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Politics : Politics for Pros- moderated -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Neeka who wrote (96750)	1/26/2005 12:42:51 AM
From: KLP	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 793717

BBC started a blog from Iraq yesterday. Lt Brian Suits from Seattle is one of the people who will be talking.... As you know, he is on active duty now, and has been on KVI Radio as well....They will be talking about their views of their days and about the upcoming election. news.bbc.co.uk Iraq election log contributors In some cases our log contributors do not want to be identified for security reasons, so we use only first names or a pseudonym. We will post biographical detail for new contributors as they join the log. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Zeina is an 60-year-old Iraqi woman living in Baghdad. She is running as a National Democratic Party candidate in the 30 January election for an interim national assembly. She is married and the mother of four children. Tariq al-Ani is a 44-year-old law student who lives in Hit, 50 kilometres north-west of Ramadi in central Iraq. He is a Sunni Muslim, married and the father of eight children. Elma is a 47-year-old American woman working for a private contractor near the northern Iraqi city of Mosul. Lieutenant Bryan Suits is an officer in the US Army's 1st Battalion, 161st Infantry Regiment stationed in Baghdad. When he's not on active duty he is a radio talk show host in Seattle in the US. 8888888888888888888888 news.bbc.co.uk I PREDICT LONG LINES ON ELECTION DAY Lieutenant Bryan Suits Baghdad, 25 January All of my opinions are my own and they are based upon personal experiences gained over the course of 11 months. I grew up in a town called Port Angeles in the state of Washington. One year, we elected a college professor to the City Council. He was a singularly brilliant and idealistic man. He was also a former member of the Hitler Youth. He came to America as a young man and became a citizen. He served several terms and when he died several years ago, he was remembered as a great American. I tell the story of Werner Quast to any Iraqi who has time to listen, and lately Iraqis seem to turn every conversation towards government and democracy. As usual, security continues to be a primary concern among Iraqis. But I haven't met anyone who will not participate in the first meaningful vote in their lives. My translators become irritated and anxious because I can't guarantee the day off for them to stand in line. I have to remind myself that I have no idea what this represents to an Iraqi. It's not just an election. It's a statement to other Arab states about Iraqi pride. And Iraqis are proud and amazingly patriotic. I am as jaded as anyone else who was raised in a stable republic, but it's become infectious to talk about 30 January with Iraqis on the street. I don't blame those who refuse to risk their lives to vote for an interim government. However, many are furious at Zarqawi's virtual declaration of war against the democracy and Shia Muslims. And of course, the practiced cynicism of the adult Iraqi male is on display to anyone with a TV camera. For me, I'll continue my regular patrols in my area on Baghdad's southern edge. I predict long lines on election day. I feel lucky to witness this event.