Zimbabwe "Election" Tomorrow

Mugabe is going ahead with tomorrow's sham runoff election despite the fact that it has been roundly condemned as illegitimate. Turnout may well be high given that ZANU-PF and all their surrogates (the military, "War Veterans", etc.) will probably bully people to the polls and to vote for Mugabe just to try to make it seem as if Zimbabweans actually still want the old butcher in power. Surprisingly, and possibly in response to the mounting international pressure, Mugabe declared today that he would be open to negotiations with the opposition - but only after the election tomorrow. Tomorrow could be messy but hopefully the two sides can negotiate a settlement. Even though it is bull$#!# that ZANU-PF would still have a significant role in the government (especially with Mugabe as President, which would almost certainly be non-negotiable), it is probably the best way to avoid violence and actually move the country forward and away from the disastrous iron-fisted rule of Mugabe. [Check out Fareed Zakaria's assessment of the situation and his condemnation of Thabo Mbeki's "cowardice". Well said.]