Only 150 voters out of 600,000 so far in Ramadi, Iraq

[Contrary1]

per MSNBC at 2:10am est. Election a failure there. I will post a link, if it becomes available soon.

[Renew Deal]

1. What time is it in the 51st state?

[Contrary1]

5. 10:00 am Bagdad time... I think. n/t

[pnorman]

20. I think that was 10:10AM in Baghdad

Still a lot of time left, but it doesn't look too good for the Quisling Party. There couldn't be a single "liberatee" there who, doesn't know that casting a vote for ANYONE or ANYTHING is casting a vote for Bush.

But HOPE MAY BE ON THE WAY!!! There was a report a short time back, that Katherine Harris was secretly infiltrated into the Green Zone. She'll think of SOMETHING!

[Freedom_from_Chains]

46. Outcome is not important

It really doesn't matter how this so-called election turns out. Either way George will be calling it a major success and a testament to the Iraq people.

[NYC]

33. Voting started 11 p.m. EST.

I think it lasts for 10 hours.

[hangemhigh]

2. Catastrophic success. nt

[MadisonProgressive]

22. Nah...

Someone called them and told them the election was on Tuesday.

[LynnTheDem]

61. LOL!!!

That woulda been some librul traitor. DAM them libruls!

:D

[PATRICK]

3. Poll workers forced by guards

to cast their ballots. Iraqi police on the other hand have weapons and will not be forced to do the same.

[BrotherBuzz]

13. If that is the case...

What are the chances these 150 ballots will be undervotes (Blank)?

[Erika]

4. Only 6 hours left of this farce

of an election left.

[ckramer]

6. I heard that the location of the poll stations were unknown to voters

pre-election for fearing of attacks. If voters didn't where to go, how could they vote?

But the election is a Bush joke from the get go anyway.

[jdj]

7. Will they even get 10 percent?

Cable is sloshing around in propaganda even at this hour, though Geraldo has his bullet proof vest on. (It's 2:20 a.m. here)

[LostInAnomie]

8. Those were probably just suicide bombers that were looking for targets...

... were disappointed when they saw none, and just decided to vote out of boredom.

[LynnTheDem]

62. LOL!!!

You guys are cracking me up!

Someone needs to keep track of all these fantastic "why they didn't vote" lines to mock bushCartel with, LOL!

[oasis]

9. Bush says "just having an election in Iraq makes it a success."

:eyes:

[aquart]

55. Is it an election if nobody votes?

Talk about the politics of low expectations.

[leftchick]

72. I just caught that at 7:00AM on CNNI...

the good thing was after they repeated that idiotic statement by the idiot** they went to a Minister who lost his son 2 years ago in Iraq. He was pissed that there has been no accountability for the lies that got us into war. Showed chimpy*s hypocrisy quite well.

[NNN0LHI]

10. They have the troops driving up and down the streets with bullhorns...

...trying to get people to come out and vote to make Chimpy look good.

Don

[diamond14]

11. expect about 150 purple-fingered DEAD Iraqis left on the street

in the next few days in Ramadi.....


meanwhile, DEAD silence from Falluja.....

[Freedom_from_Chains]

47. I hadn't thought about that

But the ink, since it doesn't come off for awhile, kinda marks the voter as a target.

[Erika]

12. Faux/Bushco News is

declaring the election a victory for Bush.

[aikido15]

14. I think this is why they rushed the....

So called election, to ensure a sparse turnout so US can keep their puppet in there...Allawi is, after all, a Shia and they are going to win, how convenient for Bush & Co.

[Erika]

16. But experts are saying if the Sunni's don't vote

the election is a failure.

[aikido15]

50. That's what I'm saying...

Any way you look at it, it will be a failure. Esp. for the Iraqis.

