Fidel Castro has begun his long goodbye.

Our man in Havana had barely hung up his boots, when our man in Washington DC announced from Rwanda that “The United States will help the people of Cuba realize the blessings of liberty.” Hmmm. Even in an age on notoriously short memories that takes the cigar.

Blessings of liberty? Iraq is still counting them. Afghanistan is still enjoying them. Let a thousand poppies bloom, I say.

President Bush went on to tout “free and fair elections” and said the time was now to begin “a democratic transition.”

You might think after Iraq, our born-again democrat would be a little more circumspect about bestowing democracy to all and sundry.

What’s with this western fetishization of democracy as a means of resolving all problems?

In Iraq democracy has brought the country close to fracture, rebirthing old ethnic tensions.

In Pakistan, democratic elections have brought more confusion in its wake and a wobbly President.

In Turkey, democracy brought Islamists to power but the European Union still won’t invite it to dinner.

In Kenya there were elections but the fruits of democracy have been bittersweet after years of Daniel Arap Moi’s corruption.

In East Timor, democracy needs the UN as a custodian and nanny-in-chief even as the President was wounded by a renegade officer.

And Russia turned into a Putinocracy through the ballot box.

When some critics of the Iraq invasion wondered if Iraq was ready Bush and the neo-cons bristled. It was arrogant and condescending to assume anyone was not ready for democracy, they said. True, enough.

On the other hand while people might be ready (and excited) to cast votes are the institutions of democracy ready for that pent up demand? Can countries without real political parties just leapfrog into elections? Churchill said democracy was the worst form of government, except for all the others that have been tried. But is democracy by itself a silver bullet or is it just a checklist item for the West still bringing civilization to the barbarian hordes around the world? Might we be expecting too much for democracy to accomplish in too short a time?

Democracy brought to (Fill in the country name). Mission accomplished.

If it were only that simple.