An Analytical Perspective

Mitch found this piece, so you don't have to:

# Population of Texas: 22,118,509
# Population of Iraq: 25,374,691
# Percentage of eligible voters in Texas who voted in the November 2004 election: 52.2
# Percentage of eligible voters in Iraq who voted in the January 2005 election (estimated): 60
# Highest percentage of voter turnout ever recorded in the U.S.: 65
# Estimated number of Iraqis living in the U.S. who are eligible to vote: 250,000
# Estimated number of Americans stationed in Iraq who were eligible to vote: 145,000
# Number of qualified political parties listed on the ballot in California: 7
# Number of qualified political parties listed on the ballot in Iraq: 111
# Number of international observers for the 2004 election in the U.S.: 92
# Number of international observers for the 2005 election in Iraq: 0
# Number of election observers Canada sent for the Ukraine elections: 500

The events of this weekend were beyond historic. The only item in real doubt is the turnout in the Sunni areas and whether they were boyotting or suppressed. Time will tell, but over all this is one of the first big steps, after so many baby ones . . . . and several backwards ones as well.

Flash