Character of a leader

The Boston Globe of all places has this to say about the presidential candidates:

George W. Bush is far from perfect. He refuses to admit mistakes. He resists constructive criticism. His humor can be petty or cutting. His administration is secretive and self-righteous -- traits that presumably start at the top.

But Bush, unlike Kerry, has the courage of his convictions. He can take a strong stand and not run away from it when the political winds shift. On the big issues, the crucial issues, he is a decisive man who means what he says -- and isn't afraid to say it even when his listeners disagree.

Five Questions to ask

Regardless of whether you're a Democrat or a Republican, there are some things that need to be taken into consideration when electing a president (or selecting any kind of leader). Jack Welch lays out an excelent standard for making an informed judgement:

1. Is he [or she] real?
2. Does he see around corners? (see the article for an explanation)
3. Who does he surround himself with?
4. Does he get back on the horse?
5. Is he pro-business?

These are some essential things to consider in a president. I would ask anyone who reads this to apply these questions to each presidential candidate in turn and post it as a comment.

Some good advice

The biggest divisive force in this country is not the President, but those who want to tear him down at any and all cost to the country and to themselves. I think Bush has done a good job the last four years of taking the relentless attacks by the left like a man. To the absolute best of my knowledge he's never complained once, never once said that the right of those people to speak their mind should be taken away, nor has he backed down or gone to hide in a hole. As Joseph Perkins of the SanDiego Union-Tribune points out:

I think it is time for a moment of grace in this year's presidential election.

John Kerry and George W. Bush ought to take a few minutes out of their schedule to have a heart to heart chat, much as Richard Nixon and John F. Kennedy had six days after the 1960 presidential election.

The Democrat and Republican should agree to accept the outcome of this year's presidential election, no matter how close, no matter which of the two candidates comes out on top. They also should forswear any post-election lawsuits. And they should urge their supporters to do the same.

If Kerry and Bush were to evince such statesmanship, they not only would do much to restore faith in the American electoral system, they also would do much to promote civility between all but the most rabid Democrats and Republicans.

That would be a great service to this country.

Evolution of media bias

Perhaps the most interesting thing about the liberal bias in MSM (Mainstream Media) is not that it's there (we all knew that years ago) but how little anybody's even trying to disguise it anymore. Of course people like Dan Rather will never admit to any bias, but at the same time there isn't even a veiled attempt anymore to make the so called reporting seem otherwise. How can this be?

My guess is, they know the game is up...they know they're exposed as the lying frauds they are. But they also know that there are still people in the world who have never heard of things like the internet, independent thought, research, etc. who, without exception get all their information from MSM, some don't even watch/listen to more than one source. I had a friend awhile back who used only Newsweek for her information. Read this and tell me it's unbiased. If you can do that, go ahead and tell me why it's unbiased (or even true) with examples and independently confirmable facts. Any takers?

What's more dangerous?

Which is more dangerous to the future of our country? Islamic terrorists, or ingorant voters?

That's a tough question, because really, all the terrorists can do is kill people...but stupid voters can really make a mess out of things by making a mockery of our God given constitution, and by undermining the principles that make our great country what it is (both by omission and by comission)

Osama says "Anybody but Bush"

Bin Laden released a tape today on arab TV basically condemning Bush for the 9/11 attacks, and threatening America with more violence if Bush is reelected. Intellectual honesty here, you know that's what he meant.

Another interesting note, Kerry has flip flopped again. In the debates, he said "if and when you do that Jim, you have to do it in a way that passes the test...the global test". Then today he says, "Find and kill Osama Bin Laden...whatever the cost, whatever it takes"... Gee, isn't that what Bush has said all along?

If you don't think this is a Kerry flip-flop, then that means you believe he's held this view all along. That's fine, but if you're voting for him because you dont like war...you might need to reconsider.

New cool stuff

I’ve added an RSS feed translator, a page counter and Google ads to my page.  So far it’s been mostly cut and paste, but I’m slowly learning a few HTML tags here and there, I’ve already got hyperlinks down pat.  Go me!!  For some reason www.weblogs.com doesn’t show my updates but hey, I don’t REALLY care about that, so no big loss.  Sooner or later I’ll figure out how to add a links section to my sidebar, or maybe add another sidebar.  HTML isn’t super high on my priority list however, so don’t hold your breath. 

What do you think of voter fraud?

