Iraqi Elections

A disgusting American celebrity (you probably know who he is) once compared the insurgents/terrorists in Iraq to the Minutemen of the American Revolution. I wonder if his mind changed at all when earlier this week, al-Zarqawi specifically identified democracy in Iraq as an evil principle, a principle against the rule of God. This celebrity was wrong. Zarqawi and his ilk have nothing in common with the Minutemen, who operated in the open, targeted only the British Army (as opposed to civilians), and operated under the rules of war of that time. They fought for freedom and independence, the very antithesis of what the terrorists fight for. Again, Zarqawi's own words: "We have declared a fierce war on this evil principle of democracy." "Democracy is also based on the right to choose your religion, and that is against the rule of God." Minuteman indeed.

To compare the "al-Qaeda in Iraq" (their term, not mine) terrorists to the Minutemen is to slander those colonists who fought for our country's independence. A better analogy would be to compare the terrorists to the KKK, or to those who burned Mississippi during the Civil Rights Era. They were on the wrong side of history, as are Zarqawi and his people. They fought to oppress others, as do Zarqawi and his people. They terrorized innocents, as do Zarqawi and his people.

They will face judgement, either here or in the hereafter, as will Zarqawi and his people.

Yet, despite the KKK and Mississippi Burning and George Wallace, and despite fire hoses and police dogs, the drive for civil rights in America continued because it was the right thing to do. I salute those who took the difficult stands--like the Little Rock Nine--to further a just cause. And today I salute those brave Iraqis who, like their Afghan brethren a few months ago, stand up to the threats of violence and are voting in their first free elections in half a century.

That's right, there haven't been free elections in Iraq since our Civil Rights Era. Want to know what Iraq was like for 35 of those years? Read this--from an Iraqi who's no friend of President Bush:
http://www.friendsofdemocracy.info/2005/01/there_is_no_sub.html

So whether you supported the invasion or not, whether you like George Bush or not, whether you think the war was all about oil and profits for Halliburton or not, let's all admire and support those Iraqis who, braving threats and intimidation, cast their ballots in this historic election. Let's recognize that this election is only a beginning, not an end, and not throw up our hands in surrender when all isn't puppies and teddy bears afterward. Let's hope they succeed at building a peaceful, properous nation.

Godspeed.