[cal04]

15. polls were deserted in heavily Sunni cities like Fallujah, Ramadi and Sama

Despite the heavy attacks, turnout was brisk in some Shiite Muslim and mixed Shiite-Sunni neighborhoods, but the polls were deserted in heavily Sunni cities like Fallujah, Ramadi and Samarra west and north of Baghdad. In restive Mosul in the north, American troops and Iraqi soldiers roamed the streets, using loudspeakers to announce the locations of polling sites and urging people to vote. But streets were deserted. In the heavily Sunni town of Mahmoudiya in the so-called "triangle of death" south of Baghdad, the only cars on the streets were ambulances.

http://hjnews.townnews.com/articles/2005/01/29/ap/headlines/d87u8alo0.txt

There were no signs of voting in the Sunni Muslim stronghold cities — and rebel centers — of Fallujah and Ramadi, west of Baghdad. Sunni extremists, fearing victory by the Shiites, have called for a boycott, claiming no vote held under U.S. military occupation is legitimate.
A low Sunni turnout could undermine the new government and worsen the tensions among the country’s ethnic, religious and cultural groups.

Shiite Muslims, estimated at 60 percent of Iraq’s 26 million people, are expected to turn out in large numbers, encouraged by clerics who hope their community will gain power after generations of oppression by the Sunni minority.

At one voting center in the heavily Shiite Muslim city of Nasiriyah in the south, about 40 people lined up waiting to vote.But at a school-turned-polling station in Baghdad’s middle-class Karrada neighborhood, a mixed Shiite-Sunni area, only three voters appeared in the first 45 minutes.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6874656/

[NNN0LHI]

18. Fallujah is rubble

Ain't nothing left but some dogs eating some dead Iraqis last time I seen any news photos from there. The place looked like it had been nuked. Won't be nobody voting there.

Don

[latteromden]

17. .025%. A success! (n/t)

[Just Me]

76. Gulp! That's far worse than my estimates at 7 in 100.

Of course, I was merely calculating the 72% of the 10% of registered voters in the US. Merely 10% of Iraqis in the US registered and 72% of those voted, meaning only 7 out of 100 Iraqis voted here in the U.S.

I figured those percentages were going to be less in the violent environment of Iraq. But, geez, 3 in a 1000 is horrible. On the other hand, even those who did "vote" had no clue who they were voting for. So, the "vote" really amounted to a kind of lotto pick.

[lebkuchen]

19. CNNI is saying Tikrit has an extremely low turnout

The reporter in Iraq says US soldiers are cruising streets in Ramadi to encourage people to vote.

I suggest we get our Guard/Reserve units to do the same in the US in 2008. Who knows. We might end up with a 50% voter turnout with a little military zeal thrown into the mix.

[latteromden]

25. That's the way to do it! Because people with guns aren't threatening...

:wtf:

[lebkuchen]

28. Why is voting so important to Americans

when they have the lowest voter turnout in the world?

[aquart]

56. "They?"

WE have the RIGHT to vote. Nobody has yet had the guts to frame it as a DUTY.

[heyphillip]

67. Why is voting so important to Americans

Because we want the goverment to win the election that we have
choosen.so they can just be a puppet for the U.S. There's an
old saying be careful what you wish for.

[Maple]

21. Baghdad is 8 hours ahead

of US EST.

[Randi_Listener]

23. 150 out of 600k?!?!

Sounds like a motherfucking US election.

[katinmn]

34. that picture of the chimp of death. hilarious

Is he drunk and falling out of truck?

[Randi_Listener]

38. The stupid fucking asshole can't stand up straight

after a half-pint of burbon.

[katinmn]

40. Looks like his arm got caught in the window

or he forgot to take it out.
:silly:

[Contrary1]

24. It doesn't matter how few show up to vote...

it will be declared a success by Shrubco. Democracy at work. All is well.

[Bouncy Ball]

26. Just 1% turnout would be 6,000 people voting.

150? Half of one percent would be 3,000. .25% would be 1500. So this is .025%? (Math was never my thing, but I think I got that right.)

Wow. One quarter of one percent. Makes our "elections" look like whopping turnout.

And I want to know something. Why doesn't buscho ever talk in such glowing terms about our "elections" and "democracy?"