What does everyone think of voter fraud in general? Does a specific political end justify violation of constitutional law?

All comments welcome

Iraqi Terrorists endorse John Kerry

It's official, the terrorist bastards want John Kerry to win because they know that a re-election of George Bush means that they will die. They know Kerry is soft, they know he will back down and appease them, give Iran nuclear fuel, undermine our efforts for freedom in Iraq, and cut back preemptive defensive spending at home.

Talk all you want about health care, the economy (which is wildly successful now, with a record low unemployment rate, and what now, six consecutive quarters of the strongest growth we've seen in fifty years? None of that matters too much if Al Qaeda sets off a nuclear weapon in some city (which everybody who doesn't have their head burried in the sand knows).

I've decided to drop Haloscan for my comment service

Due to inappropriate text ads being displayed on the comment entry pages.

Liberal Hypocrisy

Liberals say they're all for tolerance. Great. Are they willing to do something about it? no...

Why are not Liberals front and center in the war against the most intolerant force in the world today, possibly the worst in the history of the world...islamist fascist terrorists?

America is indeed the very symbol of freedom for all. Anyone who disagrees and can back it up, post a comment.

Update: New Jersey School actions

Below is a statement by the superintendent of the school district in question (Links to my original post and original source. I still have not been able to track the original source of this story). My question in response is “Would there have been different actions taken had a similar thing happened, but with a Democrat, instead of a republican?” A responsible administrator should answer yes, and that all cases would be treated equally.

Here is the statement:

District Statement Regarding Bulletin Board at Crossroads Middle School

In an incident that has recently been reported to several media sources, a claim has been made by South Brunswick Middle School teacher Shiba Pillai-Diaz, that she was fired for not removing a picture of President George W. Bush from a classroom bulletin board. The claim is false. While I am normally reluctant to discuss personnel matters in public, Ms. Pillai-Diaz' distortions of the facts, along with her aggressive efforts to get herself national media attention, leaves the district no choice but to set the record straight.

The facts are as follows:

Ms. Pillai-Diaz is a new Language Arts teacher in the South Brunswick Schools. Recently, the school administration began receiving complaints from students and parents that Ms. Pillai-Diaz was using her position, classroom and teaching time to engage in partisan politics. Students reported that she had made statements which denigrated one party over the other. The conversations included Ms. Pillai-Diaz telling some students who offered opinions contrary to her statements, that she was "glad they were not old enough to vote." Other comments to students, including such statements as, "you should be ashamed to be a Democrat" have been verified through student interviews.

A classroom bulletin board, normally intended for curriculum-related matters, was set up as what she herself described as a "personal bulletin board." On the bulletin board she placed a picture of the President, the President's dog, the Oval Office and several other Presidential artifacts. In addition, she placed a stuffed elephant on a classroom cabinet, which generated student reaction and discussion about partisan politics.

Following receipt of complaints from parents, the Assistant Principal met with Ms. Pillai-Diaz and cautioned her not to engage in partisan political discussions in her Language Arts classes. He did not initially ask her to remove the picture of the President. As the issue grew in intensity, the teacher herself chose to remove the stuffed elephant because of student comments. In the ensuing days, parents expressed increasing concern about the teacher's classroom behavior, the misuse of classroom instructional time and the personal bulletin board. The level of concern resulted in a classroom confrontation between some parents and Ms. Pillai-Diaz at the Back-to-School night program. It was at this point that the school administration decided to intervene again.

On Friday morning, October 1, Ms. Pillai-Diaz was directed by the Assistant Principal to remove bulletin board materials because they were being viewed as contributing to an ongoing disruption of the teaching-learning environment. She refused. She then met with the Principal who repeated the directive. At this point, Ms. Pillai-Diaz abruptly left the building, abandoning her post of duty and her classroom responsibilities.

At no time was she told to leave, asked to leave or given authorization to leave. School was still in session. At no time was she told she was suspended or fired. With professional responsibilities of a classroom teacher waiting, Ms. Pillai-Diaz chose, of her own volition, to walk out of the school, contact various media sources and claim she had been fired.

I had occasion to meet with Ms. Pillai-Diaz, along with a union representative and a police escort that she had requested, for approximately two hours when she returned to the building later that same afternoon. After listening to her story, I asked if any member of the administration had used the phrase "you're fired" or anything that remotely sounded like it. She admitted that no one had used any such language. When I further pursued why she reported to media sources that she had been fired, she said that she "thought" that she had been. I explained that principals cannot fire employees, that only Boards of Education can do so. With her union representative present, she said that she now understood. I asked that when she next spoke with the media, that she clarify her new understanding.

