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| Iraq |
| Iraqâs Shia make themselves heard |
| 2003-04-15 |
| Iraqâs main Shia opposition party announced on Monday it would boycott a US-sponsored meeting of Iraqi organisations in Iraq to map out the post-war political map of the country. The Iranian-based Supreme Assembly for the Islamic Revolution (SAIRI), which draws its support from "Nope. Nope. No benefit. Nope." âWhat is most important in our view is independence,â he said. âWe refuse to put ourselves under the thumb of the Americans or any other country.â "Why did we fight so heroically to throw Sammy out of office if to knuckle under to, ummm... Wait a minute. That wasn't us. All we did was hold a parade. They're the ones who kicked Sammy out. But now we want to be in charge, dammit! 'Cuz we're Shiites, an' they're not!"" |
| Posted by:Fred Pruitt |
| #9 PD, in previous years, before I found out just how deep Saddam's thuggery went, I used to rant that we should cut him a deal - 'You want the Arab peninsula and a Pan-arab state? Go get it. You take care of our little islamic fundy problem and BTW, oil, to us, is $10/barrel or your brother rules nest week.' This would be under the heading of 'better the devil you know..' I mean who do we actually trust in the ME? But now the landscape is changed. We're not gonna be understood in this region. Some on the ground will appreciate the liberation, most will revert to tribal warfare. From now out, make our decisions based on our security and that of our friends: Israel, the Kurds and... and... (I'm tired, so I might be overlooking someone) Being the lone superpower means never having to say you're sorry. |
| Posted by: Scott 2003-04-16 00:42:45 |
| #8 Scott: Careful, now. There's a crowd 'round these parts that phreak out if you don't luv Turkey. They'll try to make you personally responsible for every nasty thing the PKK has ever done. It doesn't matter that Turkey voluntarily burned every bridge they ever had pointing West, they're luverly and you're bad. Just thought you'd wanna know. Take care. BTW, I think you and Yank are right. Who gives a rat's ass what the dictatorships and monarchs of "Arabia" think? Time for some new rules and some fresh prespectives. They won't be around much longer, anyway. |
| Posted by: PD 2003-04-15 23:51:37 |
| #7 You might have something there, Yank. If for nothing else than to publically thank the Kurds (screw the Turks) and show the world what we do for those friendly to us. I'm starting to think that the freedom and gov't we enjoy isn't appreciated in other places - the mid-east, Europe... If the French and Russians don't get it, what do you think the learning curve is gonna be in Iraq? |
| Posted by: Scott 2003-04-15 23:30:50 |
| #6 Split the country into thirds. It'll piss off Syria, turkey, Iran and Saudi Arabia all of whom are on the shit list anyway. It also means it won't break down into anarchy in 10 years when the factions start fighting. |
| Posted by: Yank 2003-04-15 22:55:15 |
| #5 The Iranian-based Supreme Assembly for the Islamic Revolution (SAIRI) Iranian-based? Well that sure explains a lot. âWe are not going to attend the Nassiriya meeting because it is not to the benefit of the Iraqi nation,â said Abdelaziz Hakim, a SAIRI leader based in Tehran told a news conference. Someone please explain how a Tehran-based leader would know what is going to benefit the Iraqis that have just been liberated. I'd be interested in finding out how much support this "SAIRI" group really has in Iraq. |
| Posted by: Bomb-a-rama 2003-04-15 19:02:59 |
| #4 Hey, folks, the democratic principle is simple (simplisme'?) and so is the process... Inside the tent you get to speak your mind and have a voice in what comes next. Outside the tent you get dick. |
| Posted by: PD 2003-04-15 16:16:56 |
| #3 Screw em. They can cooperate now or be cannon fodder for years to come. Their choice. |
| Posted by: g wiz 2003-04-15 15:59:26 |
| #2 Hasn't taken too long for them to turn French, has it? Guess we should have stood aside and let them liberate themselves, since they were making such good headway on their own. |
| Posted by: Dar 2003-04-15 15:30:50 |
| #1 SAIRI,refuses to attend meeting.Ok,that is how a Democracy works nobody is forced to participate.But by the same token when you don't get what you want you have no reason to complain. |
| Posted by: raptor 2003-04-16 11:28:38 |