Before we get back to discussing the current status of torture, propaganda, suppression of civil rights and liberties, the raping of the environment, and the lies of the Bush administration, I wanted to summarize some things about the election in Iraq yesterday.
First, it's shocking and disappointing how the (inconclusive) results of the election are being hyped in the media and other political or social circles. Sure it's a great thing for the Iraqi people to have had the opportunity to cast ballots in order to choose delegates who will choose their leadership for them and who will write their constitution (did you get all that?), but...
Haven't we been down this road before in Iraq?
"Mission Accomplished" being the most vivid event in comparison. The media and pro-war advocates couldn't laud that milestone fast enough, and it was almost a competition to see who could lavish more praise on Bush and his bulging unit. The penchant for repeating the same level of enthusiasm is staggering considering the stakes and what's come before. Every event, be it good news or bad, must be analysed for what it will mean in the long run.
In the long run, will the Iraqi people live in freedom or will the results of the election slowly usher in an era of bottomless civil war? Or worse, it's entirely possible that the leaders chosen will give birth to new forms of suppression in that country.And we should never forget that our country continues to torture, kill, and abuse the very same Iraqi people who we're lauding as defying the insurgency. Are they really free people when they can be imprisoned and tortured in their new democratic state? For the record, many heinously tortured Abu Ghraib detainees were released when their innocence was determined.In the long run, Bush will use the election as a means to continue the war far beyond any imaginable level of casualties or instability. He could, perhaps, use it as a giant gust of wind in his sails for an invasion of Iran, Syria, or North Korea (nevermind that his buddies the Saudis have an horrific human rights record). How many more lives will be lost in his bullish race to foster an America era of endless war? In the long run, how will our lives here in America be affected when Bush uses the election and whatever political capital he earns to pass his destructive agenda?Are we willing to live under a Patriot Act II or a $2 trillion debt just because of a single election in which 5 million Iraqis voted for something most Americans can't even describe?There is no doubt in my mind that the election will take center stage Wednesday night during the State of the Union. The applause will be the longest and most enthusiastic (compare it to the applause for the section on Social Security), and Bush's hands will achieve a new distance from his invisible six-shooters. How will he and his cronies interpret that kind of endorsement from Congress? I can guarantee this: his foreign and domestic policies WON'T become more humble, rational, or realistic, nor will his overall attitude.We have to be very careful how high a pedestal this election should be placed. It could mean something significantly positive, or it's likely that it's a milestone to suppression of our rights here in America to say nothing of the rights of the Iraqi people or the people in other nations on Bush's list of undesirables.And finally, dKos has this flashback item today which is worth reading for some perspective.