UN: Early Elections in Iraq Unlikey
Here is the story from Yahoo News:
A U.N. official said Friday it was unlikely elections could be held before a U.S.-set June 30 deadline for handing power to the Iraqis, and several Iraqi leaders said there was growing support for scrapping the U.S. blueprint for establishing a new government.
U.N. special envoy Lakhdar Brahimi, meanwhile, warned Iraqis to be aware of the risks of civil war as they try to find an acceptable formula for sovereignty.
"I am a little bit disturbed and a little bit uneasy because there are very serious dangers," Brahimi said. Civil wars erupt, he said, "because people are reckless, people are selfish, because people think more of themselves than they do of their country."
Matt's Chat
Wel, Mr. Brahimi, welcome to democracy. Let me tell you all a little story. It is no secret that I voted for Clinton the first time. I don't think I've ever said why... President Bush (41) had touted himself as the Education President and I felt that the education president should have done something about MY tuition. Clinton came along and said (lied - very popular word these days) that he'd do something about that. Like the liberal fool I was at the time, I believed him. The moral of the story is that this is the way democracies function. The people will ALWAYS do what they think is best FOR THEM. The country is rarely the first thing on the citizen's mind when it comes to election time. It should be, but it isn't. (This is probably another whole topic...maybe for the book we keep talking about writing...)Mark's Remarks
Well, Matt, when we make decisions, we have a long history of democracy. The Iraqis do not. We have to do things the right way, or their democracy will not flourish, and will die, just like the French's first lame attempts at democracy after the French Revolution, that became the Reign of Terror. I hope and pray that the Iraqis realize we need to move slowly on this, with deliberation, and be sure that we get it right. Otherwise, the government newly created government will crumble and the Iraqis will give rise to another brutal regime.
They key issue here is how to balance the Sunnis vs. Shia muslims. While the Shiites were the majority, they have been brutalized for years under Hussein. What we have to be sure of, is that the reverse will not happen as Sunnis will no longer have Saddam to "protect" them as it were. We have to be careful. Democracy with no plan is chaos. To get the early elections, that is what we would have. We have to educate and plan with the Iraqis....Look at Japan. It took a few years before they voted. I think it is reasonable to wait til a few months longer before elections in Iraq.
I understand the restlessness of the Iraqi people. They want to prove themselves. They want full control of their own destinies. But, please...let us help. We are the best, longest continuous lasting democracy, we have insights we can share. Please, let us get this right, for all our sakes.
