Cho--I doubt that the Shiite theocrats can become a real threat. They lack the basic requirements; a strong following, crude force, and economic clout. In addition, their power move is occuring at a time that Iran, their necessary allies, is significantly shifting towards the US. Indeed, Rafsanjani, the ex-prime minister of Iran, has requested a referendum about developing relations with the US. The mullahs stepping into the law-and-order void temporarily has been a positive, but Iraq is basically a secular society.
The Iraqis will rapidly see, if they haven't already, that they have improved their security far more under the American imperialists than their former tyrant and murderer. The huge Shiite celebration, formally banned, is evidence of that.
Altho occupiers will always be somewhat alien, we were accepted in both Germany and Japan. As one who was stationed in Germany in the mid-fifties, the GI's were basically accepted and treated fairly. This is in contrast to the predictable way we were cheated by the french, our allies.
fred |