[foo_bar]

60. that's 1/40th of one percent

[davepc]

27. I'm sure walking around with blue ink on your finger

is a good way to not get singled out for execution by the guerrillas too.

[Skittles]

29. those people got GUTS

nt

[Bouncy Ball]

30. Or a gun pointed at their noggin.

[Maple]

31. No, they're just naive

in that they believe this 'election' will make a difference.

[mikelewis]

32. Yes they do, some of the do believe it can make a difference

I hate Bush, you can search my threads to find out how much but I swear I hoped this would turn out better. These people need some peace.

[katinmn]

36. yes. I wish it was going better also

I think the Iraqis and those of us who oppose the war just want the election over so the US will get the hell out of their country.

Too bad * stirred up so much hatred. Now it's gonna take longer.

[Erika]

37. I feel the same

I'm now listening to some Faux guy saying how our troops mimimalized loss to the Iraqis during this election. Enough to gag a maggot.

Our cost can be seen at www.icasualties.org. And we're in Iraq for why?

[Catherine Vincent]

35. Yeah but that's a success for Bush according to the media.

[President Jesus]

39. i hope no one here is actually happy about this...

...because it kinda seems some are.

I don't care who Our President™ is, Iraqis need to get their shit together so we can get our soldiers out of there. A disastrous election only means that much longer our forces are stuck there.

This election could very well mean the difference between one more year, or five+.

Take the blinders off for a sec: do you actually think Bushco will withdraw any troops until they've got at least something that lets them save face?

[NNN0LHI]

44. What flavor Kool-Aid you been drinking?

Elections or no elections US forces are never leaving Iraq. Christ man, we are still occupying Germany, Japan, and Italy almost 60 years after the US invaded them. What gives you the idea US forces will be leaving Iraq anytime soon? Hell, Chimp Boy doesn't even suggest that. You know something we all don't know or something?

Don

[President Jesus]

52. Are our troops still in Vietnam?

Wouldn't you agree that Vietnam is far more similar to Iraq than, say, WWII? (Interesting that you chose WWII to compare to Iraq, cuz that's what exactly what the right-wingers have been doing...and you accuse me of that tired 'drinking Kool-Ad' crap?)

The only reason Vietnam went on for as long as it did was neither Johnson nor Nixon wanted to lose face. You know what? I'm man enough to take the blinders off for a sec and let Bush claim his pathetic victory if it means bringing the troops home. These neocons are looking for an out, I'm convinced of that, but they are not going to do it at the expense of losing face. That's just reality, my friend.

[NNN0LHI]

53. The reality is the reason the US is no longer occupying Vietnam is we lost

The Vietnamese were not interested in our perpetual phony democratic elections we impose on those who submit to our military might. Just like the Iraqis. So it appears the only thing that will bring US troops home is to accept defeat. Not by installing puppet governments and claiming a false victory (mission accomplished).

Don

[davhill]

70. Actually we did

Install a puppet government in Vietnam and claim a false victory. It didn't last more than a couple weeks.

[President Jesus]

73. I completely agree. We lost Iraq too. What I'm trying to articulate is...

...I am hoping this insanity doesn't have to last as long as Vietnam did.

An election that is not a complete disaster may just be enough for Bush to say once again "mission accomplished" and start withdrawing troops. Fine. Whatever. Everyone will lnow the truth as we witness Iraw further desend into hell, but at least our troops would no longer be in the midlle of it.

But again, you are the fool if you think a guy like Bush would ever quit this war without being able to claim some kind of victory...or even worse to him...being forced to quit by the left. That guy will NEVER do that.

[LynnTheDem]

63. bushCartel have already said we will be there for at least 2 more years

The top US military general (asshole) Franks says we'll be there 8-10 years.

These "elections" have nothing whatsoever to do with US troops leaving Iraq.

