It was certainly overstating the point when David Cameron made a last minute plea to the nation that adopting AV would "destroy" Britain's democracy. It is hard from any perspective to see how this minor shuffling of votes would have any significant change on Parliamentary democracy.
But Dave's hysteria looks shallow and puerile when we witness what democracy under a frontal assualt, like in Syria now. The scenes of massacre against unarmed protesters reveals the brutal regime of President Assad and the extraordinary bravery of the people who oppose him.
Today is expected to be the bloodiest once marches start after Friday prayers. Assad would have had an allay in suppressing democracy in Osama Bin Laden. But his killing this week has again changed the prism through which we view Middle East politics. Bin Laden, although an advocate in the annihilation of individual freedoms, would also have denounced Assad for his western dress and the modernisation of Syrian society where girls are permitted some level of education.
It is still fairly astonishing Bin Laden had the following he did when his vision was to regress to a pre-Medieval utopia where the Koran was the start, middle and finish of every day and where women were mere doormats and all Christians, Hindus and Jews were worthless infidels. This religio-fascistic society could hardly be more opposed to democratic freedom.
Democracy is often banal even boring but for the people of Damascus, Misrata and Bahrain, a life and death struggle.
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