As I write, multiparty elections are going on in Iraq for the first time in half of a century. That in itself makes this whole thing worthwhile.
There's been a lot more booms and firefights lately, but it's not always clear who's on the offensive. A building adjacent the palace was hit by rocket fire last night and two were killed; I heard it, though it wasn't the loudest boom I heard last night. The majority of IED detonations occur *after* the device/car is found and detonated on-site by our EOD (Explosive Ordinance Disposal) forces -- would you want to drive a home made car bomb around? Me neither, so they blow ‘em up where they find ‘em. Artillery and other sounds go boom too. So a boom isn't always a bad thing and firefights can be the other side getting their butt kicked too. I think it's safe to say that both sides are very active right now.
What do the "insurgents" say about the elections? The lead terrorist, Zarqawi, says: "We have declared a fierce war on this evil principle of democracy and those who follow this wrong ideology,".
Why be against democracy? I thought Democracy was a good thing. Well it is ... for the people, but not for the rulers. It means that those in charge can't oppress everyone else and live like kings off the riches of the land (though, given the culture here, they will try). The religious nut jobs go on to say that authority is handed down by god and that only the church should rule.
"Democracy is also based on the right to choose your religion," he said, and that is "against the rule of God."
Great, okay, fruit-loop, rather than letting things slide back to the Dark Ages, how about we just kill you instead. Your murdering of innocents and other terrorist acts have won you a $25M price on your head, that goes a long way here. We'll put you in one of two boxes: the one we have Saddam in or the one in which we put his sons.