I fully support the actions of the Principal and Assistant Principal. It is never acceptable for a teacher to utilize the classroom to advocate for political purposes or advance personal beliefs. The courts have always admonished teachers for proselytizing in public school classrooms. This issue is not about a picture of the President, but rather a zealous misuse of seventh and eighth grade student instructional time.

The South Brunswick School community is enormously respectful of the Office of the President of the United States, President Bush and the democratic process for choosing our President. Anyone trying to suggest the contrary has the worst of intentions. Under other circumstances, the display of a picture of the President would have been viewed as completely appropriate and uncontroversial. It is important to note that pictures of President Bush are openly displayed in all of the South Brunswick Schools. The teacher's own actions here, however, took it out of the realm of education and made the presentation appear partisan to many of our students and parents. Under these circumstances, our actions in directing the removal of the display were singularly appropriate.



Gary P. McCartney Ed D.

Superintendent of Schools

South Brunswick School District

Fundamental principles of Democracy

Also required reading for anyone who considers themselves "educated".

Speaking of education, don't you miss the time in the world when being "educated" meant you could look at something objectively, do your own research, compare the good and bad of ALL sources without bias and then come to your own conclusion? Apparently that has eluded people these days, because I was recently talking to a friend of mine, who is about to graduate from college, and she told me she was "open minded"....however and she was absolutely convinced that Bush was the most horrible person on earth, that everything liberals stand for is right, and that there cannot possibly be anything good come from anything that even touches the shadow of something republican. How does one square with this version of "open minded"?

I'll be the first to admit I have certain convictions that I believe are correct...but I also know that I don't know everything. Therefore, I look to other sources than my own understanding for information. Outside of religious/moral topics (I'm not going to go there right now, so it's not part of this discussion), I realize that there are two sides to every issue. Take for example Denver Colorado's Light rail initiative...2A on the ballot this year, I think...someone correct me if I'm wrong. Anyway, this is something that there can be true difference of opinion about and both sides maintain a measure of understanding and respect for the people of the other. Those who are for it, see expanded public transportation, allowing many more people to enjoy the ease and convenience of high speed, traffic free transit to downtown Denver. Those who are against the measure cite that it will be a tax burden that people shouldn't have to pay for. Those are both perfectly valid arguements for people whose priorities lie along those differing lines. This is a case where any given individual can take all the factors into consideration (tax hike, proximity to their home, ease of use, potential for increased noise, increased traffic around the stations, convenience, environmental impact (good or bad), etc) and weigh those factors according to their own beliefs for the good of the community and scale of importance, reducing to a simple "yes" or "no" vote. So should it be with every political/social issue, as well as every candidate. This is the fundamental principle of our democracy, that all responsible citizens should determine what they believe is best, and in theory, with the proper education and research....the majority should be right.

U.S. military sees good news in Iraq

The full text of this article is available here, but I'll summarize the good news in Iraq:

Government and society
-Elections are on schedule and planned for January 31st
-The draft of the permanent constitution is in progress, scheduled for August 2005
-Elections for the permanent government will be complete by December of next year and it will take office Dec 31 2005

Economy and infrastructure
-As of July 21, crude oil revenue has reached an estimated $9.2 Billion for 2004.
-Average household income is up almost 100% in the last month alone.
-Nearly 3,000 loans have been granted to small businesses and micro-enterprises
-The New Iraq Dinar (their money) has been relatively stable for more than six months
-Aproximately 12 million people are being served by NEW water supply and sanitation projects across the country
-30 to 40 percent of marshes drained by Saddam to opress the marsh arabs have already been reflooded
-Last year more than 17,000 kilometers of waterways have been cleared to improve irrigation and water flow, with another 20,000 kilometers planned in a project employing over 100,000 Iraqis
-Power supplies are operating around 120,000 megawatt hours, compared to pre-war levels of 95,600 MHP


Health Care
-An estimated 85 percent of children have recieved up-to-date immunizations
-More than 240 hospitals are operating, along with 1,200 preventive health clinics

Education
-There are a record 2,500 schools in operation, with 4,500 more new ones planned, and another 1,200 will be renovated
-Nearly 32,000 secondary school teachers and administrators have been trained
-More than 8.7 Million textbooks have been printed and distributed

National Security
-88,500 police are trained and on the job
-18,200 border enforcement officers
-37,400 Iraqi National Guard on duty
-11,200 Iraqi Army regulars are trained and on active duty

There's more good news every day, but you'll never hear that from the the mainstream media, John Kerry, Michael Moore, or George Soros.

