democracy should ring alarm bells in democracies around the world.

Democracy is a fragile thing; it must be carefully guarded and cultivated. It cannot be taken for granted. And it must not lead to people looking at anti-Democratic trends or actions abroad saying complacently, "that could never happen here." Because if it can happen in America, it could happen anywhere.

And unlike in America, where there are strong democratic traditions and institutions going back 250 years able to push back against undemocratic tendencies, those institutions and traditions don't exist to the same degree everywhere.

What happened in Washington on Wednesday is a cautionary tale for all the world's democracies, including ours in Israel.

There used to be a saying about Trump, that those who hate him take everything he says quite literally, and those who love him believe that he is joking around most of the time and don't take what he says all that seriously.

The events in Washington on Wednesday turned that saying on its head.

Trump's ardent supporters took very seriously his tweet from last month about coming to a "big protest" in Washington on January 6, and that "it will be wild." They took very literally his comments to them Wednesday morning: "If you don't fight like hell...