MSNBC whoring "the vote" in Iraq...

[Postman]

turnout "better than expected" in Kurdish and Shiite areas. Sunni area (aka Baghdad, Ramadi, Fallujah et al) low turnout. Some polling places never opened. At least 9 attacks in Baghdad today.

Selling the vote as a success - "voters turned out in defiance of the terrorist attacks to cast their votes"....

not exactly the whole truth, Kurds and Shiites have not born the brunt of the insurgency, it has been a Sunni insurgency mostly and in the areas where they have been launching attacks there has been hardly any voting.

It seems the administration must play up their successes wherever they can find them and try to amplify that and pass it off as an Iraqi (i.e. all of Iraq) success.

[against all enemies]

1. "93% turnout in some parts of Baghdad. " Those wouldn't be those

areas were the religious fundamentalists were told to vote by their religious leaders would it? Just what we need a Fundamentalist Iraqi government. I wonder if the winners will go out in public?

[Clark2008]

4. I've been wondering about this all morning

Everyone is going on and on about how "great" the vote was - but what is the outcome of that vote.

Sure, it's great that 72 percent of 10 percent of the country voted, but who won? What's going to happen in the next two weeks.

And nine attacks is "good?" Only nine? Nine is a lot for one day - wait until they start counting those votes and the new "government" comes into office.

I'm sorry. I don't buy all this bullshit being shoveled by the media. It's not the vote, stupid - it's the results!

But, I guess that doesn't matter to these people.

[RoeBear]

"these people"?

Are you saying that "these people" are too stupid to understand what they are doing?

It's a first step on a long road to democracy and freedom.

It won't be easy and it ain't over yet.

[LynnTheDem]

9. "these people" = US State Media whores.

I believe is what Clark2008 meant.

[Postman]

10. Ridiculous.

"democracy" and "freedom" were never the reason Bush invaded Iraq. Remember WMD's?

If Bush wanted to impose "democracy" and "freedom" in the Middle East why didn't he start with his allies like Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Pakistan?

Of course there was high turnout in the Northern Kurdish region, they have been fighting for autonomy for years. Not just in Iraq but in Turkey as well.

In the Southern Shiite region, I wonder how many Iranians crossed the border to vote. Bush has essentially created a "greater Iran" in the south of Iraq.

The insurgency has mainly been in the Sunni area of central Iraq and that is where the US has no control and thus low if any voting.

Considering that the Iraq invasion has been the most collosal foreign policy failure in history Bush should declare victory and get the hell out of Iraq before more people are dead.

[RoeBear]

2. Shouldn't we just be happy for them...

instead of using invectives like 'whoring'?

[fairfaxvadem]

3. Oh, it gets better on CNN

I caught the tail end of the show, but Kelly Whatsherface was speaking w/2 yakkers and basically the parting shots were "Syria should take heed, democracy and voting worked in Iraq." Not direct quotes certainly, but basically implying that this speaks to a larger spread of democracy in the region.

I'd say that this might be true IF what happened in Iraq today is seen as a genuine referendum on how the Iraqis want to run their country.

If it's perceived as nothing more than US imposed voting, done to save face more for the US than to help Iraq, then no. Everyone in the region will basically ignore it.

I don't see how it is possible to know this through our own media filters and I'd be curious to know how today's events are actually being viewed in that region.

[Clark2008]

6. "voting" is NOT democracy

Democracy is what happens after the voted.

Geesch, our press is stupid.

[Dangerman]

8. Who gives a rat's ass about democracy in Iraq...

OUR democracy is all but gone thanks to OUR election so why in Iraq?

[anarchy1999]

5. Have they ever done anything else but?

n/t

[TomClash]

7. Next Headline

120% OF IRAQIS VOTE IN ELECTION

[LibDemAlways]

11. I actually heard one reporter describe the voting process.

Voter subjected to humiliating TSA-like search before entering polling area.

Voter handed ballot by election "official" wearing mask for fear of recognition.

Voter reads lengthy ballot behind cardboard lemonade stand belonging in Peanuts comic strip.

After marking ballot, voter's hand is stamped with ink -- probably in shape of small concentric circles resembling bulls-eye.

Yea, I'll bet Iraqis were anxious to "vote" under those conditions. And won't they be thrilled when in a week it's smugly announced by the chimp that a bunch of chimp stooges "won" and said stooges have asked the US to keep troops in indefinitely.

[Tinoire]

12. Sad thing is that MSNBC is 10 times more honest than CNN

Thank heavens for the internet.