NYT: Sensing Shiites Will Rule Iraq, US Starts to See Friends, Not Foes

[kskiska]

They're getting desperate.

The Bush administration, which was wary earlier this year of installing a government dominated by Shiites in Iraq, has concluded that such a development is virtually inevitable and not necessarily harmful to American interests, administration officials said Wednesday.

The officials said that fears of an Iranian-style — and Iranian-influenced — theocracy in Baghdad have faded because it has become clear that Iraq's Shiite population is not a monolithic bloc and not necessarily dominated by Tehran.

"Our basic position is that as we get to know more of Iraqi society, we're more comfortable with a democratic process, and if that emerges with a predominant Shiite role, so be it," said an administration official. "There's been a steady education process here."

Still, American officials are taking steps to ensure that when a Shiite-dominated government is installed next year, as most expect, religious freedom and minority rights are respected and Iraq's neighbors are reassured that the first Shiite-governed Arab country does not pose a threat to them.

more…
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/11/20/international/middleeast/20GOVE.html?ex=1069909200&en=f43f660db89ffdb1&ei=5062&partner=GOOGLE

[NNN0LHI]

1. So who is destined to be the Ayatollah of Iraq I wonder? n/t

[Aidoneus]

5. there are a great many of them already..

.

[mhr]

2. These People Back Pedal Faster Than Evaporating Dry Ice, Amazing!

eom

[NNN0LHI]

4. If you can't beat them join them. Remember Reagans best buddy Osama? n/t

[Maple]

3. The Ayatollah of Iraq

called for elections a couple of weeks ago.

And after Americans leave...all those comfy cosy agreements about Tehran become diddly squat.

[Aidoneus]

13. *an* Iraqi Ayatallah, not "the"

Ayatallah al-Ozma Taki al-Modaressi is not the only Iraqi alim to reach such an elevated position of 'Grand Ayatallah', and he is not necessarily the highest achieved. Modaressi's remarks a few days ago are signifigant, but not as much as the ruling Sistani (who is considered to be the highest achieved and widely respected) has outstanding.

While condemned by the more impatient for his passivity, his ruling relevant to this matter is very important and more or less under the radar:--the IGC as illegitimate and generally unfit to legislate anything beyond basic security services, and the constitutional convention planned by the occupation authorities must be elected by the people of Iraq and not promoted as some puppet council by the invaders and their mercenaries.

While his passivity in the face of his basic objection to the occupation and invasion is considered more newsworthy than this objection itself, his fatwa on this is essentially a brick wall that the CPA cannot weasel around without bringing trouble onto itself (which, considering the unceasing resistance in large areas of occupied Iraq, is trouble the US and W's lackey-mercenaries cannot afford).

The plan for promoting some non-toothless quisling puppet council to sell off the Iraqi oil and "invite" a permanent occupation is irreconciliably blocked by Sistani's ruling in favour of elections rather than promotions promotions dictated by the invaders. Any legitimately elected body of Iraqis will quickly demand the two things the occupation forces and their mercenary-lackeys will do everything to prevent:--an end to the occupation, and Iraqi control of oil and state services (which the occupation authorities are trying to sell off--up to 100%--to the same multinational corps that rape the world under the protective umbrella of US imperialism).

[ClintonTyree]

6. All of those freedom loving Iraqis.................

that our brave men and women fought and died for will turn on Bush the minute his back is turned. What we'll have done is swap a brutal dictator for a brutal theocracy. Nice going Bozo, around $200 Billion and 500 American lives along with 5,000 wounded and you won't even have proven your point. Iraq will return to political chaos and nothing will change but the dictator. If he thinks for one minute that a Shite led nation is going to be more accepting of western advances, he's more stupid than I believe him to be.
If the Moran in Cheif is elected to his first term in 2004, I'm leaving this freaking country for good. The country will be beyond redemption.

[Eloriel]

7. One VERY good thing about this

Now there's no reason to leave any of our troops there any longer. Hell, we can pull out and let the Shiites have it after all.

OTOH, one very bad thing about that: it makes our troops available for misadventures elsewhere.

Eloriel

[Gloria]

8. Iraqis in Iran for economy talks--BBC (OIL DEAL)

It's an oil deal.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/3277333.stm


Iraqis in Iran for economy talks

Iran is keen to improve relations with Iraq
The head of the Iraqi Governing Council has arrived in Iran on the first leg of a tour of the region.

(SNIP)

Oil swap


Tehran has pledged to provide Iraq with aid worth $300m and greater access to the Gulf and other trade and transit corridors.

An official source in Tehran told Reuters news agency Iran was prepared to accept 350,000 barrels per day of Iraqi oil at its Abadan refinery, and sell on an equivalent quantity of Iranian oil on Baghdad's behalf via its Kharg Island terminal in the Gulf.

An ambitious tourism scheme hopes to bring $500m in revenue each year from the thousands of Iranian tourists expected to visit Iraq's religious sites.

"As Iraq's neighbour we cannot remain indifferent towards development in Iraq," Iran's Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi told correspondents.

[RainDog]

9. sort of like the way they supported the Taliban

in Afghanistan?

Women in Iraq are doing so much worse since the "liberation" of their country. Riverbend's blog "Baghdad Burning" has told about the loss of jobs for women, the way they cannot leave their houses for fears of being abducted and raped, (that includes girls, not just women), the way some women have been intimidated by fundamentalist Shi'ites at school...some parents have been afraid to let their children go to school.

Kristoff deigned to notice this in his Wed. NYTimes editorial.

Juan Cole has reported that the Shi'ite mullah that Wolfie said he could work with has already said that they will agree to cooperate with the U.S. because they know they'll be able to vote in a theocracy via democratic institutions.

Bush surely did a great job of screwing things up with this invasion. I wish he could really feel the love for his stupidity and hubris and total disregard for any realities of foreign policy.

God, I hope the world can hold together till we can vote the screwups out...and even so, they have left such a mess of the world, including America, that it will take a statesman, not a politician, to undo the Bush damage.

[PurityOfEssence]

10. Eastasia is now, and has always been, our ally.

Hey folks, just because Iraqi Shiites don't much care for the extremes of the current Iranian format doesn't mean that they won't get along famously.

Thanks Junior.

This is totally out of control.

Does our Junta really think that this new government's going to honor our oil grab? Are they nuts? Are they that desperate? Is the situation in Iraq so out of control and teetering on the brink that recklessness is the order of the day now?

Shiites are a minority in the Muslim world; do we think we're helping to foment world-wide strife in Islam by giving these guys more power? Do we even think at all anymore?

And gosh, how are we going to snuff out Syria, like the PNACers so desire?

Is this some kind of science fiction or something? Has the Onion infiltrated the administration and the NYT? Yikes.

[NNN0LHI]

11. And the real question. Will the new Shiite Iraqi government covet WMD's?

Bet no one has though of that yet.

Don

[Aidoneus]

12. they'll have to come up with something

the Saudis/Kuwaitis & Israel will be gunning for them, just like in Iran & Lebanon.