Elections a success in Afghanistan

Here is the full text article from yesterday's Wall Street Journal...Click the link for the original source.

"Two Wins Against Terror

Elections in Afghanistan and Australia turn out to be nothing like Spain.

Monday, October 11, 2004 12:01 a.m. EDT

Democracy is a force terrorists dread. Abu Musab al-Zarqawi has warned his al Qaeda associates that democracy in Iraq would "suffocate" the terror campaign he is orchestrating from his base in Fallujah. Voters Saturday in two very different parts of the world proved his point. Australians enthusiastically re-elected John Howard, a staunch U.S. anti-terror ally, and the Afghans pulled off, against tremendous odds, the country's first national election for a president.

In Afghanistan, voters bravely defied death threats from Zarqawi's Taliban allies and turned out by the millions in an unprecedented demonstration of people power. Only three years ago, Afghan women risked being flogged or even executed for trying to exercise the most basic rights. On Saturday, they lined up to vote equally with men, even if in keeping with Muslim tradition women voted separately.

In the three years since U.S.-led forces liberated Afghanistan and ended the country's use as a training ground for al Qaeda, three million refugees have returned. Some 10 million registered to vote. Children have gone back to school, and girls are being educated. Per-capita income is up sharply, and the economy is growing at a 20% rate, albeit from a small base. Yes, as Senator Kerry keeps reminding us, the opium trade has been revived, but so long as global demand persists, only Taliban-type tactics will be able to eliminate it completely.





Australia, by contrast, is an established democracy with a modern economy. But its election also provided a test of the anti-terror strategy launched by President Bush after 9/11. Prime Minister Howard supported the invasion of Iraq, sending Australian special forces to assist in the overthrow of Saddam Hussein.
Most of the forces have now been withdrawn, leaving only a few hundred Aussie troops in Iraq. But entry into the war was not popular with Australians and there were predictions Mr. Howard would be upset by his Labor Party and strongly antiwar challenger, Mark Latham. Jemaah Islamiyah terrorists, who are affiliated with al Qaeda, tried to influence the election by setting off a bomb outside the Australian embassy in Jakarta last month. Yet Australians didn't flinch and Mr. Howard won handily on Saturday. His Liberal-National coalition took 83 of the 150 seats in Parliament, improving his government's position.

No doubt his victory was attributable to the success of his free-market economic policies, which have delivered unparalleled prosperity with low inflation, unemployment and interest rates. But had he lost, the press world-wide would have trumpeted that it was because of his support for Mr. Bush. The world has taken a few turns for the better since terrorists were able to swing an election in Spain in March.





In Afghanistan, it may be weeks before a final vote tally is completed and there have been complaints of irregularities. But it appears that President Hamid Karzai, another staunch ally of the U.S., won the election.
Mr. Karzai's popularity offers further evidence that the U.S. should have moved faster toward local leadership in Iraq. He was installed as interim leader within weeks of the fall of the Taliban and provided the Afghan presence that ensured that the U.S. and its allies were never seen as an army of occupation. Instead, as our Michael Gonzalez writes nearby, the biggest fear of many Afghans is that foreign troops will leave before the task of reconstruction is complete.

It's also worth remembering that Afghanistan's transformation has been accompanied by predictions of doom all along the way. First, it was said that the U.S. could never topple the Taliban, especially if we got in bed with the Northern Alliance. Then we were going to end up bogged down for years like the Soviets and British. Next we didn't have enough troops, and Mr. Karzai was too weak and the warlords too strong. Saturday's election doesn't end the troubles there, but Afghanistan's progress so far is a major success for the Bush Doctrine of taking the battle to the terrorists and spreading freedom to prevent their return." (Opinionjournal.com October 11 2004)

A Letter to the Editor

To All American Voters,

I am a senior citizen. During the Clinton Administration I had an extremely good and well paying job. I took numerous vacations and had several vacation homes. Since President Bush took office, I have watched my entire life change for the worse.

