The Iraqi Constitution

I've been away from the computer for a few days - out tasting the finest Long Island wines in their native setting - and managed to catch a few tidbits on the television about the Iraqi Constitution and the way that the media is covering this monumental occasion.

For starters, do anyone in the media actually have any perspective on how amazing this situation is? We're talking about the Sunnis looking to oppose the constitution, but have not reverted to violence to get their point across. The media appears to be hoping for a civil war, because that means that the US was wrong and suffers as a result.

As if the US can be held responsible for the 20% of the population of Iraq, or at least the Sunni Iraqi representatives involved in the constitutional process that oppose the constitution as it is currently formulated.

Lest we forget, the US Constitution was not ratified by all 13 colonies when first disclosed to the masses (it was written in secret because the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia exceeded its mandate by writing an entirely new constitution from scratch). Several states did not initially ratify the constitution because of problems. Some of those problems were corrected in the course of the first 10 amendments to the constitution - the Bill of Rights, but those amendments came after the original constitution was submitted to the colonies for ratification.

The Constitution will not be approved by all sectors of the Iraqi population. That should be expected, and even embraced. What needs to be impressed upon the Iraqi people is that even though you might oppose the current version, the use of politics and not violence could affect the amendment process - giving those in the minority a say in the outcome.