The Iraqi people themselves made this election a resounding success.

They have demonstrated the kind of courage that is always the foundation of self-government.

- President Bush, January 30, 2005

At the risk of parroting the rhetoric of a standing politician, I have to agree 100% with the president on the success of today’s historic vote in Iraq.

Some Iraqis danced in the streets after casting their votes. Many stood in long queues waiting to vote. All who voted literally risked life and limb, defying al-Qaeda thug Abu Mussab al-Zarqawi’s warning of a pathetic “war on democracy.”

Democracy is the ultimate expression of taking personal and collective responsibility for one’s actions and for the future of one’s country. Today’s vote in Iraq was nothing short of beautiful, powerful, and historic. For a people who have known nothing but Saddam’s torture chambers, poison gas attacks, mass murder, and mass graves, Iraqis have shown immense maturity and bravery.

The 60-70% of Iraqis who voted sent a clear message to the anti-democratic terrorists cowardly hiding in the cracks and crevices of their own country. Iraqis have sent a clear message to neighboring stone-age countries like Syria and Iran, who have provided money and safe haven to terrorists who hoped to stop today’s momentous election. Iraqis have sent a clear message to all the left-wing naysayers cowardly hiding under their beds, taking for granted the opulence and security provided to them by the democratic nations they inhabit.

The clear message of Iraqi voters: “We will take control of our own destiny; we will chose free will.”

The pathetic message of the left-wing: “Our hatred of President Bush is stronger than anything else; our fear of terrorism drives us to appease evil at any cost. To hell with a people’s self-determination – as long as we can hide under our beds.”

Nothing worth having in life comes easy. Without risk-taking, life is meaningless and unfulfilling. The left-wing in the U.S. and Europe is preoccupied with isolationism and cowardice. They would turn their backs on their own grandmothers to obtain a modicum of solace from their overwhelming and paralytic fear of terrorism.