I lost my job.
I lost my two sons in that terrible Iraqi War.
I lost my homes.
I lost my health insurance.

As a matter of fact I lost virtually everything and became homeless. Adding insult to injury, when the authorities found me living like an animal, instead of helping me, they arrested me. I will do anything that Senator Kerry wants to insure that a Democrat is back in the White House come next year. Bush has to go.

I just thought you would like to know how one senior citizen views the Bush Administration.

Thank you for taking time to read my letter.

Sincerely,
Saddam Hussein

Bush and old-school liberalism

TCS: Tech Central Station - The Liberal Case for Bush

Liberal parents score in New Jersey

So it's okay for a few radical leftist parents to tell a public school teacher not to display pictures of all the past and present presidents of the united states. Apparently that constitutes "inflammatory politics". I would encourage everyone after reading this to e-mail the principal of Crossroads South Middle School and tell him this is wrong.

Why al Qaeda cannot be reasoned with

Eric Coperthwaite shares a brief excerpt from a book published by al Qaeda last year. It explains in no uncertain terms why there are only two outcomes for this war: Submission to Islamic totalitarianism, or final victory. The fanaticism that drives these people runs to their very soul. There will be no reasoning, there will be no bargaining...there will be no appeasement.

boortz.com: Nealz Nuze October 04, 2004

If you think Muqtada al-Sadr and his gang of thugs are somehow "honerable freedom fighters" you should really stop to consider
their true nature. These are the same people who take pain deadening drugs and steroids in order to work up the courage to go out and attack U.S troops. These are the same people who kill people for fun, who shoot children in the back for target practice.

If it wasn't for the fact that there are SOME innocent people nearby, we should just turn their defiled mosques and everything within 20 miles into a nuclear wasteland. Peace through superior firepower. It's the only language these people understand. "Sensitive"? who does Kerry think he's kidding? Spain showed weakness, so did the Philipines. Surprise surprise, their governments are now run by sympathizers to the islamo-fascists.

For the soldiers out there doing their jobs, keeping these murderous bastards' attention focused somewhere else and killing them while they're there...keep up the good work, and don't let the leftist propoganda get to you.

Right stuff? Character and class vs. screwball and shallow

An interesting series of pictures which offers a striking comparison between the Bush and Kerry sides of the table. Especially the first one, contrasting the classiness of Laura vs the psychotic Teresa. Check back often, the series is still being updated somewhat regularly.

The new hate crime: Anti-Republican

Any democrats want to stand up and defend this? (hat tip to Powerline) Tolerance...the ultimate virtue of a liberal. Hypocrites the lot of them. They aren't really for tolerance, they're socialist leftists. There's a difference. Tolerance is when people can respectfully disagree and live peacefully together without hating everyone who thinks they're wrong about something.

If there is a moral authority

Here's a link to John Hall's post over at a brand new blog. This guy has some good points. However, there's more to the story. If a broader perspective is taken, particularly with the "opposing liberal intolerance" article I linked to previously, we can combine the two relatively distant topics when a little creative analysis of history is applied. History, the ancient kind.

In ancient culture, the way a father passed on his holdings was the principle of birthright. The birthright traditionally went to the eldest son, and he recieved a double portion of the inheritance. For instance, if a man had four sons, his property and holdings would be divided into five equal parts, the birthright son recieving two fifths, the other sons each recieving one fifth. Unfair? You bet. But wait, there's more to the story. In that culture the birthright son had the responsibility of caring for his younger brothers' families in the event that something happened to them.

"Wait, you mean there's a greater responsibility and commitment that goes along with the greater gift?" Yes, that's exactly right. The Americas, and more specifically the United states are refered to as a promised land. When you really stop to think about it, it's true. We do live in the greatest nation on the planet, we enjoy the blessings of freedom (a concept most people don't have any clue what is really all about), we prosper economically, and countless other blessings. We are the earth's birthright nation, with a double portion. It is for this reason that we have always shouldered the bulk of the burden over the last century defending the world from itself. Where much is given much is required. We have the responsibility to USE our wealth and knowledge to keep the forces that threaten to tear the world to shreds in check. We cannot eliminate them, but we can restrain them. And we must continue. For if not, the precious freedoms we do now enjoy and take for granted will be taken from us, and the world will be plunged into darkness and corruption.

