The initial reports from Iraq are more than encouraging, turnout apparently stands at well over 70% and even Reuters is compelled to be frank about events:

Suicide bombs and mortars killed at least 33 people, but Iraqis still came out in force for the first multi-party poll in 50 years. While in some areas turnout was scant, in most places, including violent Sunni Arab regions, it exceeded expectations.

Condi Rice confirms:

“Every indication is that the election in Iraq is going better than expected”

This will force even the most skeptical voices to not only acknowledge that freedom in Iraq can indeed work, but that there are no longer any excuses to stand on the sidelines and start helping those brave people who risked their lives today to cast their vote. It will also be a very harsh awakening for Iraq's immediate neighbors and the first reactions from the Arab world are encouraging:

Arab commentators said that the voters had sent a strong message that insurgents failed to wreck the poll. The most upbeat reaction came from the Abu Dhabi-based daily Al-Ittihad, which declared jubilantly "The new Iraq is born today" on its front page.

The Arab News newspaper in the kingdom of Saudi Arabia called the vote "a very historic moment in the country's long history," and said it was "a much needed victory for moderation."

It's still early and there's a lot of work ahead but I expected a far different report when I switched on my laptop this morning.

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