Democracy has won! The first election in over fifty years in Iraqi history has taken place today with an overwhelming turnout. Surprisingly most of the Arab press has covered this as a positive event that could be a turning point in the outcome of Iraq. Aljazera on the other hand has almost ignored the entire events, and focused more on the next vote in Iraq later this year. The American press is mixed coverage. I have been going between the major channels looking at how they are covering it, and it was not quite what I expected. MSNBC has focused mostly on the positives of the war and how the lockdown on the country has succeeded, Dan Rather also focused on the positives by highlighting the high turnout and also how successful the lockdown was, Peter Jennings took a much more negative approach by making the attacks seem much larger than they were and the turn out being disappointing (which they are in the triangle, but the turnout is high in the rest of the country which he failed to speak of), Fox News is the one I have watched the least of but seems to be the most balanced. I have seen on Fox them question the war itself and whether we even should be there, talking about the successful lockdown, talking about the attacks, saying this will mean the attacks will begin to stop, saying the attacks will step up, and other things that have been said that they then give the opposite side of. Fox News does seem to be for focused on the positives though.

The turn out of the election seems to be very promising. The Iraqi people have come in higher turnouts than any US election in history, as much as seventy-two percent or more. Some precincts are reporting an amazing ninety-five percent turnout! Within the triangle some polling places say that have lines with thousands upon thousands of people in line. Outside the polls the people are dancing and cheering in celebration of the wonderful events they have witnessed and participated in. Attacks have been sparse and mostly within the triangle. Only one US soldier was killed in the election, and one British C-130 down, and as I write the first reports are coming in so I may have some outdated information as far as I know it was an accident. Less than forty Iraqis have been killed in attacks, most of which were by suicide bombers. Before the election insurgents were warning the Iraqis that they had more than five hundred suicide bombers ready for an attack, and now it looks more like maybe a dozen or so.

When it is all said and done with today will be seen as a tremendous day in Iraq and the world’s history. Democracy has won, the Iraqi people are cheering and thankful, and most importantly the Iraqi people are officially free! They may have to walk thirteen miles to vote, US spy planes have tracked large groups of people doing this to get to the polls, but they want to vote in this historic election and shape there country and future. God Bless America, God Bless the Iraqi people, and God Bless Democracy.

Democracy has won! The first election in over fifty years in Iraqi history has taken place today with an overwhelming turnout. Surprisingly most of the Arab press has covered this as a positive event that could be a turning point in the outcome of Iraq. Aljazera on the other hand has almost ignored the entire events, and focused more on the next vote in Iraq later this year. The American press is mixed coverage. I have been going between the major channels looking at how they are covering it, and it was not quite what I expected. MSNBC has focused mostly on the positives of the war and how the lockdown on the country has succeeded, Dan Rather also focused on the positives by highlighting the high turnout and also how successful the lockdown was, Peter Jennings took a much more negative approach by making the attacks seem much larger than they were and the turn out being disappointing (which they are in the triangle, but the turnout is high in the rest of the country which he failed to speak of), Fox News is the one I have watched the least of but seems to be the most balanced. I have seen on Fox them question the war itself and whether we even should be there, talking about the successful lockdown, talking about the attacks, saying this will mean the attacks will begin to stop, saying the attacks will step up, and other things that have been said that they then give the opposite side of. Fox News does seem to be for focused on the positives though.

The turn out of the election seems to be very promising. The Iraqi people have come in higher turnouts than any US election in history, as much as seventy-two percent or more. Some precincts are reporting an amazing ninety-five percent turnout! Within the triangle some polling places say that have lines with thousands upon thousands of people in line. Outside the polls the people are dancing and cheering in celebration of the wonderful events they have witnessed and participated in. Attacks have been sparse and mostly within the triangle. Only one US soldier was killed in the election, and one British C-130 down, and as I write the first reports are coming in so I may have some outdated information as far as I know it was an accident. Less than forty Iraqis have been killed in attacks, most of which were by suicide bombers. Before the election insurgents were warning the Iraqis that they had more than five hundred suicide bombers ready for an attack, and now it looks more like maybe a dozen or so.

When it is all said and done with today will be seen as a tremendous day in Iraq and the world’s history. Democracy has won, the Iraqi people are cheering and thankful, and most importantly the Iraqi people are officially free! They may have to walk thirteen miles to vote, US spy planes have tracked large groups of people doing this to get to the polls, but they want to vote in this historic election and shape there country and future. God Bless America, God Bless the Iraqi people, and God Bless Democracy.