Even though the Iraq-Coalition war will lead to real regime change, to Iraqis on the street, to the retail world, the 'new' Iraq looks a lot like the old Iraq.
Above: A picture I stole from the AP without even removing the tag from the side... funny, huh?
The streets still go in the same directions. Traffic lights still display the virtually universal red, yellow and green. The beige color of everything is still there. Sand storms still rage across the Iraqi landscape unabated. And, perhaps, worst of all, there are no convenience stores, big box retailers, or home handyman outlets.
"Change shmange," said one disgruntled Iraqi. "Our airport name has been changed, but street traffic is still terrible. We still can't see two feet in front of us with all this sand blowing around. Everyone drives super slow. Even though there's nowhere to go, we can't get anywhere. And just forget about trying to bulk or discount shop."
It's a fact. The retail aspects of new Iraqi life seem to be very reminicsent of old Iraqi life. "We still have all these open markets in our streets. Where's the Wal-Marts and 7-11's we were promised," said Ahmed Ahbmed of Tikrut. "The old Iraq was very inconvenient to shoppers, and that's still the case. No one can buy Slurpees or make a quick stop and run into a store for a new pair of socks, or nylons, or a handgun and a six pack."
Families with children are equally affected. "Even though we still don't have any electricity, I want to buy a 'Playstation 2' for my children, but we don't have a Best Buy or Circuit City or even a Toys R Us," commented a dejected parent standing in a bombed out parking lot in south Baghdad. "Right here would be a good location for big box retailers, but where are they? This new world is the same as the old one. It'Saddam shame."
Unfortunately that is the oft-repeated refrain of Iraqis in the new Iraq. Until the latest commander-in-chief-of-the-week can mobilize retail forces like fast food retailers, 24/7 grocery stores, or home handyman outlets like Home Depot, the situation will remain unchanged. For Iraqis, this means they are still waiting for real retail regime change.
That is why many Iraqis are calling on those restoring 'essential services' (like health care, water and electricity) to also establish 24/7 retailing. "We want to be the retail mecca of the Middle East," said Ohmed Ahmed, an ex-banker turned one-armed un-exploded shell collector. "Or, at least, a place where people can shop and not get hit by blowing sand, driving rain, or stray bullets. Perhaps if we had jobs and money to spend that would help."
Experts agree that without a focused coalition-backed kind of effort on the retail front new-Iraq Iraqis will continue to live in an Iraq that resembles the old Iraq making new-Iraq Iraqis feel a lot like old-Iraq Iraqis. In the words of a local cleric and one of 1,500 known declared mayors of Baghdad, "After all the death and destruction, not being able to shop; it's a final indignity. It'Saddam shame."
