Ever go to the polls here in the States and have the person working your voting booth hand you one of those round stickers that say "I Voted Today"? Do you put it on? Do you leave it on the rest of the day?

Or do you crumple it up and throw it away because you're embarrassed that you took a few minutes out of your day to exercise a right that millions of men and women died for; embarrassed to have people know that you actually care enough to vote for someone, because you think they might snicker or roll their eyes at you because it's not "hip" to vote? Maybe you just don't want people to ask you who you voted for because you don't feel like getting into an argument.

Well, for the second time this year, Iraqi citzens got their unique tell-tale proof that they voted - an ink-stained finger. And they're proud to show you, even at the risk of being killed by those who desperately want to stop it.

It speaks volumes that even those Iraqis who opposed the proposed Constitution did so by voting "no" rather than blowing up a polling place. This, my friends, is democracy. It's not as "democratic" as the kind we enjoy here in America - which itself is far from perfect - but it's light-years ahead of where any of the biggest cynics thought Iraq would be at this point.

In most of Iraq, polling centers hosted a steady stream of voters throughout the day. But the vote appeared split along sectarian lines. In Sunni neighborhoods of Baghdad, Baquba, and the northern city of Mosul, a wide majority of Sunnis said they voted "no." In the Shiite neighborhoods of the same cities, the opposite was true.

"Of course I voted yes,'' says Aisha Mohammed, a Shiite woman emerging from the polling place in Baquba. "This is our future - and I think it will start to bring peace." She contrasted Iraq's last referendum - an Oct. 15, 2001, vote for president in which Hussein received 100 percent of the vote - with this one. "No more fake elections - real elections have to be good for Iraq."

"I came here to challenge the force of evil," says Abu Ali Shawkat Kadhim in Baghdad, a Shiite laborer whose brother, nephew, and cousins were killed under Hussein's regime. "Please do not say Sunni refuse and Shiites agree. Say the forces of evil refuse and the forces of good say yes."

Democracy is hard. Most worthwhile things are. And once freedom is embraced it's pretty hard to let go - as demonstrated here by celebrating Iraqis, brought to you by "Iraq The Model".

Posted by: Gary at 01:35 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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