Gerbil's Giant Gumball Gumbo

William Rivers Pitt | The Story of the Ghost:

"The American media is painting these newly-minted Iraqi voters as flush with the thrill of casting a ballot. In truth, however, some other more pressing motivations lay behind their rush to the polling places. Dahr Jamail, writing for Inter Press Service, reported that 'Many Iraqis had expressed fears before the election that their monthly food rations would be cut if they did not vote. They said they had to sign voter registration forms in order to pick up their food supplies. Just days before the election, 52 year-old Amin Hajar, who owns an auto garage in central Baghdad, had said, 'I'll vote because I can't afford to have my food ration cut. If that happened, me and my family would starve to death.'' "

Steve Weissman | Calling the President's Bluff:

"In his short inaugural speech, the president of our supposedly secular nation finds ample room to celebrate the Author of Liberty, the Maker of Heaven and earth, the God who blesses and watches over the United States, a just God, and a God who moves and chooses as He will. Mr. Bush also calls upon the truths of Sinai, the Sermon on the Mount, the words of the Koran, and the varied faiths of our people.
Yet, he never once mentions Iraq, though by his own account his Higher Father sent him there. Nor does he mention the lure of Iraqi oil reserves, the attraction of the 14 permanent military bases we're building in the country, or the pull of those multi-million dollar contracts his administration has handed to Halliburton, Bechtel, and other Republican donors. As if these mundane matters play no part, Mr. Bush's pitch is all freedom and democracy."