By Kevin D. Korenthal - 2-19-05
It is sometimes difficult to remember the good things going on when there is so much pain and strife in the world. Russia is reverting to Stalinist-type rule and 55 more Iraqis (and as of this post 1 US soldier) died today. Clearly the bad news is not hard to come by today.
But the most important thing to remember is that evil does not have the momentum anymore, if indeed it ever did. President Bush’s approval ratings suggest his policies are becoming more popular (not less as the Democrats will surely tell you) with the American people. Newly minted Secretary of State Rice just returned from a very successful European tour and President Bush will leave for his first of many stops in Europe tomorrow. In Iraq, they just had elections and are about to announce a democratically approved government. That is an amazing accomplishment no matter how you slice it. The clear majority of the Iraqi people are all for the new freedoms. Only a few in that country support the terrorists and minorities do not set the agenda in free nations there efforts are doomed to failure. The terrorists will continue to take lives for sometime to come, but they will not be successful in thier long-term goal of creating an Islamic state in Iraq.
I would love to be a fly on the wall of the Kremlin when President Bush speaks with Russian President Vladimir Putin next week. I do not imagine W is going to sugar coat his loath for the setbacks to Democracy that Putin as imposed in Russia and will surely have harsh words about Russia’s promise to provide fuel for Iran’s nuclear programs. Will President Bush be able to soften Putin to playing ball for Team Democracy or will Putin tell him to shove it? Your guess is as good as mine but I can tell you that pissing off a US President with a mandate has never fared well for foreign leaders. If President Putin cannot convince President Bush that what he is doing is not a power grab there will trouble for the Russian leader. Many have suggested that Bush use the threat of kicking Russia out of the G8 Summit that Russia is scheduled to host next month. We'll see if he uses that ace on this trip.
The news today is awash with stories of suicide bombers on busses and US soldiers rushing to the rescue of a still-undeveloped Iraqi Army. But attacks are still down 65% over this time last year. We are making steady progress in The War on Terror but must stay vigilant. The enemy does not only want to attack in Iraq, they want to get us here in the US too. We must be ready to face such an attack. We must not shrink from the challenge such an attack would impose. If we are attacked again, we must redouble our efforts to win this war, not listen to the pantywaist naysayers that will tell us to put our heads back in the sand.
Stand strong America!
UPDATE: In further evidence that Civil War will not break out in Iraq, Sunni Muslim leaders are demanding a hand in creating the new Constitution in Iraq. In essence, the regret for not having voted is setting in.
"We made a big mistake when we didn't vote," said Sheik Hathal Younis Yahiya, 49, a (Sunni-Muslim) representative from northern Nineveh. "Our votes were very important."Continue Reading
He said threats from insurgents - not sectarian differences - kept most Sunnis from voting.
Gathering in a central Baghdad hotel, about 70 tribal leaders from the provinces of Baghdad, Kirkuk, Salaheddin, Diyala, Anbar and Nineveh, tried to devise a strategy for participation in a future government. There was an air of desperation in some quarters of the smoke-filled conference room.
"When we said that we are not going to take part, that didn't mean that we are not going to take part in the political process. We have to take part in the political process and draft the new constitution," said Adnan al-Duleimi, the head of Sunni Endowments in Baghdad.
