And now for something completely democratic

I need to put down my snark pen for a moment to point out a recent announcement by Ali and Mohammed at Iraq the Model. These Iraqi bloggers have been writing for months about Iraq; attitudes in Iraq, the hopes and visions of everyday people in Iraq, and what they aspire to for its future. It takes reading no more than a handful of postings by either one of them (or Omar, for that matter) to recognize that they share a clarity of common vision which I think makes them exceptional voices for the Iraqi common people, and for that they've won my enduring admiration. Well, folks - they've announced candidacy for the Iraqi National Assembly.

We've been pretty focused on our own impending elections here, with ramped-up media rhetoric about what an important election this is, with growing partisanship as supposed evidence of this. Well, the single issue that I think makes this election important is how we will proceed with the prosecution of the war on terror. There is no electoral outcome in the US that will cease the flow of European bile towards us (don't kid yourself, a Kerry win would buy a couple months' abatement at best), and there is no outcome that will make wahabbist nutjobs decide they don't want to slaughter us after all. No matter who wins, our situation can really only get a bit better, or a bit worse - our country isn't going anywhere in a handbasket any time soon. Iraq's coming election is a weightier matter. More to the point, your hard-earned pennies will make much less difference to our candidates than to candidates in Iraq.

Please, stop by this page even if the only two words you'll pay attention to are "Visa" and "Mastercard" - clicking them will take you to a secure PayPal page for the Iraqi Pro-Democracy Party. The counter on that page says they have 136 days until showtime. It's my firmly held opinion that minds like these governing Iraq will not only enable Iraq to come into it's own, but further the war on terror by truly making Iraq a model for the middle east. A few bucks more in Bush or Kerry's coffers really won't influence the future of our country for better or worse - a few bucks in the right hands over there can only help Iraq start out more firmly grounded. It takes genuine courage to run for office there if you're not squarely in the favor of terrorists or the likes of al-Sadr, so support these guys please. They'll stand up if you'll stand behind them.

Now where'd I put that snark pen...