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HARRISONBURG - Kurdistan native Mahamed Kareem
had a lot at stake this election and that kept him
hooked on the election coverage Tuesday.
"Half of my family is still in Iraq," he said. "My
parents, brother and sister are still over there."
Kareem wanted to be sure that whoever took the White
House knows how to handle the volatile situation in
his country.
"I watched everything," he said of the election
coverage. "The important thing is taking care of the
Iraqi people," he said, adding that it didn't matter
who became president as long as this is his
priority. "Anybody who takes care of the Iraqi
people is good."
When he heard that President Bush had been
re-elected, he was pleased.
"That is good news because we need the freedom for
the Iraqi people as soon as possible," Kareem said.
"We need the election process finished soon because
it is a bad situation."
Nabil Qaradaghi shares the sentiments of Kareem. He
couldn't be happier about Saddam Hussein's removal
from power, and he credits Bush for the happiness of
his people.
"When President Bush changed that regime, it was a
great thing for us," said Qaradaghi, of Kurdistan.
"We appreciate that very much."
He couldn't back Sen. John Kerry because he didn't
understand him. "I didn't see clearly ... I couldn't
understand what Kerry wanted to do in Iraq,"
Qaradaghi said. "I know what President Bush is
doing."
He doesn't let the bumpy process led by Bush and his
administration affect his opinions of the president.
Qaradaghi said he chooses to use a clichÈ he learned
in American culture.
"Nobody's perfect," Kareem said. "In general, things
(are) not bad. It's very good."
Qaradaghi said compared to the way the Kurdish
people were living before, he believes his people
have been liberated. "Saddam, he destroyed over
4,000 villages in Kurdistan ... he had great power
in that area," Qaradaghi said.
Kurdistan native Heymin Abdul was consumed by the
election and stayed up until 3 a.m. to watch the
results roll in. He found good and bad points with
both candidates and had mixed emotions when he heard
the results. "I feel good," he said. "I was happy at
that time and sad, too. For my country, I wanted
George Bush to be re-elected," because most of his
family is still in Iraq. "But for Americans, I
wanted Kerry."
Abdul said Bush focuses too much on other countries
rather than his own backyard and felt Kerry would
help Americans more.
"I want (Bush) to take care of the country and get
everything done here and then worry about other
countries," he said.
http://www.newsleader.com
Originally published Thursday, November 4, 2004.
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