An interesting insight into the leftist

FrontPage magazine.com :: How to Oppose Liberal Intolerance by Lawrence Auster is an excellent read. Thought provoking at the least. Auster is spot on in his analysis of the underlying mindset of the leftist movement. It's just one of those things that makes sense. Particularly in the absence of belief in a supreme moral authority of some form or another, people being left to their own devices will create their own moral universe. It's human nature to want to define one's existance and one's boundaries...even if the definition eventually reached is one of indifference or without purpose.

Lost comments

Due to a template change some comments were lost from the "newsweek" post...Here they are.

At 10/2/2004 09:36:16 PM, Anonymous said...
Here's a fact: Iraq had no connection to Al Qaida.

Here's another fact: Iraq had no WMD.

How about dem facts?

At 10/2/2004 10:29:00 PM, Mike said...
It cannot be proven as fact that Saddam had no connection to Osama and his ilk, there simply is no evidence to support that conclusion. If you have some feel free to post links to it, or some other documented reference. What the 9/11 commission report actually said, if you read the report, is that Iraq had nothing to do with 9/11 in and of itself, meaning that Iraq wasn't involved with that operation. I'll give some examples:

-Page 66: "According to one report, Saddam Hussein's efforts at this time to rebuild relations with the Saudis and other Middle Eastern regimes led him to stay clear of Bin Ladin. In mid-1998, the situation reversed, it was Iraq that reportedly took the initiative. In March 1998, after Bin Ladin's public fatwa against the United States, two al Qaeda members reportedly went to Iraq to meet with Iraqi intelligence. In July, and Iraqi delegation traveled to Afghanistan to meet first with the Taliban and then with Bin Ladin." -- There's more, but go read it.

-Page 134, section 4.4 "[Richard Clarke] wrote Deputy National Security Advisor Donald Kerrick that one reliable source reported Bin Ladin's having met with Iraqi officials, who "may have offered him asylum." Other intelligence sources say that some Taliban leaders...had urged Bin Ladin to go to Iraq. If Bin Ladin actually moved to Iraq, wrote Clarke, his network would be at Saddam Hussein's service, and it would be 'virtually impossible' to find him."

On page 334 (section 10.3) we find what people usually cite when they say Iraq had no connection, but if read in context, the passage, "The Memo found no 'compelling case' that Iraq had either planned or perpetrated the attacks." The memo in question is limited in scope to the 9/11 attacks themselves, and does not deal with Saddam's tolerance, cooperation, aid, funding, etc with al Qaeda.

Once again, it cannot be proven as fact that Saddam didn't have weapons, the fact that we have not found large stockpiles does NOT mean they weren't there. There are three possibilities: One, that he had them and hid them (not terribly hard to do in a country the size of California). Two, that he didn't have any (but wait, he USED some against his own people). Now, speaking of pre-war inspections, if he really had nothing to hide, why did he defy the UN? No matter how much you want something to be true (ie, Bush lied) you still have to square with the facts.

Remember, absence of proof is NOT proof of absence. In 99% of situations, the simplest answer that fits the facts is the correct one.

At 10/2/2004 10:34:10 PM, Mike said...
The third possibility that I refered to, but neglected to mention is that since we know Saddam had the capability to make WMD's it's possible he only kept a very small stockpile, or none at all, and that his dodging with the inspectors was to cover up the fact that he could and was making them.

What I wouldn't give for a chocolate frosty

This is a test of the automated e-mail blogging system.  Hope it goes well

Newsweek displays their bias

this Powerline post details some further evidence that Newsweek should be stripped of their name which is a mockery of objective "news". I'll try and hunt down a more direct source of this information and post when I find it. If anyone already knows, e-mail me or post a comment

Power Line: The Comeback Is Launched

Democrats are whiners...party of "unity"? As if...This is the party that hates anybody that does not agree with them and counters every attempt at civilized conversation...slams them as "bigots", "racists", "Fascists". Have you ever heard a Liberal back up any of their arguements with actual...y'know, facts? Have you ever heard one admit that they were wrong about something? anything?

Some Facts on post-Saddam Iraq:
-Over 400,000 kids have up-to-date immunizations
-Over 4.5 million people have clean drinking water for the first time ever in Iraq
-100% of the hospitals are open and fully staffed, compared to 35% before the war
-Elections are taking place in every major city, and city councils are in place
-Girls are allowed to attend school
-Over 400,000 people have telephones for the first time ever