Afghan elections

The best in-person summary of the successful Afghan elections comes from oxblog's correspondent.

[Al-Qaeda's and the insurgents] failure [to disrupt the election] is a major blow to the credibility of the insurgency, and for all its flaws, this election is a heartening victory. The Afghans are rightly proud and excited; they deserve much praise for this imperfect but important step toward stable democratic government. I’ve also talked to Afghans who feel that the U.S. government deserves more credit than I’ve been inclined to offer.