BBC report about 'poll' in Iraq...

[Sam Slater]

Then you have no faith in these people Keith.

I wonder what is worse? Hate from your neighbour, or to be thought of as a people that are beyond help from outsiders?

[Sam Slater]

As a northerner, I feel different -culturally- than Londoners. It would have been exaggerated even more 50 years back.

I don't want to bomb London (neither do other northerners). Most countries are artificial with differing tribes living alongside each other. We learnt to get along enough to prosper though while others have not.

Iraqi's have no excuse not to try and get along. We all make our own decisions in life Keith. If someone in the future finds out that all Iraqi's had the minds of 10 year olds, and were incapable of making their own decisions, I promise I'll apologise in capital letters across this forum. !wink!

I decide whether or not to pull that trigger, I decide whether or not to bomb that bus stop where young girls are stood going to school, and I decide whether or not I cut off that man's head with a carving knife while saying a prayer in Arabic, for the effect of that camcorder filming me.

I don't know a fairer system than democracy though. Yes it would be unfair to force our morals on others, but I think a majority of Iraqi's would want democracy (esp the young and women).

Slobodan Milosevic was no worse than Saddam. No one seemed to mind us freeing the Kosovans as much. I've never rally understood the difference between the two wars really.

[Sam Slater]

[quote]I think what matters out there in Iraq is who has got the most firepower and local authority not those who want democracy who well may be the urban educated majority but it makes not much difference if they haven't got the guns. [/quote]

You have a point, but what do we do? Pull out but arm the ones that want democracy? Arming even more people is wrong, but those -would be- democrats may well be slaughtered or silenced at best.

[quote]You have to recall that GWB is a man who only discovered fairly recently that there were two distinct camps in the Muslim world,[/quote]

There's no argument here. The guy's a loony toon! He couldn't find his way out of a lift if he had 4 guesses that one! !laugh!

[quote]You mention the Balkans.....................I think they were better off under communism in some ways.[/quote]

I agree, maybe they were - in some ways. At least you didn't think of a pathetic attempt to justify the Balkans and that it was different to the current Iraq conflict. I fully respect you for that. !thumbsup! I like consistency! Both wars were so alike it's incredible that most see them differently.

Most European countries have gone through civil wars, or wars with neighbours before settling down to democracy and general peace. Lets hope Iraq follows similar paths but in double quick time.