Iraq prepares to vote
under the most difficult circumstances. The violence continues, it seems. But the country is being sealed off, and martial law is in place for two days. President Ghazi al-Yawar asked Iraqi to be brave and vote and thereby defeat the terrorists. Steve Hadley, Bush’s national security advsor, calls it a day of hope. You might want to go to the Friends of Democracy blog (by Iraqis), it will keep up on the election and the other developments (which I hope will be few). In the meantime, joyful Iraqi exiles have voted across the world, including in the Middle East. The supporters of the Iraqis are hoping for at least a 50% turnout, I have been saying 60% would be just fine; I’m guessing and hoping, of course. It’s very hard to tell based on reports what we have a right to expect. I wish them well.
There are those who exist in their own minds and discuss abstract victories over terrorists. They say it is worth a thousand deaths to cast one vote as a slap in the face of enemies.
Then, there are those who simply wish to lead a simple life. They want to work in a factory and buy nice things for their families.
If I were an Iraqi, I would not vote.
If you were an Iraqi, you would allow a new tyranny to arise. Tyrants are just fine with those who wish to "live a simple life." And sooner or later, such people aren’t even allowed that.
"That all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness; that, to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed; that whenever any form of government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new government
You cannot always simply accept everything. It is our duty and indeed obligation to object if something is amiss. You talk of simple things. That in essence is fine. However, you (or anyone else for that matter) cannot let simplicity cloud your understanding of the better cause. If I were an Iraqi, I would not even hesitate to vote. That is because I know it is the right thing to do. I would remember the atrocities of Tyranny, and I would understand that those atrocities are not humane. They are "destructive of these ends." Tyrannies cannot be allowed to continue in this world. Voting in a free Iraq is a huge step towards thats end.
If I were an Iraqi, I would not vote.
These are the words of a man who has never lived under tyranny, or whose liberty has never been in danger. More than 70 percent of the Iraqi people tell a different story.