State of their nation: Day 2

State of their nation: Day 2

By David Mac Dougall, Baghdad Bureau

This coming Saturday, Iraqis go to the polls. They’re choosing regional representatives in 14 out of Iraq’s 18 provinces. There’s little doubt that Iraqis are embracing democracy – the numbers speak for themselves: more than 14,000 candidates vying for just 444 council seats.

Each day this week we’re asking Iraqis what they think about a range of issues.

Today, they speak out about things most people in the West take for granted: clean running water, electricity to heat or cool their homes and run appliances, efficient sewage to keep the towns and cities disease free. A lot of this essential infrastructure was in a terrible state of disrepair after the US-lead invasion – following years of neglect and sanctions during the Saddam Hussein regime. Many Iraqis had unrealistic expectations that the Americans would fix all their problems overnight but nearly six years after the start of the war there are still a lot of issues with basic services. Now, Iraq is going to be increasingly paying to upkeep and maintain more of these essential services as the US steps back militarily as well as financially.

PLUS — Watch an hour of news, opinion & debate LIVE from Baghdad on Friday 10am EST at www.foxnews.com/strategyroom.