Ahh... that damned popular vote

And from a few days ago

Meet the new MP, Khalid Daher. He won on the Hariri list in `Akkar. This Bin Ladenite is now part of the coalition that the Western media insists on labeling as "pro-Western." I am not sure how Daher would react if you were to call him "pro-Western." Pro-medieval would be more appropriate. Mr. Daher allegedly helped recruit volunteers for Abu Mus`ab Zarqawi. By the way, was Zarqawi "pro-Western" too?

And on the elections in Iran, what's most interesting to me is that what was always obvious to those who paid any attention at all is now clear to most people who claimed to and didn't, as well as to the casual, lazy, observer: Iran has a thriving political culture. The popular and official American recognition of that fact is more important to stability in the middle east than who wins the race.