Iraq is Terrible....so why are these people voting to keep the same government? Every time I read a story like this I cannot avoid thinking about how f*cking wrong the liberals have been on this issue from the outset until today.
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"A young Sunni man strolling along the Tigris River hesitated when asked whom he had voted for in provincial elections today. Then he gave an answer that would have seemed unthinkable during the depths of Iraq's bloody civil war: "Our prime minister" -- the Shiite head of government, Nouri Maliki."
"When there are insurgents on the Sunni side, he hits them. When there are insurgents on the Shiite side, he hits them," the riverside stroller, Wissam Hussam, said of Maliki, whom he initially distrusted on sectarian grounds but has grown to admire."
"On Haifa Street, though, the elderly Sunni man, Faris Azzawi, brimmed with optimism as he headed to a polling station with his wife, Um Farid, and 20-year-old daughter, Mona, in tow. It was Mona's first time voting, and she followed her parents' lead: not saying whom she would choose, but making clear she supported the status quo.
A U.S. military convoy idled in the street nearby, a reminder of the security threats still lurking in Iraq. But Azzawi said that overall, life was good and he saw no reason to switch political gears just as Iraqis were adjusting to democracy.
Those who would change the current situation don't understand that democracy takes time, said Azzawi, citing the Watergate scandal as proof that no system is foolproof. "You gained democracy over 200 years ago, and still it's not perfect," he said, leaning on his cane."
latimes.com |
