Death vs Fever

Baghdhad, Iraq
33°21' North; 44°25' West

Latest Riverbend:

"It's the third day of Eid. Eid is the Islamic holiday and usually it’s a time for families to get together, eat, drink and celebrate. Not this Eid. This Eid is unbearable.......There hasn’t been a drop of water in the faucets for six days. six days.......Water is like peace- you never really know just how valuable it is until someone takes it away..... .At first, I thought it was just our area but I’ve been asking around and apparently, almost all of the areas (if not all) are suffering this drought.

I’m sure people outside of the country are shaking their heads at the words ‘collective punishment’. “No, Riverbend,” they are saying, “That’s impossible.” But anything is possible these days. People in many areas are being told that if they don’t vote- Sunnis and Shia alike- the food and supply rations we are supposed to get monthly will be cut off. We’ve been getting these rations since the beginning of the nineties and for many families, it’s their main source of sustenance. What sort of democracy is it when you FORCE people to go vote for someone or another they don’t want?"

This is important, because if true (and at this point we are much more willing to believe River and the likes of Dahr Jamail than the entire legion of GreenZone-ensconsed gutless Western Press) it means that these so-called Democratic Elections are anything but. And worse, if they go off smoothly it will only embolden the Neandercons and their Minions to push over the next domino in the slaughter-a-thon.

Regardless, we must never forget what's happening to innocent people, on the ground. Here's River's closing:

"It's amazing how as things get worse, you begin to require less and less. We have a saying for that in Iraq, "Ili yishoof il mawt, yirdha bil iskhooneh." Which means, "If you see death, you settle for a fever." We've given up on democracy, security and even electricity. Just bring back the water."

Live Free or Die, indeed....perhaps the Neandercons should consider moving Iraq's entire population to New Hampshire.