January 31, 2005
It Is A Time For Celebration - Of The Human Spirit - Of Hope
I couldn't have said it better if I tried.
When Smash was here the other day, fixing my computer, he mentioned the election several times. We talked about what freedom means, about the joy of self-determination, about the promise of hope.
There is no ownership on the part of America in the freedom of Iraq. It is theirs alone. But we can, and should, join in the celebration.
Happy Independence Day - every day, Iraq!
Posted by DaGoddess at January 31, 2005 08:39 PMNow if the Democrats in Washington State can follow the Iraqi example, then we'd have something.
Posted by: PCD at February 1, 2005 05:22 AMJust like a republican - still a sore looser! FYI there is NO Independance in Iraq - They all live in fear and constant danger due to the government your support
Posted by: Democrat in Washington State at February 1, 2005 10:26 AMUh huh. Which is why they turned out in droves to vote. Keep digging. And any leftist moron who calls REPUBLICANS sore losers, considering the reaction of the left to Bush's victory, is laughable at best. First the left claimed the Iraqi elections wouldn't happen, it was a ruse that would be dropped as soon as Bush won. Then the claim was they'd be delayed, there's no way it could be pulled off by January. Then it was "No Iraqis will vote, they're too afraid". So now the claim is the election changes nothing.
I have to wonder, when the new governemnt gets on its feet, the new Iraqi defense force is trained and ready, and the majority of US troops come home, what will the left's next line of excuse be?
Posted by: Brian B at February 1, 2005 01:36 PM
"In short, the flames kindled on the 4th of July, 1776 have spread over too much of the globe to be extinguished by the feeble engines of despotism; on the contrary, they will consume those engines and all who work them."
-- Thomas Jefferson, 1821
Burn Baby Burn!!!
Posted by: LarryConley at February 1, 2005 03:02 PMActually I posted a question on Smash's website that he refused to post so I'll pose the same question here. In fact I have a few questions in relation to Iraq's "freedom".
One: how can one exercise freedom while being occupied?
Two: who owns and controls Iraq's oil at this point? (References please)
Three: Who set up the process of voting that is being used in Iraq today? (again references please)
Posted by: Carl Muhammad at February 1, 2005 06:47 PMA statement from the International Action Center
An analysis prepared by the International Action Center:
The Antiwar Movement and the Iraqi Elections
1) Election Under Occupation
The media theater called the Iraqi election is under way. U.S. television anchor people are broadcasting live from Baghdad, breathlessly describing the preparations for Sunday's display of so-called democracy.
It is important to emphasive the circumstances under which this election is being held. More than 150,000 U.S. troops occupy the country, patrolling the streets with guns trained on Iraqi civilians. Iraq is under a state of emergency, with expanded police powers and a curfew.
This is and election at gunpoint, which will be supervised by U.S. Ambassador John Negroponte. Negroponte built an impressive resume as a brutal enforcer of U.S. policy through murder, rape, and torture. Negroponte served as U.S. Ambassador to Honduras from 1981-1985; a period during which Honduras was the launching pad from which the Reagan administration conducted its violent attacks on the people of Nicaragua, El Salvador, and Guatemala. The U.S-backed atrocities, which were condemned by the International World Court in the Hague, included kidnappings, rape, torture and killing of suspected dissidents. Reports from the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights in Honduras alleged that Negroponte oversaw the expansion of U.S training camp and military base on Honduran territory, where the U.S. trained Contra terrorists, and where the military secretly detained, tortured and executed Honduran suspected dissidents.
This is the person the Bush Administration would have us believe is going to bring democracy to Iraq.
Assisting him will be two US-funded organizations with long records of manipulating overseas elections on behalf of U.S. corporate interests, the National Democratic Institute for International Affairs (NDI) and the International Republican Institute (IRI). These groups, both of which are tied to covert plans to install US-favored regimes overseas, are among organizations that have been given more than $80 million for political activities in Iraq.
Both organizations work closely with the National Endowment for Democracy and the U.S. Agency for International Development, long used by the CIA for covert operations abroad. They were, for example, involved in orchestrating the failed coup and recall referendum in Venezuela in an attempt to remove the democratically elected and popular President Hugo Chavez.
This election is being conducted at gunpoint, administered by a war criminal, and stage-managed by CIA front companies. To pretend that this has anything to do with democracy is outrageous. The Iraqi people recognize this --among expatriates, 90 percent haven't even bothered to register to vote on Sunday.
What, then is the purpose of the phony election? It is actually directed at the U.S. public, which is growing increasingly disillusioned with the war. The sole intent of the election is to provide legitimacy for the occupation, to marginalize the resistance movement, and create an illusion of progress. The election, like the phony transfer of power, will change nothing on the ground in Iraq. On January 31, the day after the election, more than 150,000 U.S. troops will still occupy Iraq, the torture chambers of Abu Ghraib will still be full of Iraqi prisoners, and CIA employee Iyad Allawi will still be the U.S.-appointed dictator.
