Good point, via e-mail:

Rich,
A lot has been made in the Corner about the language of the Iraqi Constitution and how many other despotic nations have had great language in their constitutions that was completely ignored. It seems to me though, that the Iraqis are writing theirs under a microscope, and with the participation of elected representatives of the full society. That suggests to me that they’ll all have a stake in it and they’ll all have a reason to see that the principles behind the language are upheld in practice. Of course it might not work out that way, but it does suggest a more hopeful outcome than a constitution written by the lackeys of some dictator who only intends for his constitution to be window dressing that presents a civilized face to the outside world. None of the other examples given started out as democracies, and that’s where Iraq has a chance to be different.