Originally posted by Qoelet
If you cannot secure the basic needs of the population under one authority, isn't it naiive to expect reasonably fair elections?
I've often wondered some of the same things. It's almost like giving a bandaid to a person who has been seriously wounded in an accident and then
proclaiming "There! He's much better! He has a bandaid! Yay! He's nearly well."
While the fact that there are elections (of sorts) being held in Iraq, I doubt they're the indication of freedom and democracy that this
administration would like people to think they are.
I'm also leery of the wider implications of Iraq's elections as regards the Middle East. Sure, individuals are happy to be voting. But when taking
into account the effect that this whole war and its outcome has on the region, it really might not be that different than it was before we went in.
Iran wins big in Iraq's elections
As the trends became available regarding the Iraqi elections of last Thursday, what has emerged is that contrary to all pre-poll projections, the
Shi'ite religious coalition, the United Iraqi Alliance (UIA), not only held together, but also can be expected to dominate the new 275-member
National Assembly for the next four years.
More importantly, the "secular" candidates who were believed to enjoy links with the US security agencies would seem to have been routed. Former
premier Iyad Allawi's prospects of leading the new government seem virtually nil. And Ahmad Chalabi's Iraqi National Accord suffered a shattering
defeat.
The prognosis that Sunnis would flock to Allawi or that Shi'ite constituents were disillusioned with the "fundamentalist" UIA and would be drawn to
Allawi's secular platform has also proved to be highly faulty.
It's one thing to ask an individual how he feels about voting and get a purple finger
Sure. The people love the idea of having (at least the
illusion of) some power in how their country is run. But there are bigger and more serious implications of this election process and our supposed
installation of democracy and freedom in this country.
I think it's important to look at the big picture. I hope for the sake of the Iraqis that this is a good sign for them and the Middle East. But I do
have my doubts. And I definitely think "An election does not a democracy make."
Edit: Seems some of the implications I'm talking about are being discussed here:
www.abovetopsecret.com...
[edit on 21-12-2005 by Benevolent Heretic]
