What's going on in Iraq?

I got this in an e-mail from dinar guru. Now before you dismiss this please read it. This comes from news articles and has some pretty good perspective in it. There is a video on the link (below) that I did not look at, you may wish to. This comes from several news scorces here in the U. S. Let us all know what you think aas we discuss it. Thanks and enjoy.
In the script there are some live links. I do not know if they will work from here but do once you click to the original link (below)


6 months after U.S. pulls back, can Iraq go it alone?

06/11/2012

2 Comments

USA Today Visits Iraq... Guess What?...this report nearly mirrors what we already KNOW about current events in Iraq! We are right on top of this thing...The economy is going to be the savior (if they get out of the way and let it! ) Watch the video and read the full article below.

This USA Today video and article and video are from...June 2, 2012

BAGHDAD
– Sitting in his cramped construction site office, Falah al-Sayegh lays
out his company's vision: a 160,000-square-foot shopping mall, medical
clinic and luxury hotel topped by a restaurant with sweeping views of
the city.


READ MORE CLICK Right >>>>
BAGHDAD
– Sitting in his cramped construction site office, Falah al-Sayegh lays
out his company's vision: a 160,000-square-foot shopping mall, medical
clinic and luxury hotel topped by a restaurant with sweeping views of
the city.

• By Jim Michaels, USA TODAY
  
  Falah
  al-Sayegh is the manager of a $100 million construction project to
  build a shopping mall and luxury hotel in downtown Baghdad.
  
  
  

EnlargeBy Jim Michaels, USA TODAY

Falah
al-Sayegh is the manager of a $100 million construction project to
build a shopping mall and luxury hotel in downtown Baghdad.

Sponsored
LinksAl-Sayegh steps out of the trailer and points to construction well
underway on the $100 million project. Vast cranes loom over the site,
and a 10-floor parking garage and medical clinic is partly completed.

"This is the talk of the town," says al-Sayegh as he strides across the muddy construction site.

• STORY: Next U.S. ambassador paints grim picture
  

Six months after the last U.S. combat troops left, an Iraq free of Saddam Hussein and overseen by a democratically elected government midwifed by theUnited States is standing on its own despite ever-present dangers from within and outside its borders.

But
the United States paid a heavy price in Iraq. More than 4,400 American
servicemembers died during eight years of war and occupation, and
according to recent polls, most Americans say the war wasn't worth it.

Hundreds
of Iraqis have been killed in terror attacks since the last U.S. troops
withdrew in December. Iran continues to retain ties to Shiite militias
operating in Iraq. Political differences between the Shiites, Sunnis and
Kurds have frequently boiled over into threats of civil war. The
government struggles to provide basic services, such as electricity.

Yet
most Iraqis seem to feel that politics and feuds should not be
permitted to impede what really matters: continued progress in their
day-to-day lives reflected by an improving economy, booming oil revenue
and a representative government.

"Iraqis are bored of political fighting," says Ali Alrobaiy, a marketing director for a car company in Baghdad.

Signs
the country is making progress toward stability abound despite
headlines about political rivalries and terror attacks, the latest a
suicide car bombing Monday of a Shiite foundation's headquarters in
Baghdad that killed 25 people.

Oil production is at its highest levels in decades, says the latest OPEC report,
higher than almost any time under Saddam. Gross domestic product in
2011 more than doubled from the year before, says the International Monetary Fund,
noting that Iraq's economy is expected to expand 11% this year. Foreign
investors that were banned under Saddam, such as Exxon/Mobil, have been
welcomed back and are developing the country's vast resources.

Anecdotal
evidence is apparent, too: New cars jam Baghdad streets; cafes and
restaurants are busy late into the night. Most significantly, political
and religious differences that led to a sectarian bloodbath in 2007 have
been limited largely to debates in Parliament or in the press. Experts
say it might all add up to "stability."

"I don't see anybody with a fallback plan of sending tanks out to close down Parliament," says James Jeffrey, who just completed his tour as U.S. ambassador to Iraq.

By Jim Michaels, USA TODAY

A $100 million construction project will build a shopping mall and luxury hotel in downtown Baghdad.

The
improvements come as the rest of the region is racked by warfare and
uncertainty. Syria's government is killing thousands of people to
maintain its dictatorship. Egypt, despite elections, is run by its
military, and minority religions fear the imposition of Islamic law.
Iran is pursuing a nuclear program that the West has said it will use
any means to stop. Yemen is in a state of war against an al-Qaeda
insurgency, and Libya has no government months after eliminating
dictator Moammar Gadhafi. Iraq looks stable by comparison, some say.