[Igel]

75. Same with Philippines. n/t

[Bouncy Ball]

74. The problem is, this "election" was FUBAR from the get-go.

If the bush cartel actually gave a shit about the Iraqis and/or getting our troops out, they wouldn't have made the MANY huge mistakes they've made from the beginning that have all led to this day of sham and violence.

[phrenzy]

41. I have to root for them.

I'm sorry - as fervently as I opposed this bullshit - lie based war - I have to root for the elections. I know that, in a round about way, the elections being successful will be spun as a 'vindication' for shrub - but I can't let that stop me from hoping that the people that have just been fucked over non stop for years in Iraq will truly take control of their destiny.

IMO, that involves electing representative leaders with spines that will tell the US troops 'thanks - now please LEAVE'

If the US starts openly defying the elected govt. in Iraq - that's when this thing turns from an 'insurgency' to a true WAR a-la vietnam.

[Rainscents]

42. I feel so sorry for the Iraqi people for what our country had done to them

they did not asked for this mess nor did they deserved any of this mess and the mass killing of Innocent Iraqi people. At the moment, I hate Bush for what he had done to these poor people.

[NYC]

54. How can the election be successful?

How do you define successful?

Most people won't vote. Of the 7,000 candidates on the ballot, hundreds have dropped out (some due to death). The parties are not necessarily listed by their recognizable names. And there are other problems.

In what way would this be a fair election? The identities of the candidates were concealed from the voters. How can they make decisions?

[LynnTheDem]

64. Except in fact this "election" is NOT for electing an Iraqi government.

It's to elect a TRANSITIONAL -ie temporary- group of people who will themselves select a group of people to write a Constitution for Iraq. Then they will select another group, of 3 people, next year, to select a govt of Iraq.

The ONLY "vote" the Iraqi people get is for the first group, the transitional group. The Iraqi people will have no say over the constitution, no say over who gets to pick the Iraqi govt, and no say next year over the President & executive staff selected.

[Contrary1]

43. Insurgents clashing with US troops

in Ramadi per MSNBC at 3:05am est. Election "resounding failure"."

[Name removed]

45. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Clarkie1]

48. I don't n/t

[katinmn]

49. Not me. I want us to get out of Iraq. For our sake and for the Iraqis.

I think those that are risking their lives to vote want us out, and that's why they are voting even though they know it's a sham.

It's a horrible situation.

We all knew this was coming, but just as he always does, * the idiot had to plow forward.

[Rainscents]

51. Bush stated yesterday...

WE ARE NOT LEAVING IRAQ!!!

[Piperay]

57. We aren't going to leave

the election is just a farce, there is no way chimp is leaving.

[twaddler01]

59. someday....

over the rainbow...way up high...

O8)

[thebigidea]

58. boy, there's a statement dripping with sincerity

Its like Sean Hannity's parody of what liberals say on message boards.

who even bothers to care about this "election," much less express some boneheaded sentiment like "I hope the election is a massive failure"?

Only a parody would.

[Piperay]

65. Yeah check out his

profile...it is the stereotype of what the repukes like to pretend all Democrats are. :silly:

[Mike Niendorff]

66. And, in a stunning development:

In a stunning new development, Chris Vance has claimed that all 150 voters appear to have intended to vote for Washington gubernatorial candidate Dino Rossi. Vance demands that Christine Gregoire resign immediately. More news later.


MDN

[heyphillip]

68. Ramadi vote

Yeh according to Fox[republican] News theres 57% turnout in
the whole country.WHAT a bunch of BS! 57% tunout my ass. they
on that News Station will say ANYTHING to make Bush look good.

[annabanana]

69. What's the latest from sources OUTSIDE the US?

any real reports on turnout?

[Disturbed]

71. The Election was a Glorious Success.

US forces are never leaving Iraq because they must stay to protect the Democratic Republic of Iraq. 14 U.S. Military Bases will be in Iraq for a few centuries.

[scottxyz]

77. This is like holding an election in Dredsen after the allies bombed

Most of the big cities are rubble. This election is purely a staged event tailor-made for CNN.

[sarcasmo]

78. That's 72% according to Chimpy.