  Christopher Allbritton's website urlLink Back in Iraq 2.0 is nominated for a the Utne Independent Press Award. He so deserves it. He's a former bigtime reporter who went independent for the war to bring in the real, un-US censored news. Now he's back in NY, but he wants to get back to the action so go donate to his cause. He wrote in urlLink his epilogue : "So what comes next?
For Iraq, no one knows. President Bush says the U.S. will install democracy but that doesn't include a Shi'a-led Islamic state a wise choice, even if it does leave the United States open to hypocrisy. We'll see to what degree democracy really does come to the new Iraq. But I know this: The American people, in whose name this war was waged, need to hold this administration's feet to the fire. It's obviously too late to stop this war, but we as a democratic nation still have a responsibility to make the aftermath as beneficial to the Iraqi people as possible now that it's over. That means that corporate cronyism that seems to be the preferred method for awarding lucrative rebuilding contracts needs to be protested loudly. Any backsliding on democratic actions or a disconnect between administration actions and rhetoric have to be combatted as vigorously possible. "The anti-war crowd would be criminally irresponsible if it just washes its hands of the matter and considers the battle to halt military action in Iraq a failed cause and moves onto the next cause celebre.
And if the pro-war people think they now have a right to say, "We told you this war would go well," they damn well also have a responsibility to hold the people they supported to their word. It's time for them, the "winners" in the "Should we go to war or shouldn't we? " debate, to put up or shut up. " 