2) The Iraqi People Have Already Voted -- Against the Occupation
The Iraqi people have already expressed their will; they are overwhelmingly opposed to the occupation of their country. The majority of Iraqi people want the U.S. troops to leave and do not believe that the U.S. and Britain should be involved in holding elections in Iraq, according to several polls.
Many have already cast their ballot against colonial occupation by joining the nationwide uprising. The intelligence chief for the puppet regime in Iraq, General Mohamed Abdullah Shahwani, admitted that the resistance now numbers more than 200,000.
The resistance is made up of many difference forces, with different ideologies and goals. They are united by the determination to free their country from U.S. occupation.
The right of people to resist occupation by arms is a basic right recognized under international law and the Geneva Convention. The people of Iraq have a right to fight back against the occupation of their country, the torture of their people, and the bombing of their cities. They also have a right to expect the solidarity of all who oppose the criminal war. It is not the role of the antiwar movement to debate the ideology or tactics of the resistance; it is our job to stand in solidarity with them and do everything possible to assist them by working to end the occupation of their country.
Posted by: Carl Muhammad at February 1, 2005 06:54 PMOne: how can one exercise freedom while being occupied?
Answer: By voting.. (in private much like it is done in the US) for the canidate of their choice. In order to to protect canidates from US Terrorists (or local patriots) canidates were able to use something other then thier own name as a listing. [[I'd love to hear more about that}}
Two: who owns and controls Iraq's oil at this point? (References please)
http://www.iraqrevenuewatch.org/faq/
Simple answer .. lots of people... read the link.,,,
Three: Who set up the process of voting that is being used in Iraq today? (again references please)
No reference but it was done by the UN I believe..
Carl a mind is a terrible thing to let other people control and someone is filling yours with crap.
Posted by: James Old Guy at February 2, 2005 08:57 AMYou get the freedom to vote because some one was willing to die for that priviledge.
The "occupying force" can also be used to insure security and safety while people cast their votes.
But unless Carl and others are willing to step outside the mindset of ANSWER and others, he will never see the truth, and never be a part of freedom.
As to Brian's post, when we finally get out of Iraq (which will happen) the Liberals will state that we didn't stay there long enough. All one has to do is look to see what happenns and then look to see what their stand is at the moement. When the situation changes, so does their stand.
Posted by: David at February 2, 2005 11:44 AMMr. Muhammad,
I am extremely amused by the specious drek filled screed authored by International ANSWER published under your name. After reading it, I can confidently state the following:
1. As a subscriber to International ANSWER, you, like other socialists, are mired in the herd mentality of "group think". Never one to deviate from the Party line, you nontheless believe you have a clear conscience by never having an original thought.
2. Undoubtably you hold dear to your heart the belief that you, and others of your ilk, would be "more equal than others" in a truely socialist world. Yes, you are "more equal", you belong with the other pigs.
3. Finally, I can also clearly state that I would like to meet you face to face. Please let me know when you'd like to visit beautiful Jacksonville, N.C. I think I can arrange a party in your honor.
LarryConley,
Thanks for answering the questions. I find it to be a rare occasion when people actually read what I have written for understanding and then respond directly to it.
As articulated by the statement we put out about the "elections" in Iraq, the truth is that the vote didn't change the fact that the US remains firmly in control over almost all of Iraqi life. According to sources inside Iraq all industry is directly controlled by the occupational forces so people are forced to work for the occupation whether they like it or not. Coupled with the fact that most INDEPENDENT polls in Iraq show that the majority of Iraqis do not support the occupation, saying that the Iraqis are now free is clearly not factual.
Thank you for link you provided showing who is in line to assume control of Iraqi oil. I only want to note a couple of things:
One: the oil has been de-nationalized (privatized)(and since the Iraqis just voted, they obviously did not make that decision).
Two: The presence of American oil companies (which vindicates the anti-war position that this is a war for oil). It is also important to note that of the six companies named, all are from imperialist nations (France Italy Spain and the U.S.(Turkey can hardly be considered a imperialist nation; I would imagine that they are being rewarded for their loyalty to the war effort)).
In relation to the vote I think the point I was making sticks; the Iraqis did not set it up themselves, an outside source did, at the direction of yet another source, therefore it cannot rightly be called a exercise of freedom.
Posted by: Carl Muhammad at February 4, 2005 08:52 AMDo you consider Germany, Italy, and Japan to be free democratic countries? Were they in 1946?
Posted by: LarryConley at February 4, 2005 05:35 PM