great scenery in this video, high quality video. Kurdistan in Iraq in really prospering.
http://www.michaeltotten.com/archives/001056.html
"Scratch just beneath the happy veneer of Iraqi Kurdish adults and you’ll find people with family members murdered by Baathists, who experienced unimaginable oppression by a regime that wanted to completely erase them, and who fled to the mountains during the uprising in 1991 when the cities of Iraqi Kurdistan were emptied of people. "
Getting to know the people is the best reason to travel to Kurdistan, actually. Every Middle Eastern country I’ve been to has a tradition of hospitality that can’t be overstated. But the Kurds are even warmer than usual. Several Iraqi Kurds said “This is your country” when they first met me. How could I not love people who greet me this way? Especially when I know very well that it isn’t a polite (and culturally compulsory) cover for quiet anti-Americanism.
Iraqi Kurdistan is more pro-American than America."
Thomas Friedman once described Poland as “a geopolitical spa,” a great place to visit if you’re tired of reactionary anti-Americanism. Iraqi Kurdistan may be a better “spa” than even Poland."
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-l-phillips/iraqi-kurds_b_1912568.html
Angry mobs recently attacked U.S. diplomatic facilities in dozens of countries, but not everyone in the Muslim world hates America. More than 25 million Kurds in Iraq, Iran, Syria and Turkey are largely secular and pro-Western. Kurds understand that democracy and individual rights are compatible with Islamic values. The United States should take steps to consolidate friendly relations with the Kurds. U.S.-Kurdish rapprochement would serve as a counter-weight to political demagogy and Islamist extremism. It can also leverage reforms in countries where Kurds reside.
A steely-eyed approach is needed towards governments in the region. Iraq's Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki has shunned U.S. interests. He also pursues polarizing policies, which fuel sectarian and ethnic conflict between Iraqis. Baghdad scorns Iraq's constitution, preferring confrontation to power-sharing. It systematically encroaches on Kurdish territory, inflaming tensions along "disputed internal boundaries." The Iraqi Government uses its security apparatus to trample the rights of Iraq's Sunnis and target political opponents. Acting as a proxy for Iran, it facilitates the transfer of weapons from Tehran to Syria.
In contrast, Iraqi Kurds are unabashedly pro-American. Not a single American has died in Iraqi Kurdistan since Saddam's overthrow in 2003. Iraqi Kurdistan has functioning democratic institutions, a vibrant civil society and an independent media. While corruption is still a problem, Iraqi Kurdistan is less corrupt than most neighbors.
Iraqi Kurds are America's best and only friends in Iraq. To further strengthen U.S.-Kurdish amity, the United States should deepen security cooperation with the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG). While Baghdad rejected a status of forces agreement with the United States, the KRG welcomes it. The Pentagon should cancel its sale of Abrams-A1 tanks and F-16 fighter jets to Baghdad. Such weapons will most likely be used against Iraqis, rather than to protect Iraq from Iran and other rogue regimes with which Baghdad has cozy relations."
