A Great Day for Iraq and America

This is a pure opinion piece and thus mine and mine alone.

As I watched the MSM coverage and read blogs from the region and their description of the Iraqi elections over the last 36 hours, I felt a great sense of pride in the fact that American men and women had brought Iraq to this point. Now is the time for the men and women of Iraq to take the torch and move down the path to full democracy. I have no doubts that Iraq will succeed; you could see it on the face of every voter as they waved their blue fingers while singing and dancing in celebration.

Today is not only a historic day but a day to be thankful. Thankful for the brave men and women of our armed forces for their steadfast duty and belief in our goals for Iraq, thankful for the brave men and women of Iraq for voting today despite the large number of obstacles. We need also to thank our President for his leadership and the faith that our cause was just in the face of opposition from liberals in this country and pretender allies abroad.

The American people who have supported our troops and their efforts from day one should also take pride that the job is nearing completion. By estimates of the provisional government, Coalition troops could start withdrawing within 12 to 18 months. The Iraqi National Guard and Iraqi Police showed that they are more then up to the task or protecting their fellow citizens. Iraq will be able to defend themselves against the Islamofascists who seek nothing but death and destruction.

The World stood and watched as democracy took its first steps in a strange land. The only ones who should feel shame on this great day are the UN and our pretender allies. Frankly in my humble opinion the United Nations is the biggest loser today. The United States with only help from Canada, on the elections, and the rest of our Coalition allies have succeeded in holding an open and free election when most thought such an event impossible.

Today the World watched as the UN was further proven unnecessary. Typically the role of the UN included organizing and holding fair and impartial elections in fledgling democracies. They refused to help the Iraqi people with this election and thus turned their back on the new Iraq. The role of the UN in the rebuilding of Iraq has been minimal at best and should remain so. The Iraqi should soon benefit from oil revenues if they prove successful in their efforts to prevent attacks in the south and since there has not been an attack in recent months, they appear to be on their way to securing a stable source of income for the country.

The other losers who stayed on the sideline include our “allies” in Europe. France had thought since they have a large Islamic population, they could just walk in at the last minute and do business with the new Iraqi government. I believe they have been told a polite “get lost” by the current Iraqi administration. The Germans while not offering much in the line of assistance for Iraq, other then their NATO commitments, have at least continued in the fight against terror. I think they feel some guilt since they seem to be the largest terrorist training ground outside of the Middle East.

But I don’t want to dwell on the negative like some of the liberals in this country. I don’t think John Kerry helped his chances in 2008, with his assine statement today on Meet the Press. To completely discount the efforts of our men and women in uniform, not to mention the hard work and participation by all Iraqis is such an inappropriate thing to say that I am at a lost to describe how much of a jackass he really is. I spent time flipping between Fox News, MSNBC, and CNN and I must say that someone read the tea leaves this morning and decided that for once that positive was the way to go.

In all, January 30^th 2005 will be a date that stands as a great example of what freedom and democracy can accomplish. A date that should be held high by both Iraqi and Americans alike as another step toward freedom. Every member of our armed forces that had served in Iraq and Afghanistan or supported those missions will be able to say to their children and grandchildren that they helped two countries move to a free and democratic society. From the bottom of my heart, I say thank you to all for your service and efforts in these endeavors. History will look well upon you.

Crossposted at Wide Awakes