October 14, 2005: Another unheralded victory in the war on terror is
unfolding in Iraq. Arrest warrants have been issued for a former Iraqi
defense minister and 27 other officials who served in the transitional
government that left office when the current elected government last
April. Seems that the former officials stole about a billion dollars in
funds earmarked for building the new army. All of the suspects are
believed to have left the country, along with the money. While nailing
bureaucrats for stealing money may be common in the United States, it
is very, very rare in the Middle East. And that's one of the main
reasons al Qaeda came to be. This Islamic terrorist organization first
tried to clean up it's own back yard. Failing at that, they decided to
blame it on the West and go after this new enemy. But now, al Qaeda
fans (the few that are left after so many Arab civilians have been
killed by suicide bombers) are faced with the fact that the Americans
have also brought with them the concept of honest government, and
accountability for those who run the government. A really radical
development this is, at least for the Middle East. Now it's a long way
from arrest warrants to serving time in prison. But it's a start, and
it's a victory.