December 4, 2003

ALL THE NEWS THAT WAS FIT TO PRINT IN 2002:

God and Man in Baghdad (THOMAS L. FRIEDMAN, 12/04/03, NY Times)

Are you sitting down?

We've encountered many surprises since we invaded Iraq, but now that the political process is under way the biggest surprise may be just around the corner, and it's this: The first post-Saddam democratic government that the U.S. gives birth to in Iraq may be called the Islamic Republic of Iraq — and that's not necessarily a bad thing. I told you to sit down.


Mr. Friedman is ostensibly the pre-eminent voice of elite America on foreign affairs, but he's just now figuring out that a Shi'ite Republic is coming to Iraq? That it's a good thing? And he thinks the rest of us didn't figure that out some time last year?

Posted by Orrin Judd at December 4, 2003 12:29 AM
Comments

Glibness, thy name is TLF.

Posted by: Barry Meislin at December 4, 2003 4:17 AM

Friedman may be the pre-eminent voice with respect to knowing where to get the best shawarma in Jerusalem, but he knows little about Iraq and nothing about the rest of the world. Sorry, Tom.

Posted by: jim hamlen at December 4, 2003 9:39 AM

Barry, that is the best description I have ever heard of him.

Posted by: pchuck at December 4, 2003 10:45 AM

I sure hope it's better than the shiite regimes in Lebanon or Iran, but why would anyone expect it to be?

Posted by: Harry Eagar at December 4, 2003 2:39 PM

If it matches Iran's that would do for now. A twenty year period of Islamic fervor and then lilberal reform from within seems about right,

Posted by: oj at December 4, 2003 4:37 PM

I rather suspect that the Iraqi's aren't going to trade one tyranny for another.

Posted by: ray at December 4, 2003 9:05 PM
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