June 30th

[theknife]

16 days till the handover to Iraqi authorities...any predictions?

A car bomb shattered a convoy of Westerners in Baghdad Monday, killing at least 13 people, including three General Electric workers and two bodyguards. Crowds rejoiced over the attack, dancing around a charred body and shouting "Down with the USA!"

this story could have been written last month or the month before, but it was, in fact, today's news. while the Iraqi elite is busy preparing for their new era, the people in the street don't appear to have gotten the memo.

Moments after the thunderous blast, which shook the heart of the capital, young men raced into the street, hurling stones at the flaming wreckage, looting personal belongings of the victims and chanting slogans against the occupation.

no doubt it was some sort of foreign element responsible for the bombing, and, quite predictably, is likely to continue...but the reaction of the Iraqis at the scene, even at this late date, is the disturbing part. and this is not Fallujah or Najaf, and there are no militant clerics sowing the seeds of discontent here - this is pure spontaneous anarchy in beautiful downtown Bagdhad. bodes poorly for the immediate future, no?

As flames and smoke enveloped the vehicles, youths taunted American troops and threatened Western journalists. American troops beat one man with a stick, but after failing to restrain the crowd, the troops and police withdrew.

Crowds chanted "Down with the USA!" and set fire to an American flag. Young men gleefully displayed a British passport and identification card issued by the Coalition Provisional Authority.

if we are to take the CPA at their word, the moment of Iraqi independence is at hand - so why are these people not smiling? do they not grasp the concept of independence or do they simply not believe what we are telling them (and the rest of the world, for that matter)? or is the day-to-day task of surviving an occupation/guerilla war so grueling that they are simply beyond caring?

i think it's a matter of education...while the Western-educated Iraqi intellectual elite is preparing for democracy, the average Iraqi is having difficulty grasping the concept and the promise it holds. i'd bet good money few in that crowd could tell you much about Thomas Jefferson.

Iraqi police stood by helplessly — unable to control the crowd only weeks before they are to assume more security responsibility under the U.S. exit strategy.

and what do you get when you can't reason with the people in the street? you either allow anarchy or you break out the big sticks and beat them into jelly - either way, you're a long, long way from democracy.

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmp..._re_mi_ea/iraq