The son of Moammar Qaddafi had this to say about the rising tide of democracy:

“The whole world is going through more freedom, more democracy,” he says, pumping the air in impatience. “We want to see those changes now, instead of 10 years’ time, or 15 years.”

It was very heartening to hear this, especially from the son of a dictator.

But there was one problem. He gushed about democracy before the people of his country took to the streets demanding reform –in a statement to Time magazine, last year! Like all sons of dictators, he was tipped to be the next leader, and (armed with a Ph.D. from the London School of Economics,) seemed like the kind of person the world could work with. Until he said this, this week.

“Libya is at a crossroads. If we do not agree today on reforms, we will not be mourning 84 people, but thousands of deaths, and rivers of blood will run through Libya.”

He wished for, and predicted, change. His Ph.D. Thesis talks of a ‘democracy deficit.’ But he probably never foresaw the rivers of connectivity between his people that would make that happen.

Be careful what you wish for!