"The
political system is one of the best in the region," says Zainab
Al-Suwaij, who was born in Iraq and heads the American Islamic Congress,
which advocates for improving relations with Muslims in the USA.

She says Iraqis are getting tired of politicians but retain faith in the system. "They are proud of it."

Threats to stability

Americans are not sure the effort, which cost the United States at least $800 billion, was worth it. In December, a CNN poll
said 53% of Americans said they felt that sending U.S. troops to Iraq
was a mistake. Even if Iraq has avoided the chaos and violence that some
predicted in the months since U.S. troops left the country, plenty
still could go wrong.

Constant political and sectarian fighting
has threatened to bring the government to a grinding halt. Iraqis
complain about corruption throughout the government. Prime Minister
Nouri al-Maliki's critics say he has consolidated power in ways that
resemble a return to dictatorship.

"The worst-case scenario is
that a no-confidence vote is successfully reached and al-Maliki ignores
its authority and remains in power," says Ramzy Mardini, an analyst at
the Institute for the Study of War. "At that point, we enter a very
sensitive and unstable period, adding a constitutional crisis on top of a
political crisis."

Iraqis complain bitterly about the lack of electricity despite the country's billions of dollars in oil revenue.

Homes
in Baghdad and many other parts of the country rely on expensive
generators because the government is unable to provide continuous
electricity and other basic services, such as clean water and regular
garbage pickup.

Haider Hasnawi, who owns a popular Baghdad
restaurant, sits at one of his tables during the lull between breakfast
and lunch and points out the window. "The street cleaners work hard
while the government does nothing," he says.

By Karim Kadim, AP

Followers of Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr chant slogans during a protest in Baghdad on Wednesday.

Iraqi politicians say they are learning about democracy and are far from Western standards of governance.

At
a recent Baghdad provincial council meeting, two Sunni council members
are listed on the agenda as being on excused absence, having been
accused of terrorism by the Shiite-dominated government. Four supporters
of radical cleric Muqtada al-Sadr storm out of the meeting when they
learn an American is present.

"I know it's not ideal," Adnan
al-Kenani says with a shrug. He joined the council more than a year ago
to fill the position of a politician who was assassinated. "Democracy
needs practice."

The lights in the large paneled room dim, a reminder of the government's deficiencies.

The
topics of discussion indicate that Iraq might be settling into
representative government. Items on the agenda range from compensation
for citizens who claimed losses during the war years, to keeping mosques
open at night so students can study in air-conditioned rooms.

"Democracy
needs time," says Kamel al-Zeidy, chairman of the council, reclining in
a chair among the gilded furniture in his cavernous office. "In the
United States, it took 200 years. We are headed in the right direction."

Two
years after national elections, Iraq's government is not fully formed
amid bitter disputes between Sunni, Shiite and Kurdish political groups.
The leading political parties have failed to agree on a Cabinet, and
the critical Interior and Defense Ministries don't have permanent
leaders.

Al-Maliki's critics have tried to generate enough
support for a no-confidence vote that would bring down the government,
saying he refuses to share power.

"He runs the country alone,"
says lawyer Hussan Salman, 45, putting aside the newspaper he was
reading in a crowded Baghdad cafe.

Al-Maliki's supporters say he is trying to build a government under difficult circumstances and is not amassing personal power.

"He will keep going," says Ali al-Mousawi, an adviser to al-Maliki.

Critics
have said the withdrawal of all U.S. combat troops has meant the United
States can do little more than watch as Iraq stumbles along and hope
for the best.

"I think the White House recognizes
the severity of the situation but also recognizes the lack of options,"
Mardini, the analyst, says. Vice President Biden, President Obama's point man on Iraq, has urged al-Maliki to reconcile with political rivals.

Still,
some Iraqis say they lived better before the war and are uncomfortable
with violence — al-Qaeda launches bomb attacks in an effort to trigger
sectarian violence — and political uncertainty that they face regularly.
Prices are rising, and the country can't provide continuous power as
summer temperatures rise.

"My preference is for a monarchy," says
Mohammed Abdulghafar Zebala, 69, whose family has run a storefront
fruit juice shop in Baghdad's old quarter since 1900. "There was law and
respect." The shop's walls are plastered with photos of Iraqi kings,
dictators and politicians who have visited his storefront.

