Greetings, loyal minions. Your Maximum Leader has really wanted to write a more lengthy and thoughtful essay commenting on the two recent posts by the Smallholder. They were the “I Hope” and “I Fear” posts. Alas, he doesn’t have time for a lengthy discourse so let him just get out his main point.

Your Maximum Leader doesn’t feel that the analogy to the Vietnam elections is quite accurate. The main problem in his mind is the role of the media today vs. in the 1960s. Your Maximum Leader feels that the media is more critical of news from “offical” sources now than they were in 1967. They don’t want to accept the story told to them, and they do want to dig up the dirt. This is as it should be. Your Maximum Leader hardly believes that all of the major outlets (which are legion) could have been completely duped by the Iraqi Interim Government and the US authorities into thinking that the elections were a success - if in fact they were not. Recent talks by Sunni leaders and Shia leaders are, in many ways, evidence that the elections were successful. The Sunnis appear to be coming around to the fact that they missed the boat by deciding to sit out the elections. Now they are trying to get a place at the table. Hardly the reaction of a people who still feel like the elections were a sham.

Of course, it is too early to tell what will happen. But the signs look promising at this point.

Carry on.