" 

 :I am going to give you the benefit of the doubt and assume you intend to have an honest discussion of the weaknesses of the Bloc theory in your rewrite.  The problem is that it is filled with so many faults that I think the wisest place to begin is in discussing what the ""Bloc Theory"" (at least the one proposed by Gowa) actually states. 

 :It states that democratic states abstained from attacking other democratic states out of a desire to defeat the perceived threat of the totalitarianism of the communist states.  It does not in any way attempt to explain the behavior of the communist states.  It does not in any way attempt to explain the behavior of non-democratic states that might, for a variety of unsavory reasons, ally itself with the Western bloc. 

 :Why, then, does article currently proffer wars between Israel and Egypt as proof that the Bloc theory is invalid?  Egypt was not democratic, so the bloc theory does not apply to 1967 War or the Yom Kippur War or any of the other wars cited.  29 June 2005 18:11 (UTC)"