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As I note the sudden flurry of posts singing praise about the Iraq elections, I think we ought to try to keep this in perspective.
What happened on January 30 was a great day for all involved and it is heartening to see that there were relatively few fatalities and that the majority of Iraqis were so excited to take advantage of their new-found right to vote. The world is a better place with the seeds of real democracy planted in that region.
With that said, though, what happened on Sunday was the beginning of the story, not the end. We're still going to have to maintain a presence for quite some time (I don't know what the hell Kennedy is thinking), we have no idea if the results will have any legitmacy, and it would be ridiculous to assume that the insurgency will roll over just because there was an election. It's a significant positive event, but it would be folly to start patting each other on the back now without remembering that this remains a nation on the brink of civil war, election or no.
I look forward to the time that we can look back on this with a real sense of celebration, but for now, it is just a milstone. Not trying to be negative, just realistic.
What happened on January 30 was a great day for all involved and it is heartening to see that there were relatively few fatalities and that the majority of Iraqis were so excited to take advantage of their new-found right to vote. The world is a better place with the seeds of real democracy planted in that region.
With that said, though, what happened on Sunday was the beginning of the story, not the end. We're still going to have to maintain a presence for quite some time (I don't know what the hell Kennedy is thinking), we have no idea if the results will have any legitmacy, and it would be ridiculous to assume that the insurgency will roll over just because there was an election. It's a significant positive event, but it would be folly to start patting each other on the back now without remembering that this remains a nation on the brink of civil war, election or no.
I look forward to the time that we can look back on this with a real sense of celebration, but for now, it is just a milstone. Not trying to be negative, just realistic.
