Finally, the results of the referendum which was held on October 15 were declared on the afternoon of the October 25, 2005, ten days after the event.  The Iraqis have ratified the draft by a 78.59 majority, two governorates vetoed it by a very large majorities, but the third one which the rejecters were hoping to engineer a third veto and thus unravel the processes aimed the country’s democratic transformation failed to materialize.  Nineveh on which the balance rested for the last few days voted against the draft but not by the required two thirds majority, the charter was adopted and the Iraqis had a permanent constitution.  The problem with the Sunni’s has gotten worse, they have immediately rejected the results and the relative improvement in the security situation which accompanied the referendum has been shattered.  On the Thursday October 20th, the calmness was shattered by a truly atrocious bombardment of a children’s school in one of Baghdad’s busiest areas which resulted in the death of at least one child and the terrible injuring of few more.  To add to this long spectacle of death and destruction another similarly lethal incident took place in the Firdous circle were two of the biggest hotels are located and which are usually inhabited by the media and the businessmen who happen to be in the country when three bombed cars attacked the area in a very organized succession and resulted in the death of at least twenty people and scores of injured people all passers by and innocent civilians.  This left the city in a state of a terrible shock.  For all these reasons I have decided to talk this week about a completely different subject, I will be writing about Saddam Hussein.  Saddam Hussein is now on trial for the crimes he has committed against humanity, the environment, his own people and his neighbors.  Some people trying to portray Saddam as an innocent and blameless victim, I think every effort should be expended in bringing the truth about him and his regime to the widest possible audience.

One has not yet forgotten about the horrors of Katrina and Rita in the United States and the terrible harvest of death and destruction it left in its wake and those brought about by Stan which hit Guatemala and Ecuador where tens of thousands perished and a much greater number of innocent people were dislocated from their dwellings and homes when it paid them its most unwelcome visit, which resulted in the total destruction of whole cities and the disappearance of hundreds of smaller villages and minor population centers.  But even the few serious efforts were being undertaken and starting to alleviate the misery and agonies nature struck another very severe blow in another part of the world hundreds of miles away in central Asia, a hurricane of magnitude 7.6 degrees on the Richter scale (out of 9 degrees) struck northern Pakistan with its epicenter in the capital of Kashmir, Mozafarabad.  Kashmir has been the object of a very bitter conflict between India and Pakistan.  To complete the incredible unusual week it was reported that the chicken influenza has been spreading very rapidly and has already reached Turkey, next door to Iraq.  The worry is that it would reach our country and that would be just the extra misery that this country needs.

During the last two weeks I was almost totally paralyzed by Katrina and the death and destruction it left in its path to send anything to this website.  My heart bleeds for those unfortunate Americans who perished  and the tens of thousands who lost their homes and property in the areas which was the center of the hurricane's fury, to make things even more painful the tragedy happened  struck only few days before the anniversary of the other calamity which has also so atrociously and murderously struck the Americans, the 9/11 tragedy.  I have always had a great admiration and respect to the average American who is an extremely kind, compassionate and very friendly.  I don't know what to say, I hope that those who have lost their lives will be in the kind hands of our lord and the others who remained to suffer the great loss they had I wish them all the best of luck in the coming days and that serendipity  will be more kind to them in their new lives.  Now, I would like to say to my American and other friends who are still interested in the equally tragic events which are taking place nowadays in Iraq that what I am going to say next is good enough and is not a waste of their time.