Iraq's Parliamentary Election

Hello all! Today I had the opportunity of attending a video tele conference on Fort Riley. The interview was waith Colonel Hank Arnold commander of the 4th Infantry Brigade Unit on Fort Riley. Dragon Brigade! Hooah! He discussed his units relationship with the Iraqi police, army and government leaders. So much to share! COL Arnold says the last 24 hours were the most significant of the units entire tour of duty in Iraq. The Colonel says that is exactly what they were set out to...secure the election in Iraq. Threats of violence didn't keep people away from the polls in Iraq over the weekend. Over on Fort Riley Monday the deployed commander held a teleconference with the media to discuss the iraqi elections. During the video tele conference Colonel Arnold...discussed security and the magnitude of the most decisive event since the beginning of the war. Even though the parliamentary election is over...it may be some time before the political uncertainty comes to an end. Colonel Arnold in Tikrit said that if Prime Minister Maliki were to stay in power Sunnis would not be happy..... but it wouldnt be enough to disenfranchise the Iraqi people who are sick of violence and welcome democracy.

73 percent of the population in the Sunni province Salad ad Din came out to vote despite the threat to their safety. More than 30 casualties resulted from the second election however ...weeks leading up to the election were violence free. Col Arnold says violent extremists no longer pose a threat to the survival of the nation. They had a huge opportunity to conduct a high profile attack and were unable to do that.

I want to hear what you think about the election in Iraq. Will democracy in that country result in a cut down on violence? I was fortunate enough to complete an entire year deployed to Baghdad and saw little violence. But was that a result of years and years of work in the Middle East by the U.S.? I believe so. I look forward to seeing the progress of Iraq ..my biggest fear is to see that country spiral downward after all the Soldiers sacrificed so much there. Its no easy feat being there...surviving and coming back. Will we have to return? Let me know what you think. You can find the entire interview with Colonel Arnold via the link below.
WIBW