Anybody would be an improvment on Bushes ideas

probably go for Obama

Naive americans? Whatever.

This time around there is a big interest in voting because of all the shit that Bush has done in the last 8 years.

I believe Barack Obama has the opportunity to become a great president and change the view the rest of the world has on the USA. Come on, he could be the first black president on this country. 50 years ago blacks and whites could not even sit in the same table! This is what Martin Luther King dreamed of!

I live in Dallas, Texas although I was born and raised in Mexico (lived there for 18 years). I have been in the USA for 7 years now. Came to here to get my education and ended up getting a job over here so I stayed.

Soy originario de Valle Hermoso, Tamaulipas.

Hey, I live in Dallas too. Cool to have another BK'er and Prodigy fan nearby.

I think yo momma should be the next president.

isn't it about time for a president of america to be assassinated?


it's usually a reformer who comes in after a republican.....


i don't care much for obama's or hilary's chances if they get in then....

At least now women can vote and be in governmental positions. That's like 50% of the population so that's something positive at least.

please tell me you're joking.

if you're not, then this is the most worrying post of the year.

couple of things....

1. the infrastructure in iraq is in a worse state now than it was before the war.
2. women have less rights now than before the war, due to shias now dominating the country.
3. it's generally agreed that iraq is now in a state of civil war.
4. since bush declared 'major combat operations over' in 2003 there have been nearly 4,000 dead us soldiers and around a million iraqis.
5. 4.2 million Iraqis, more than 16% of the Iraqi population, have lost their homes or become refugees.

i could continue, but you get the point.
iraq is fucked - it's a man made tradegy brought about by the greed of american politicians and their friends.

Some good reading for you about Iraqi women before and after Hussein

http://www.hrw.org/backgrounder/wrd/iraq-women.htm
http://www.mideasti.org/files/Constitut ... -Women.pdf

Some highlights for you:

Women and girls have also suffered from increasing restrictions on their freedom of mobility and protections under the law.26 In collusion with conservative religious groups and tribal leaders, the government issued numerous decrees and introduced legislation negatively impacting women's legal status in the labor code, criminal justice system, and personal status laws.27 In 2001, the U.N. Special Rapporteur for Violence against Women reported that since the passage of the reforms in 1991, an estimated 4,000 women and girls had been victims of "honor killings."28 In recent years, both the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) administrations in northern Iraq issued decrees suspending laws allowing for mitigation of sentences in honor crimes, but the degree to which the suspension has been implemented is unknown.29

Furthermore, as the economy constricted, in an effort to ensure employment for men the government pushed women out of the labor force and into more traditional roles in the home. In 1998, the government reportedly dismissed all females working as secretaries in governmental agencies.30 In June 2000, it also reportedly enacted a law requiring all state ministries to put restrictions on women working outside the home.31 Women's freedom to travel abroad was also legally restricted and formerly co-educational high schools were required by law to provide single-sex education only, further reflecting the reversion to religious and tribal traditions.32 As a result of these combined forces, by the last years of Saddam Hussein's government the majority of women and girls had been relegated to traditional roles within the home.

Kurdistan is only a small part of Iraq, so i dont think you can generalize anything out of that.




Btw, i think im kinda liking Obama more after watching a few of their debates. Definetly not this psycho:

very interesting. yeah, you're right. the situation has got better for women in some areas since the 2003 war.

however, the main thrust of the article is about how the situation has got worse for women since the west started sanctions against iraq - not before and after hussein. he was the President of Iraq from 1979 - this articles is about the period after 1991.

during the years before the west decided he wasn't useful to them any more you'll find that:

"To the consternation of Islamic conservatives, his government gave women added freedoms and offered them high-level government and industry jobs. Saddam also created a Western-style legal system, making Iraq the only country in the Persian Gulf region not ruled according to traditional Islamic law (Sharia)."

so it would seem that we're both right and wrong at the same time lol

look, can we stop this now?

i like you, and think it's a bit sad that we're having an argument about someone else's war. i'm glad you're doing well in america and like it there - i just don't agree with the way the US runs it's foreign affairs. sorry if i pissed you off. it's nothing personnal against you.

we both have a lot of similar interests (international politics, ufos, turntablism, wierd news stories, etc..) and would get on quite well i reckon if we ever met and had a smoke or a drink.

life's too short to fall out over this stuff. what do you say?
*extends hand of friendship*

*shoots your hand because I'm American*

Yeah... a joke against myself. But I had to do it

As long as the next president puts an unbelievable amount of restrictions on gun ownership.. I'll be happy. With Charlton Heston out of the way, what's stopping them

Agreed.

Let's keep it friendly and move on

phew!

if only the major powers could sort out their problems like this - the world would be a much better place

Obama got the Democratic nomination... not its time to kick McCain's old ass.