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DEMOCRACY RISING
NEW YORK POST ^ | 06/23/2006 | By AMIR TAHERI

Posted on 06/23/2006 9:34:24 AM PDT by oxcart

KUWAITIS go to the polls next week to elect a new National Assembly, which will in turn approve a new prime minister and Cabinet.

The Kuwaitis will be making history for a number of reasons. This is the first election in which women are allowed to vote. And - much to the chagrin of Islamists, who insist that women are unfit to play any role in politics - a number of women are standing, often on platforms of radial social and economic reforms.

With a native population of 1 million, Kuwait is one of the smallest states in the Arab League. Yet its election is certain to have an important impact on broader Arab politics.

The exercise will help consolidate the idea of holding elections as a means of securing access to power - something new and still fragile in most Arab states. Days before the Kuwaitis were due to go to the polls, the United Arab Emirates announced that it, too, would opt for a parliamentary system based on elections. This means that all but five of the Arab states are now committed to holding reasonably clean elections at municipal and/or national levels.

Some of this new interest in elections is due to the impact of Iraq on the broader Arab imagination. With a mixture of admiration and terror, Arab ruling elites saw how Saddam Hussein's regime - regarded as the strongest of the Arab despotic structures in recent memory - collapsed within three weeks. The message was clear: An Arab regime without some mandate from the people is never more than a house of cards.

Next, the Arab masses saw millions of Iraqis lining up to cast ballots in several local elections, a referendum and two general elections, all within a couple of years.

(Excerpt) Read more at nypost.com ...


TOPICS: Extended News; Foreign Affairs
KEYWORDS: amirtaheri; arabdemocracy; bushdoctrineunfolds; democracy; kuwait
Women voting??? OMG/s
1 posted on 06/23/2006 9:34:25 AM PDT by oxcart
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To: oxcart

They would all be voting for Saddaam Hussein if not for our intervention in 1990 - 91.


2 posted on 06/23/2006 9:36:38 AM PDT by Personal Responsibility (Amnesia is a train of thought.)
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To: oxcart
Yes, but President Bush is "anti-women" because he won't fund abortion mills worldwide.

Move along, nothing to see here.

3 posted on 06/23/2006 9:37:57 AM PDT by Dilbert56
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To: oxcart

Bush's fault!

Had to say it!

:0)


4 posted on 06/23/2006 9:39:41 AM PDT by Bigh4u2 (Denial is the first requirement to be a liberal)
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To: Bigh4u2
Yes, its like pictures on an Ann Coulter thread. :0)
5 posted on 06/23/2006 9:45:38 AM PDT by oxcart (Journalism [Sic])
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Islam has half of the population living under the thumb of the other half. What do female Muslims get out of Islam? Not much, even if they live in the west and are unassimilated.

One of the keys to neutralizing the threat of Islam to the lives and well-being of the rest of us is to harness the discontent and frustration of Muslim women. If anyone will cause Islam to reform and modernize, it is the women. They have much to gain and nothing to lose.


6 posted on 06/23/2006 9:50:03 AM PDT by RSteyn
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To: oxcart
"Yes, its like pictures on an Ann Coulter thread. :0)"

Oh oh! Now you done it!


7 posted on 06/23/2006 9:50:07 AM PDT by Bigh4u2 (Denial is the first requirement to be a liberal)
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To: Bigh4u2
Stop thief your stealing my thread!
8 posted on 06/23/2006 9:59:19 AM PDT by oxcart (Journalism [Sic])
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To: oxcart

Hey! I'm not the one who mentioned Ann!

:0)


9 posted on 06/23/2006 10:00:09 AM PDT by Bigh4u2 (Denial is the first requirement to be a liberal)
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To: oxcart

And a mighty good thread it is!


10 posted on 06/23/2006 10:02:02 AM PDT by bannie (The government which robs Peter to pay Paul can always depend upon the support of Paul.)
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To: oxcart

We Democrats must oppose this. It is not a democracy sactioned by liberal principals. It must be opposed. Women can have the vote later.

/Sarcasm OFF

11 posted on 06/23/2006 10:59:04 AM PDT by sr4402
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To: sr4402

That's right Nancy, it must be a democracy which we can turn into socialism. Remember "We will take away from you for the Common Good" just like here in America. I defy this Adminstration to Oppose the Democratic party on this matter!

/Sarcasm OFF

12 posted on 06/23/2006 11:02:20 AM PDT by sr4402
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To: sr4402

LOL, I am glad it is after lunch.


13 posted on 06/23/2006 12:15:02 PM PDT by oxcart (Journalism [Sic])
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