D Day

Democracy Day, you betcha! Palestine's Arabs say fuhgedaboutit;

"We used to hear a lot about democracy from all around the world," says Ahmed, a stallholder [in the market town of Qalqiyah], as he bags stalks of dried thyme. "But we found the theory works better than the practice."

They voted for the terrorists, but the wicked Israelites won't play fair;

Hamas went on to win a decisive victory in the Palestinian legislative elections in January 2006 - winning 74 of the 132 seats.

Turnout was high at 78% and international monitors said the vote was largely free and fair.

But the result was met with dismay by Israel and Western donors - which prop up the Palestinian Authority (PA).

They refused to deal with Hamas politically unless the group renounced violence and its commitment to the destruction of Israel. Funds to pay for vital services were stopped or diverted.

.... "We're only allowed democracy if the West likes our choices," comments one Qalqilya shopper as he reflects on this troubled political history. "They supported us when we went to the ballot boxes but did a u-turn when Islamists won."

 Hitler won an election too, and look what happened to him. In fact, a lot of Arabs liked the cut of his jabber at that time. What's the use of voting a suicide pact for your enemies to honor, if they won't?