Replies

What you and I have seen and pointed out is valuable, but the other side of the coin is that we have cultural factors working against those statistical facts.

Arabs have ingrained a culture of lying and "loyalty" into their society that worked for propping up small tribes, but that is counter-productive to large-scale society-enhancement at the national level.

What we're doing in Iraq is changing entire cultures...a hard roe to hoe, but necessary. The tribal culture was stagnating the Middle-East...but now they are learning to criticize (read: improve) their own leaders such as their president rather than continue to play the public suck-up game (among other things).

And some day they will give high praise to George W. Bush for having the guts to do what had to be done. Things with many facets only a small portion of people appear to understand at present.
I am reaching the point where I almost feel honored having connected with this web site. I consider myself a somewhat free thinker, willing to give and take, but not trust till verified.
Perhaps if I had not stumbled onto FR or the number of other web sites affiliated and referenced over the past few years I to may have still been in the dark for the most part, simply for lack of many small bits of info that weaved together with some dicipline can yield some rather surprising conclusions not considered possible by the so called experts that guide the opinions of the masses.
All indicators point to a unified Iraq in the not so distant future. One where all the provincal governments will work with the federal government to improve all parts of Iraq for the betterment of Iraq as a whole.
I for one do not ignore the continued pressures Islam in general will press on the peoples. But Iraq is not full of radical muslims.
Not all Arabs buy into the bull shit found in the Quran. Most hardly know what it contains from an intellectual standpoint. As kids they become parrots learned in recital, but really do not understand the deep problems the cult's books contain. The radical muslims blowing up their kids and wives have been an eye opener. I am sure the majority of them will opt for a peacefull democratic country verse a muslim caliph state or another Saddam.