Tommorow thousands of Iraqi’s will head off to the polls and vote in a legitimate election for the first time in a half century. For many of them, casting a vote will be a life and death occurance. And that’s just getting to the polls, let alone waiting in the queue for their ballot.
I must offer my heartfelt honor to each of those Iraqi’s voting tomorrow. You show a side of courage and resilance that stand as a true hallmark of democracy.
Despite that, I have one misgiving about this election: the ability of expatriots to vote. I’m not saying that should not be able to vote. My fear lies more in the chance that the bulk of the votes will come from those outside of the borders of Iraq.
If that happens, then the legitimacy of the election could be in doubt. That fact could stand as another reason for the insurgents to rally against the U.S. military and the Allawi government.
Let’s just hope that a large number of Iraqis choose tomorrow to cast two votes, one for the election and one against the insurgents.
