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The nattering nabobs of negativism love to say that Godly President Bush 
failed in his attempt to turn Towelheadistan into a modern, liberal (no, not in that sense), Western-style democracy. Yet the evidence to the contrary is so overwhelming that not event the JYT can deny it any longer. This one article shows many ways in which Iraq is adopting the American way.
failed in his attempt to turn Towelheadistan into a modern, liberal (no, not in that sense), Western-style democracy. Yet the evidence to the contrary is so overwhelming that not event the JYT can deny it any longer. This one article shows many ways in which Iraq is adopting the American way.
Iraqis Snap Up Hummers as Icons of Power
BAGHDAD — Ali al-Hilli is a happy man. He has a wife and three kids, a prosperous business and — this is the important part — a Hummer in his driveway.
In a country with at least 20,000 Humvees and a war-weary population, who would think there would be a market for the civilian version?
Mr. Hilli did. “I just knew there’d be a huge demand for this in Baghdad,” he said. Now Mr. Hilli and his brother Dhafir run a car dealership specializing in Hummers. It is called, in English, “Al Sultan for Trading Cars.”
An American diplomat declared that it was the biggest Hummer dealership outside of the United States, a fact that seemed too good to check. Unfortunately, Mr. Hilli has checked. “It’s the biggest one in Baghdad, though, that’s for sure,” he said.
* * *
“Iraqis love them because they’re really a symbol of power,” said Mr. Hilli, a chubby 37-year-old who could not stop chuckling. Nonetheless, he spoke with authority, since he was his own first customer.
* * *
The Hillis said they had sold more than 20 H3s, about one every 10 days, even in the midst of plummeting oil prices and economic turmoil. Their biggest customers tend to be government officials. That is not necessarily a sign of corruption, since the new government has voted itself enormous pay raises.
* * *
Iraqis love their cars. “In Iraq, people judge you by your car, and you’re not a man without one,” he said. When it comes to Hummers, he added, they will nearly always be bigger than anyone else’s vehicle. That is where “hasad thukuri” comes in; roughly translated, it means “[tallywhacker] envy.”
BAGHDAD — Ali al-Hilli is a happy man. He has a wife and three kids, a prosperous business and — this is the important part — a Hummer in his driveway.
In a country with at least 20,000 Humvees and a war-weary population, who would think there would be a market for the civilian version?
Mr. Hilli did. “I just knew there’d be a huge demand for this in Baghdad,” he said. Now Mr. Hilli and his brother Dhafir run a car dealership specializing in Hummers. It is called, in English, “Al Sultan for Trading Cars.”
An American diplomat declared that it was the biggest Hummer dealership outside of the United States, a fact that seemed too good to check. Unfortunately, Mr. Hilli has checked. “It’s the biggest one in Baghdad, though, that’s for sure,” he said.
* * *
“Iraqis love them because they’re really a symbol of power,” said Mr. Hilli, a chubby 37-year-old who could not stop chuckling. Nonetheless, he spoke with authority, since he was his own first customer.
* * *
The Hillis said they had sold more than 20 H3s, about one every 10 days, even in the midst of plummeting oil prices and economic turmoil. Their biggest customers tend to be government officials. That is not necessarily a sign of corruption, since the new government has voted itself enormous pay raises.
* * *
Iraqis love their cars. “In Iraq, people judge you by your car, and you’re not a man without one,” he said. When it comes to Hummers, he added, they will nearly always be bigger than anyone else’s vehicle. That is where “hasad thukuri” comes in; roughly translated, it means “[tallywhacker] envy.”
HUNTING ATHEISTS SINCE 1989.
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