Iraqis Voting in The Bay Area

Iraqis are already getting into the swing of things in the Bay Area:

Jawad al-Mamori plans to travel with about a dozen friends from Sunnyvale to Pleasanton today to cast his vote in the Iraq election.

They will be among some 3,000 Iraqis in Northern California and as far away as Seattle expected to come to Pleasanton during the next three days and, under tight security, cast ballots to select the government of their homeland.

Al-Mamori, a 38-year-old gas station manager who lives with his wife and four children in Sunnyvale, says the United States has made "a lot of mistakes" in his native country, and could have removed Saddam Hussein -- whose forces, he said, killed his father 20 years ago -- without an occupation.

But that doesn't dampen his enthusiasm to cast a ballot

"We don't have a choice. We have to do something to make a better life for the Iraqi people," al-Mamori said. "We have an opportunity to work for our government. Even if we only have 10 percent (influence), we have to do it. If we don't, it's going to be a minus -- less than zero."

In January, al-Mamori and fellow Bay Area Iraqis had to go to Orange County -- twice -- to vote for a transitional parliament, registering during one trip and returning to cast ballots.

Pleasanton was chosen this time because it is easily accessible from San Jose, San Francisco and the Central Valley, which have substantial Iraqi communities, according to the Independent Electoral Commission of Iraq, which is managing so-called out-of-country voting.

The group estimates that 25,000 Iraqis live in Northern California, although the number is difficult to pin down because the community is so fractured.

SF City Supervisor, Tom Ammiano, was rumored to be organizing a protest of this election on the grounds of "brown people voting because of something George Bush did is, in its very nature, fascist. Plus he's not offering any of them health care."

In all seriousness, it is interesting that the Chronicle happened to find the one voter in 25,000 that was against the occupation. But, even if all 25,000 felt the same way, it doesn't matter. What Mr. al-Mamori and his countrymen need to realize is that this invasion wasn't purely benevolent. We aren't in the business of knocking off dictators for charity. The reason that American blood is being spilled in Iraq is because after September 11th, the Islamic world needed a push towards reform. No longer could we sit by and wait for aggressors like Saddam sit by and continually taunt us with their insolence.

The result of the invasion has been a flood of foreign terrorists joining up with members of Iraq's former ruling party and criminal elements to stop Iraq from becoming a country ruled as a single nation by its own people. They know that this will have a disasterous effect on their ability to regain the power and control they desire in the region. Al-Qaeda wants the worldwide jihad, while the Baathists would just settle for controlling the places in the Middle East with a crap-load of oil. If they cannot regain control of Iraq, their ultimate aims are shattered.

Most Iraqis do understand that if we were to leave, they'd be completely exposed to these blood-thirsty murders. This reality is reflected in yesterday's poll:

When asked what would be the worst thing that could happen to Iraq in the next 12 months, only 8.9% chose "occupation not leaving Iraq."

When asked what would be the best thing that could happen to Iraq in the next 12 months, only 5.7% chose American forces leaving Iraq.

The Who has some pertinent words for those contemplating the nature of the occupation:

Meet the new boss
Same as the old boss...

Won't Get Fooled Again..

Iraq is the place where American interests and the freedom of oppressed people interesect. We are NOT purely benevolent in our intentions, but this is a win-win for us and the Iraqi people. Sometimes our objectives will criss-cross a bit and some toes will get stepped on, but ultimately, the Iraqi people and the United States will be better off with an Iraq that is mostly free of the cancer which is theocratic fascism enforced by a violent ideology.