by Ed Mainland – Letter to San Francisco Chronicle

Ms. Saunders:

The Bush Administration better be careful: In Iraq, it’s liable to get what it asked for.

Democracy.

What were the huge throngs in Basra chanting a few days back? “Election, not selection! Down with America!” Iraqis evidently are taking their freedom of assembly quite seriously.

Have cheated voters from Florida been whispering in their ears? Does a selected-not-elected President want to listen? Should the Rigger-in-Chief of elections tell foreigners how to vote?

“Majority rule,” cry the Shiia. “Let us choose our own leaders!”

Sounds just like Al Gore, whose national majority vote in 2000 availed him not at all.

“One man, one vote”, cry the Arabs. “Maybe not,” says Jerry Bremer.

“Instead, we got caucuses for you that not even Iowans could decipher. We got gerrymandering of ethnic groups not even Texans or Mississipians could fathom. We got the best recalls money can buy.”

“Power to the people, direct elections!” shout the Iraqi masses, naively believing that’s what neoconservatism and occupation offered them.

“Un-uh”, says Bush. “Wrong kind of people might gain power that way. Gotta protect the Iraqis from self-abuse of democracy. Gotta select the right Quislings ourselves. Quislings now, democracy later. Keep
‘Murikuh’ safe. Them Iraqis’ not grown up enough yet to rule themselves. What’s the big rush?” [Iraqis enacted the first civilized
legal system 3,500 years before Bush.]

Where does Wolfowitz of Arabia come down on this one? What are the neocons saying? Haven’t heard lately.

In Iraq, democracy = Islamic extremism?

That’s what’s called being hoist by your own petard.

ED Mainland
Novato, CA