Iraq: Democratic Theocracy

Here's another sign of splendid progress from Iraq:

The Iraqi government has ordered all policewomen to hand in their guns for redistribution to men or face having their pay withheld, thwarting a U.S. initiative to bring women into the nation's police force.

This is one hell of a way to ensure that stability comes later, rather than sooner. Not to mention, of course, that with later stability comes later troop withdrawal. Pulling guns is only the tip of the iceberg, however. There's a broader issue of misogyny that's gaining quite a bit of ground in this new "model democracy":

[U.S. Army Brig. Gen. David] Phillips said the pistol recall was the latest in a series of moves that have limited many policewomen to desk jobs. The few who worked on the streets have been reassigned to administrative tasks. Iraqi law still prevents policewomen from advancing to commanding-officer levels. Phillips said women have complained to him about limited opportunities and harassment by male colleagues.

[...]

The growing impact of religious influence on Iraqi women has manifested itself in other ways as well. In the southern city of Basra, police say religious militants this year have slain dozens of women who did not cover their hair or dress modestly. In Baghdad, once a secular metropolis, it is rare to see women without scarves covering their hair. Women's activists say the new constitution clears the way for Islamic rule by guaranteeing individuals the right to decide domestic and family issues according to religious traditions.

For all his bullshit rhetoric about "freedom", Bush still has no concept of what freedom is. And as long as we remain the oil crack-ho to the Middle East's pusher, it's really easy to overlook these little stories about harassing policewomen and restricting dress, issues that shouldn't exist in a "free" society. I guess this is something else we can add to the history books that Bush feels will prove him right.

"OK class - please turn to page 242 where you'll see how Bush invaded a country for no reason, isolated our country from the global community, and helped establish a misogynistic clusterfuck in Iraq."

[H/T to Blogenfreude]