More then we can see

I hope there is more being done then we can see, in terms of putting a new government for Iraq together.

But for obvious reasons, talk of a new government in Iraq is quiet and careful. Doubly so, because last time we told the Kurds to revolt we left them out to hang.

As for what sort of government I would like to see in Iraq?

A single unified government is preferable to a bunch of semi-indpendent statelets. While that might make people happier over the short term, it would setup the country to collapse eventually.

We should be promoting political parties rather then racial / ethnic / religous factions. But initially the parties are going to fall along those lines, it's unavoidable.

For political reasons, it would be better for Iraq to draft it's own constitution. But would should have some drafts and models ready to help them along. Special care must be taken in drafting the section that covers the legal code, because we obviously don't want one based on Islamic law but neither will one that is anti-Islam be aceptable.

A parlimentary democracy with a moderatly powerful president seems to me to be the best balance. In the US today the president has too much power, but governments with really weak presidents tend to be unstable.

This has the added advantage that it is a fairly easy form of government to ease into. We can start by forming a parliment made up of all the powerful factions, serving as an advisory party to the military government. Later, once things are organized somewhat, elections can be held for membership in the parliment. This can easily be transitioned into a free government over a couple of years by giving them more power, till eventually an election can be held to choose a president.

Jay

While I would LIKE to believe that we're doing all the required planning already, but just not talking about it....

We seem to have no trouble talking about sending 800 cruise missiles into Baghdad and so forth.

A single unified government is preferable to a bunch of semi-indpendent statelets. While that might make people happier over the short term, it would setup the country to collapse eventually.

Or they might have a civil war similar to our's.

On the other hand, it MIGHT be the easiest way to ease them into a democracy.

That's one of the things that should be openly discussed.

We should be promoting political parties rather then racial / ethnic / religous factions. But initially the parties are going to fall along those lines, it's unavoidable.

Again, this needs to be discussed openly. In a tribal society like Iraq, there will be attempts to get everyone in YOUR tribe into the government. But how can a government be setup that can handle a situation such as that? Aside from a dictatorship.

I think it would be good to get that aspect out in the open and discussed. Particularly amongst the Iraqi people. It's their future we're talking about. They should know what we plan.

For political reasons, it would be better for Iraq to draft it's own constitution. But would should have some drafts and models ready to help them along.

Yep. The problem with that is, who decides what goes into the Constitution?

The person(s) making that decision is, in effect, the government.

Special care must be taken in drafting the section that covers the legal code, because we obviously don't want one based on Islamic law but neither will one that is anti-Islam be aceptable.

We're actually fairly lucky on that score as Iraq has been secular for so many years. But will the law be based upon English common law (such as the US's is) or will people be guilty until proven innocent? What about trials and arrests and such?

That last part is, to me, EXTREMELY important.

A parlimentary democracy with a moderatly powerful president seems to me to be the best balance. In the US today the president has too much power, but governments with really weak presidents tend to be unstable.

:)

Yep. But the MOST stable form of government is a dictatorship. :)

There are other options, also. No president. All decisions ratified by a council. That way, each faction would have to work with the other factions to accomplish anything. This often leads to lots of internal bickering, but that might not be a bad thing at this time for Iraq.

I just don't see what would be GAINED by NOT discussing it now that hasn't already been LOST by discussing the invasion in detail.

And I see a lot that could be gained by educating the Iraqi people about what other forms of government are available and what different legal systems protect what basic rights.

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