Pat Buchanan: Iraqi women have less freedom

[quaoar]

Buchanan brings up a point in this column that gets little attention:

If Arab countries became democracies, they might very well be anti-American. While that would be their right, is it something we should shed American blood for? Is it something we should spend billions to bring about?

http://www.wnd.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=44073

What does 'democracy' mean – over there?

"Life has changed for the worse," said Bushra Mahmoud, a mother of three, sitting in the waiting room of the Princess Salon in Baghdad.

"There is a creeping zealousness among men and women that is really frightening. You sit on the bus and have abuse heaped on you by the fanatics because you are not wearing the hijab (Islamic head covering). These things never used to happen."

< snip >

The repressive reality for Iraqi women should give us pause. What does freedom mean over there? What will the Middle East look like if our crusade for democracy succeeds in dumping over all the kings and autocrats from Morocco to the Gulf?


The U.S. invasion undeniably liberated the Iraqis from a tyrant. But for Iraqi women, especially in the Shia south, it has meant an end to freedoms they used to enjoy. For the scores of thousands of Christians who have fled in terror after the bombing of their churches and murder of their co-religionists, it has meant the loss of homes and exile. Most have fled to Syria, apparently a more secure and tolerant country for Christians than liberated Iraq.

[Sanity Claws]

1. It's about time someone is talking about this

Even if it is that old coot.

[evlbstrd]

2. Buchanan just baffles the shit out of me.

He can be dead on with some issues, and blow me away with lunacy on others.

In this case, dead on.

[FourStarDemocrat]

3. Yeah, but if they wanted reproductive rights he'd shut up in a minute. ..

Buchanan has a half-asses view of women's rights. They're fine as long as they don't get to make decisions about their own bodies.

[w4rma]

4. He thinks logically sometimes (like in this case) but his ideology blinds

him in many other cases. It is often arbitrary which positions his ideology blinds him on.