from ny times Ted Koppel

http://select.nytimes.com/2006/11/06/opinion/06koppel.html?hp

"We are left with the impression that the grown-ups in
Washington would prefer to make the difficult
decisions for us without involving the courts,
Congress or the press. That is precisely the wrong way
to go about winning this war. Back when the United
States was widely admired, it was for all that was
most cumbersome about our democratic process.

America's efforts to transplant democracy elicit none
of that admiration. How can they, when we appear to
have lost confidence in fundamental aspects of
democracy here at home? What has historically
impressed our allies and adversaries has been our
often flawed, but ultimately sincere, determination to
operate within the law — if not always abroad, then at
least within the United States."