Happy National Sovereignty Day in Iraq

[kandrathe]

This should really be a worldwide celebration. Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki declares Tuesday, June 30th, a national holiday.

[shoju]

This should really be a worldwide celebration. Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki declares Tuesday, June 30th, a national holiday.

I really hope that they are able to take over and succeed. It would be a moral victory for the people of Iraq, and hopefully start an era of self sufficiency in a country that has been through hell.

/crossing fingers.

[Jester]

This should really be a worldwide celebration. Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki declares Tuesday, June 30th, a national holiday.

I'm not quite sure what this means, with over a hundred thousand US troops still there, and levels of ongoing violence that, while lower than 2006, are still bad enough that they have to warn people not to gather in crowds. Seems like empty bravado to me.

But best of luck to the Iraqis. I've never wished them anything else, and if this really is the end of the violence, then it wouldn't be a moment too soon.

-Jester

[Kevin]

I'm not quite sure what this means, with over a hundred thousand US troops still there, and levels of ongoing violence that, while lower than 2006, are still bad enough that they have to warn people not to gather in crowds. Seems like empty bravado to me.

But best of luck to the Iraqis. I've never wished them anything else, and if this really is the end of the violence, then it wouldn't be a moment too soon.

-Jester

I don't expect it to be the end of violence, but it still the start of self governance. It can become a symbol and a rallying point. It makes the presence of a foreign military more palatable because it would be more clear that they are there by request. It makes the government potentially look less like a puppet regime.

But yeah I feel at this point it's a symbol that doesn't really mean all that yet, but I sure hope it helps come to stand for that. I too hope those people can start to have lives not constantly threatened by violence and start to have personal freedom.