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January 31, 2005
Success, and a Rebuke
The elections in Iraq have taken place and are a resounding success. The terrorists tried hard to stop them and failed. Democracy won this round. The Iraqis won.
We should be happy with our achievement. It is a rebuke to the naysayers, to the gloom-and-doom crowd, to those who say that our efforts are always doomed, to those who say that all wars are another Vietnam.
Not Because they are Easy....
We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard, because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and one which we intend to win, and the others, too.This is the spirit of America. This is the "can do" spirit that made America Great. These are the words that we used to live by. Most of our country still lives by them.John F Kennedy
Sept 12, 1962
The space race may have been the subject of President Kennedy's words, but it summarized the attitude of Americans back then. Yes going to the moon was largely a technical challenge, and is vastly different than that of spreading democracy. Yes we were chastened by Vietnam. But we have overcome more than technical challenges in our history.
There are those, whoever, who believe that we cannot succeed. Whether it is the environment, civil rights, the economy, a proposed military venture, or the idea of spreading democracy, all is gloom and doom. Our planet is polluted to the point where only radical international treaties will save us. Jim Crow may return at any minute. Everyone lives in fear of becoming homeless. All wars will become another Vietnam. Attempts to encourage the spread of democracy will only make things worse. Only by listening to the wise Europeans and UN bureaucrats can we save ourselves.
We will fail in Iraq only if we want to fail. Only if we loose our nerve will the terrorists succeed.
The Iraqis
Check out Friends of Democracy, a new website dedicated to providing "Ground-level election news from the people of Iraq."
Mohammed of Iraq the Model rebuked the terrorists yesterday
The tyrants nightmare is becoming reality, now they will have to deal with the scariest word in their dictionaries; THE PEOPLE'S CHOICE.Alaa bows in respect to Iraqis who went to the polls despite threats. He also wishes condolences to the American people for the loss of many of our soldiers.
The terrorists have challenged the bravery of the Iraqi people but they messed with the wrong people. The people have accepted the challenge; democracy and elections are not a luxury for Iraqis, it's an issue of life or death. And the terror brutal campaign has only made the people more determined to go on with the change.
Hammorabi is so excited it seems that nearly every sentence on his blog ends in an exclamation point. Can't say I blame him.
The Family in Baghdad, however, looks at the glass as half-full. No, they see it has almost empty. Note that they do not allow comments on their blog.
Media Coverage
We had Fox News on in the background at work yesterday, and I didn't get a chance to see how their coverage differed from that of other networks. Kat does a nice job of summarizing the MSM coverage on her blog, so check that out.
Sure, one can say that they're cheerleaders on Fox. And they are. But so what? And, more to the point, why exactly is that a bad thing? There is a time to be critical and a time to celebrate success. Their coverage does tell both sides, contrary to what their critics would have you believe. The difference is that they do not give the gloom-and-doom crowd more than is their due.
The Missing
Where is that great defender of human rights, Jimmy Carter? He who is famous for monitoring elections to ensure that they are fair? Check the Middle East section of the Carter Center's website and you'll find that they are doing nothing in Iraq. Iraq is conspicuously absent from their Democracy Program, also.
For that matter, where are the "human shields" that were going to protect the Iraqi people from U.S. bombing during the early days of the Iraq War? One of their websites is inactive. On another the latest update was made on August 27, 2003. Despite a few taunts by bloggers, I have not seen any take up the challenge to protect the polling places. A few have admitted they were wrong, but most are simply angry that we have succeeded.
The Politics
Yesterday was a victory for President Bush and his supporters, plain and simple. We may as well revel in our success, for we will certainly face difficult days ahead.
Some of the Democrats still don't get it. First up is John Kerry;
Ted Kennedy offered an equally tempered view"It is hard to say that something is legitimate when whole portions of the country can't vote and doesn't vote,"
"If we do a better job of training; if the training is accelerated and other countries come to the table in the effort to provide and help provide long term security, yes we can begin to reduce American troops. But those pre-conditions and changing the life of the Iraqis on a day-to-day basis has not happened,"
While the elections are a step forward, they are not a cure for the growing violence and resentment of the perception of an American occupation ... I continue to believe that the best way to demonstrate to the Iraqi people that we have no long-term designs on their country is for the administration to withdraw some troops now and to begin to negotiate a phase-down of our long-term military presence.You can be sure that Hillary Clinton is laughing very hard at these comments. She has been smart enough to keep quiet lately and let these other Democrats sink themselves. Her plan it to emerge like the Phoenix from the ashes and rescue her party from their self-destruction.
The Future
No, we have not won yet. Yes, much more remains to be done. No, democracy is not yet secure in Iraq and we may still fail. Yes, there will be much more fighting before the insurgent terrorists are defeated. Yes, there will be setbacks. And yes, the final form of Iraqi democracy may not be totally in accord with our wishes.
Happy now, naysayers?
We know all of these things. We know that there are many challenges ahead of us. The difference between you and us is that we take heed of Gen. Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson's advice;
Never take council of your fears.
As I have explained before, the key word is not "fears" but "council." Only a fool would disregard the very real dangers we face in Iraq. Jackson meant that you must not allow fear of these dangers to paralyze your thinking. President Kennedy understood this. Most Americans understand it. And yesterday proved that most Iraqis do, too.
Posted by Tom at January 31, 2005 9:46 AM
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