This is an historic day, of course. Just because it sounds trite doesn’t mean that it shouldn’t be said. Today is historic for a lot of reasons, most of which you probably won’t find in your copy of the New York Times.
Though the mainstream media isn’t making a huge deal of it, Iraqi democratic elections are today. Spirit of America Iraqi election coverage is on C-SPAN today (beginning @ 2pm EST), there is a simultaneous webcast of coverage, which will include special guests, Iraqi commentators, bloggers (including Christopher Hitchens and Foundation for Defense of Democracies’ Cliff May), live call-ins from Friends of Democracy correspondents and bloggers, and more. (Hat tip: The Smoking Room and Jim Hake of Spirit of America)
Check out the Iraqi Election Newswire for updated information on polls and conditions in Iraq.
The UN has got some info about the elections that seems positive, and initial reports are overwhelmingly positive.
The most popular and enduring image to emerge so far is the finger, an ink stain representing that a legitimate vote has been cast. Each one is a marked defiance, a literal finger in the face of terror and terrorists who promised to disrupt the elections. Omar and Mohammed from Iraq the Model say the people have won over the terrorists and those who said it could never work (Hat Tip: Instapundit)
Remember the fall of the Berlin Wall? Here’s hoping today will also be remembered as a day when , against all odds, democracy began to take root where it was once inhabitable. No matter how you feel about the war and current problems in Iraq, let us be united in support of those who risk their lives to further a democratic unity in Iraq.
Let us be thankful that a once-enslaved people are now able to choose freely, and in choosing, create a path of freedom in the desert. Those people who brave the bombs, the bullets, and all the threats of fear and death from terrorists do so out of hope and vision of a brighter future; their dedication seems to mirror that of our own forefathers who fought against tyranny and braved the muskets of the British to win the day.
They have begun the first step.
What I find interesting about the Iraqi elections are the possibilities for more missions work to be done. Christianity, whilst not illegal in Iraq (like it is in Iran) is still marginalized and there is much work to be done to reach the lost.
With free and fair elections, the tide may be turned, and the Spirit of the Word given entrance to a dark and weary land. May it be so!
UPDATE: Greg Piper apparently got to ask Christopher Hitchens a question on C-SPAN (he was at the conference mentioned above) and plugged his blog, the dog! You can see a webcast replay here. I haven’t seen it yet, but Greg says he shows up at 01:07:25.