Paths to ModernityAuthor(s): David LoganSource: Foreign Affairs, Vol. 86, No. 6 (Nov. - Dec., 2007), pp. 212-214Published by: Council on Foreign RelationsStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/20032571 .

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Letters to the Editor

clarity of the issue at stake. Once an officer has firmly established these essentials in his

mind and laid them out clearly before his chief, he must in good conscience carry through. If he waffles, he changes the

message. He misleads his political leader into thinking that the issue is not that important after all. How is the political leader likely to react to minor opposition?

By ignoring it or blowing it off. The mili tary leader who salutes and accepts orders for the execution of flawed policy should realize that by doing so he becomes a party to the policy.

But if he submits his resignation to emphasize the importance of the issue and the depth of his disagreement to his superior, he must be prepared to carry out his instructions until the resignation is accepted and he is relieved. The sub

mission of a request for relief, in itself, is no excuse not to fulfill his responsibilities according to the law. It is, however, a clear indication to the superior of the subordinate's view of the magnitude of the issue in point. If the superior rejects the request but persists with his course, he assumes exclusive responsibility for his policy in the judgment of history.

Resignation should not be considered an act of disloyalty. In fact, it is one of the highest forms of loyalty. It is a demonstration that the officer is willing to stake his career on fulfilling his duty to convey his views to his superior. Military

memoirs are full of recriminations over the failure of thickheaded superiors to listen to their subordinates. One seldom sees accounts of juniors who have put their careers on the line to underscore the importance of critical issues to reluctant or uncomprehending policymakers. If the military profession affords its mem

bers a deeper understanding of critical strategic or military matters than their civilian counterparts possess, it should also demand of them a readiness to fulfill this final duty.

EDWARD B. ATKESON

Retired Major General, U.S. Army, and Senior Fellow, Institute of Land Warfare,

Association of the US. Army

PATHS TO MODERNITY

To the Editor: Azar Gat ("The Return of Authoritarian

Great Powers" July/August 2007) is right to warn against the prevailing teleological view of democracy. However, he overlooks two essential factors suggesting that authori tarian capitalist regimes cannot provide "a viable alternative path to modernity."

First, certain structural elements make authoritarian capitalist regimes economi cally and socially less sustainable than their democratic counterparts. Democratic states promote growth better, accommodate more diverse ideas, and are more responsive to the citizenry. And a free press encourages the exchange of ideas and discourages corruption.

Poorly run democracies do no better than poorly run dictatorships; it is the quality of governance that matters. How ever, studies have showed that democratic states tend to govern far better than auto cratic ones, which leads them to greater growth. Enlightened despots rarely exist. In the long run, democratic states will outpace authoritarian rivals in the eco nomic arena. Forcible repression aside, authoritarian regimes must justify their political monopoly by continuously delivering sound governance. But the opaque structures of authoritarianism breed corruption and waste. Authoritarian

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governments find it hard to retain a long term monopoly on power.

The Chinese government is facing increased scrutiny as corruption festers and income inequality worsens. China's

Ministry of Public Security estimates that there are around 0oo incidents of substantial unrest every day. If that gov ernment cannot continue to placate its citizens with sustained material advance

ment, the Chinese citizenry will be less supportive of the status quo and will begin to push for political reform.

Second, a single generation of observa tion is inadequate to make broad historical predictions about current authoritarian powers. A polity having satisfied its ma terial needs will shift to more intangible desires and seek greater degrees of self detemination. The transition to fildemoc racy can take generations. China's economic growth has been accompanied by limited but real political reforms. Villages elect local leaders; some government officials are competitively appointed. The Chinese government has increasingly solicited public opini'on, and earlier this summer it experimented with popular voting to resolve a housing dispute in the city ofJiuxianqiao.

President Hu Jintao's rhetoric on polit ical reform has softened; the Communist Party's weekly Study Times recently carried an essay titled "Democracy Is a Good Thing." Villagers increasingly favor local autonomy. In the 2003 Blue Book of Chinese Society (an annual government survey), half of the party officials polled agreed that "in creased inner-party democracy" was one of the top two factors in attaining success in political reform.

Such democratizing trends are not evident in Russia, as President Vladimir Putin has further consolidated power.

Council on Foreign Relations

I

FRANKLIN WILLIAMS INTERNSHIP

The Council on Foreign Relations is seeking talented individuals for the Franklin Williams Internship.

The Frankdin Williams Intemship, named after the late Ambassador Franklin H. Williams, was estab

lishedforundergraduate and graduate students who have a serious interest in international relations.

Ambassador Williams had a long career of public service, induding serving as the American Ambas sador to Ghana, as well as the Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Lincoln University, one of the countrjs historicallyblackcolleges. He was also a Director of the Council on Foreign Relations,

where he made special efforts to encourage the nomination ofblackAmericans to membership. The Council will select one individual each term (fall, spring, and summer) to work in the

Council's New York City headquarters. The intern will work closelywith a Program Director or Fellow in either the Studies or the Meetings Program and will be involved with program coordination, substantive and business writing, research, and budget management. The selected intern will be required to make a commitment of at least 12 hours per week, and will be paid S$o an hour.

To apply for this internship, please send a resume and cover letter including the semester, days, and times available to work to the Internship Coordinator in the Human Resources Office at the address listed below. The Council is an equal opportunity employer.

Council on Foreign Relations Human Resources Office

58 East 68th Street NewYork, NY 1oo65 Tel: (zia) 434-9400 Fax: (in) 434-9893

humanresources@cfr.org- http://www.cfr.org

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Letters to the Editor

Recent polling data show that most Rus sians are content with Putin's performance and that few prefer another leader. Russia does not neatly fit the mold of an "author itarian great power." Much of its citizenry applauds the drift toward authoritarianism in the hope that it will lead to renewed

Russian power. Economically, Russia's gains are attributable more to higher oil revenues than a robust market. A slump in the price of oil and a further curtailing of rights may prompt retaliation by a pop ulation disenchanted with broken promises of a return to glory.

Are authoritarian capitalist regimes an "alternative path to modernity," as Gat suggests? Perhaps, in the short term. But it is unlikely that such powers will continue their economic ascent without political changes. Such changes may take years, but the long-term prospects for democratization should not be discounted.

DAVID LOGAN

Grinnell, Iowa

EDITOR'S NOTES

Elizabeth Economy's essay "The Great Leap Backward?" (September/October 2007) stated, "The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimates that on some days, 25 percent of the particulates in the atmosphere in Los Angeles originated in China." The original Associated Press story that was the source for the statement

was mistaken and has been corrected. In fact, the EPA, citing a model saying that

Asia contributes about 3o percent of the background sulfate particulate matter in the western United States, estimates that

Asia contributes about one percent of all particulate matter in Los Angeles.

In the "Food for Fuel?" exchange (September/October 2007), C. Ford Runge and Benjamin Senauer referred to Tom Daschle as "a lobbyist for the ethanol industry." In fact, Daschle is not a registered lobbyist. He is a special public policy adviser in the Washington, D.C., offices of the Alston & Bird law firm. The firm's Web site describes its

work this way:

We represent clients before Congress, the executive branch and regulatory agencies in Washington and throughout the country at the state and local level.

We are frequently consulted by Congress on legislative matters, testify on a wide range of issues and prepare our clients

when they are called upon to testify. We work directly with members and with staff on the Hill and with senior officials in federal agencies to help craft legislative and regulatory language that match the needs of our clients with the other relevant stakeholders.

Foreign Affairs (ISSN 00157120), November/December 2007, Volume 86, Number 6. Published six times annually (January, March, May, July, September, November) at 58 East 68th Street, New York,

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