Occupation Forces Halt Elections Throughout Iraq

The Washington Post ^ | June 28, 2003 | William Booth and Rajiv Chandrasekaran

[NestorMakhno]

It's going the way I predicted all along. It's Santo Domingo ca. 1914 all over again. The natives will rise, with "banditos in the hills" chased by Marines, and nationalist outcries in the cities. And, in the end, the US will walk out, leaving little behind except bad memories and a grindstone of resentment.

[Tokhtamish]

What is "social engineering" is your assumption that you can turn Iraq into something it never was, nor probably every will be.

Since the first ziggurat went up Iraq has been ruled by one "strong man" after another.

Democracy has vital cultural preconditions. Religious tolerance. Respect for the law. A willingness to disagree peacefully. Open, transparent public institutions instead of rule by clan or clique. A willingness to play by the rules and give the motives of others the benefit of the doubt, in effect, a certain optimism about how you will be treated if you treat others fairly. None of these things exist in Iraq.