As another civil war worsens in Iraq, the argument goes, America should pick a winner and back it to the hilt.

But who, exactly, is our natural ally in this historic conflict?

Those who support the party of Ali (as the Shiites were once known) tend to emphasize ideas and culture rather than geostrategy.

but at its core, Shiite thought is extremely fertile and creative, open to synthesis with the ideals of liberal democracy. The mullahs in Qom study Western philosophy from Plato to Habermas, and important reformist intellectuals within Iran have been challenging Khomeinist orthodoxy using the cosmopolitan tools of modern and postmodern thought.

Contemporary Iran

is still shaped by an ancient Persian civilization that predates Islam. Meanwhile, Sunni Islam is in a sorry state, dominated by a purist and anti-intellectual fundamentalism that has been bankrolled by Wahhabi Saudi Arabia.