Be Careful What You Wish For!

By The Lobotomist

Thursday, January 26, 2006 at 11:04 AM

Flashback in time, one year. Remember President Bush saying THIS in his 2005 State of the Union address?

"America will stand with the allies of freedom to support democratic movements in the Middle East and beyond, with the ultimate goal of ending tyranny in our world."

And this?

"To promote this democracy, I will ask Congress for $350 million to support Palestinian political, economic, and security reforms. The goal of two democratic states, Israel and Palestine, living side by side in peace, is within reach -- and America will help them achieve that goal."

Well, Mister President, Sir... you asked for it... you GOT it!

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/01/26/AR2006012600372.html

"The radical Islamic group Hamas won 76 seats in voting for the first Palestinian parliament in a decade, election officials announced Thursday evening, giving it a decisive majority in the 132-member body and the right to form the next government. The long-ruling Fatah movement won 43 seats. Earlier in the day, Prime Minister Ahmed Qureia and the rest of his Cabinet resigned, effectively acknowledging Hamas claims of a legislative majority before election officials released the results in a news conference. This is the choice of the people," Qureia told reporters in the West Bank city of Ramallah. "It should be respected."

The people have spoken. They've chosen -- as the majority party in their government -- an organization defined on Wikpedia as being "listed as a terrorist group by the European Union, Canada, the United States, and Israel, and its attacks targeting Israeli civilians and other human rights abuses have been condemned by the United Nations Commission on Human Rights, Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch."

What now? Well, by all early indications, we're going to ignore them. Not QUITE the kind of democracy we were looking for over there, I guess.

I wonder what Bush will say about "democracy" in this NEXT State of the Union?

Interesting days ahead!