Being. Blunt.

Odd. Remembering a US push for Iraqi elections "on time" in January, despite many citing safety concerns. Afghan elections have just been delayed till autumn. With barely a murmur. And the reason ? "Fragile security situation".

Very very smelling like rats.

Afghan elections put back to the autumn
Declan Walsh in Kabul
Friday March 18, 2005, The Guardian

Afghanistan's much delayed parliamentary elections have been put off until the autumn, it emerged yesterday as the US secretary of state, Condoleezza Rice, visited President Hamid Karzai...

The fragile security situation has raised fears for the elections, which were meant to take place last year, and had been put back to May.

Reading along...

Mr Karzai then announced that voting for parliament and the provincial councils would take place in September. Although the day has not been set, diplomats and electoral officials said that the middle of the month was most likely.

September.

...Ms Rice's six-hour visit was sandwiched between meetings in neighbouring Pakistan.

"This is not the Pakistan of September 11..." she told reporters, praising the military ruler, General Pervez Musharraf more.

Aha. So that's what it is eh. Let's bet when September 11 rolls round in the US that there'll be plenty of talk about how far the Bush administration has come, followed conveniently by Afghanistan's elections. Too crude. Democracy for the whitehouse PR calendar.

Oh well, there are some things to be learned in this. Next time anyone needs to delay something, just make sure your alternative date works in with a US feastday.