"Political debate is new to our culture," says Zuhair Humadi, an education adviser to al-Maliki.

Investment in Iraq's future

Analysts say Iraq's economy might help bring stability despite the political wrangling.

"In
the long run, oil could become the glue that holds Iraq together if
they can overcome disagreements over how to share the oil wealth," said James Phillips, a Middle Eastanalyst at the Heritage Foundation, a think-tank.

Iraq's
economy is driven by oil, an industry that is starting to pick up
steam. Foreign business activity is also humming in Iraq, up 40% in
2011, according to Dunia Frontier Consultants. Businesses are willing to
bet on the country's long-term stability, analysts say.

But the government dominates Iraq's economy, so rising public salaries are feeding the nation's recovery.

"People
have better incomes," says Duragan Ismail, 25, a salesman in a Baghdad
shop that sells wedding dresses. He said the typical cost of a wedding,
which includes a dowry, is $20,000. "They want to show off," he says.

"We still think the situation will be better," says Bahaa Kazen, an engineering professor at Baghdad University. Kazen spent time at MIT, where he helped develop self-cleaning solar panels, but he decided to return to Iraq.

"I feel I can make a change here," Kazen says.

http://www.dinarguru.com/1/post/2012/06/6-months-after-us-pulls-back-can-iraq-go-it-alone.html%20?awt_l=5zV1k&awt_m=3.fzJXxAA_tXlNV

What's going on in Iraq, you ask, rick?

SOS different day!

Dinarling77- PLEASE- Don't tick anyone off- Just try to be decent about things, okay?? And yes, Doodoo, I know it's you-

terbo56 wrote:Dinarling77- PLEASE- Don't tick anyone off- Just try to be decent about things, okay?? And yes, Doodoo, I know it's you-

terb, don't know what i did that could possibly tick anyone, just making a statement about Iraq in general, ie, they have 170 votes to withdraw confidence, oh, no, the have only 160, government reconvening 21st, oh, no, 14th, oh, no, july 2nd. National conference to be held in may, no june, no soon.......etc. etc.....

'D'OH'-

terbo56 wrote: 'D'OH'-

?????????

WOW, terbo, what did you do to dinarling77. She just ran by crying and is now holed up in MY closet! Hmmmmmm, think I'll lock her in there for a while.

There's your chance,but I believe it's time for a 'Coming out'-

I think COMMON SENSE anymore would be the reality of what is really going one. WE in the west have been pumped for years with hearing OUR side of expectations, and the end result? NO RV has ever been seen, though we have heard for the past FOUR YEARS almost day and night, this is the day, the week, the month. Here we sit half way through 2012, and I will truly say, IMHO, we will still be watching that ball come down in Times Square for 2013 with no RV. What WE want and what WE desire is what keeps this dinar machine going. YET amazing how the last three months, the gurus have all been quite silent. I guess they ran out of excuses. FACT is, Iraq HAS been rebuilding for years. No one wants to comment on WHY Kurdistan has the most incredible roads, street lights, intersections, MALLS beyond any USA dream, selling electronics, Swiss Leather stores, Nike Stores and even Burger Kings. Basra has their SPORT CITY, which is almost complete, for they long to host the World Cup Soccer in 2013 at the stadiums, and their high rises and malls and literal Sports City, arise in the glistening desert like our Las Vegas shines forth. FACT, Iraq for the most part is doing well, yet WE only hear about the politics and their corruption. Much like USA. So get used to it, and I hope NO ONE buys anymore DINAR NOR tells a soul about it. Time to stop the machine of dealers making millions on a hope with fades more each day. IF you all took the next two weeks OFF, never touched your computers, NEVER signed in to the forums, you will come back in July realizing you missed nothing. Do I continue to believe? Daily. Do I expect it anytime soon? Not anymore. Be blessed

WOW-

I'm beginning to think you are right, Siaya. As a matter of fact, I'm beginning to think the UN may release Iraq one year from now in their June 2013 meeting!

I don't really care if they get released today, tomorrow or next year. Why? I'm glad you asked. It's because they were released from the economic sanctions part of things a long time ago. As near as I can tell, the only chapter 7 sanctions that remain are the ones specifically dealing with the borders, (done or nearly so,) return of articles and bodies from the occupation, (not sure that's even doable at this point,) and reparations, (not sure how much more is needed, but it's on autopilot, so no biggy.)