A Letter to President-Elect Obama

I am an Iraqi citizen who has been living in this country for over 10 years. I have believed in your campaign from the start; supported you when you were down in the polls; volunteered in the Colorado primary: helped setting up tables, greeted people and directed them to their precincts.

 

Your nomination was my own victory as it was every American's. I cheered and celebrated. And when the Election Day was dawning upon us, I went canvassing. I knocked on doors; I called people in Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Colorado. I believed and so did millions of us.

 

I rallied people and made the case on your behalf. I couldn't vote. I couldn't contribute money. But I believed.

 

Mr. President-elect: I am an American not by birth; not by naturalization, but by virtue of living in this great country and I have every right to be proud of you and your achievement.

 

On November 4th, America told us that she has been ready for this moment; that she has always been the land of opportunities, freedom, and hope. It took a son of hers to remind us that hope is not a dream, but a reality within our reach. It took a son of hers to remind us that the power of change is within us; that our achievements can be as big as our dreams.

 

To the cynics, who thought a son of a Muslim and a Christian; a man of a different skin color, couldn't possibly lead this nation: we proved you wrong.

 

To those who discouraged us, scared us, and alienated us: we proved you wrong.

 

To those who thought that we would be complacent and neglect our duty towards this country: we proved you wrong.

 

On that historic day, we learned that we should be better; that we can be better; that we ARE better. That day reminded us why this nation is the greatest nation on earth and why it will remain a beacon of inspiration in a world where it's easy to succumb to our worst fears and doubts. That day reminded us why this land will remain the land where aspirations can become real in a world of difficulty and hardship.

 

That day was our day. That moment was our moment.

 

We believed. We dreamed. But we also worked hard and never lost sight of what was at stake.

 

Mr. President-elect: yes we can; yes we can become great and not settle for good because "good" isn't good enough; yes we can re-build what has been damaged; yes we can be leaders in our families, neighborhoods, and communities and take it upon ourselves to make a difference; yes we can harness our own strengths and work together to make a positive change each and every step of the way. Yes we can be a leader that is fair and just in a world of injustice and cruelty.

 

Yes We Can.

 

I promise God, you, and this great nation that I will do everything I can to help as we embark on this journey of ours.

 

May God bless you, protect you, and guide you to what's good for this country and humanity all over the world.

Yes, there is hope

Today, I was disgusted by the massacre that was committed against the 49 Iraqis soldiers. As usual, a non-Iraqi group claimed responsibility. But what's even worse is the support such cruel acts get from some Arabs.

But enough of the sad tone. I've sometimes fallen for pessimism, and at times of desperation I thought there is no light at the end of the tunnel. At other times, when Iraqis were being killed in the hundreds, I thought resistance was the solution. When I talk about resistance, I don't mean the terrorist groups that infiltrated Iraq trying to portray themselves as "resistance"; these are sick individuals.

But Iraqis have proven me (and others) wrong, and taught me to have hope. It can get emotional and hard at times, but one should never lose sight of the ultimate goal: a stable prosperous Iraq for all Iraqis.

Yesterday I came across different Iraqi sites: newspapers, TV channels, job centers, ministries etc. And boy what joy did this bring to my heart!

Iraq is definitely not the perfect place right now, and despite the tons of question marks that can be raised on the current interim government, it's a step in the right direction. No question about it.

The elections system itself is far from perfect. The way it works is Iraqis will be voting for a "list" of names, which means you either take the list as a whole or leave it. Hopefully that will change in the future.

It's also important for all Iraqis, regardless of their ethnicity or religious beliefs, to be part of elections. I've read news of the Islamic Scholars Council refusing to participate. I understand the disappointment the intentional alienation of Sunnis in the new Iraq has caused, but you've got to take part in the process no matter what. Giving up on the political process is of no help. Everybody needs to take part in this process.

I was happy to read that the Iraqi justice minister announced the establishment of an independent council that will handle appointments in the different ministries. This will ensure that the appointments are well-deserved, and not based on religion or race.

Another thing that made me happy is that most ministers are either PhD or masters degrees holders. These men are very well-educated, and have a clear vision for the new Iraq.

So, from now on, I'll be full of hope, and I admit that I wrong at times. Yes it's hard at times not to be emotional, but we ought to realize that we are now building the new Iraq for us and our grand-children.

May Allah bless the Iraqi people, and rid us soon from the terrorists and the occupation, and long live Iraq!

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Iraqi newspapers:

Al-Sabah
Al-Ahali
Al-Mada

Iraqi websites:

URUKLink
eKur Services

Well..time to catch up!

Blogs have been the recent trend, and although I started posting in forums like aliraqi.org and later 4iraqis.com, I haven't caught up with this trend, simply because I felt my ideas had depleted, or so I wanted to think. It might be laziness, or frustration by what gets posted on forums in general. I used to post in both Arabic and English, and I've always thought I had something to contribute, and it's time that I do so!

My beloved country, Iraq, is going through a tough time, and I'll be posting my thoughts on the situation there.

So, “ala barakit-lah”.