I just listened to a chunk of
Fresh Air on NPR. The guest was Anthony Shadid, an Arab-speaking journalist who won a Pulitzer Prize for his reporting in Iraq. He has a new book titled
Night Draws Near: Iraq's People in the Shadow of America's War. He was talking to the host (whomever was filling in for Terry Gross) and had some interesting stories about what Iraqis "on the ground" were saying.
Let's first revisit a claim made by idiots prior to the illegal invasion of Iraq: "We will be greeted as liberators. They will line the streets with flowers and throw us parties upon our arrival."
More on the flip.
Now, a few points made by Mr. Shadid:
- American soldiers are sleeping in air-conditioned bunkers and eating good food while Iraqi "recruits" are sleeping on the ground on the other side of a fence and drinking and showering using water from dirty tanks. Iraqi soldiers can see the American barracks and are resentful. (ed note: Please understand that I think that the American soldiers should have EVERY convenience and amenity that we as a nation can supply, given what they are going through and the harsh conditions of the region. However, it seems to me that a few million dollars spent on running water, air conditioning, and beds for Iraqi soldiers might foster an awful lot of goodwill. If we can simply waste $10 billion, this doesn't seem like too much to ask.)
- On the way to raid a suspected insurgent cell, Mr. Shadid is riding in a truck with Iraqi soldiers in a caravan that also includes Americans. The Iraqi soldiers are singing. The song is about wishing that Saddam was still in power and how much better things were when he was the "president".
- Many of the soldiers flee once the fighting begins. Mr. Shadid does not state that they are cowards, but rather that they just don't have the stomach for the battle -- there is no vested interest on their part. Upon surveying the soldiers to find out what they are fighting for, the conclusion is money -- and it's hard to kill your fellow countrymen and Muslims for $300 a month.
- The police in the region say that they can no longer fast during Ramadan because they are not good Muslims. They feel that by cooperating with the Americans, they have betrayed their religion and their god.
- After the fall of Saddam, the city of Bahgdad was in pretty good shape, but is now in shambles. The Iraqi people are astonished at how the Americans could be so good at war but so pitifully horrible in the aftermath.
- When the host asked Mr. Shadid if the Iraqis even wanted a secular, Western-style democracy, he replied: "At one point, many of them did."
It doesn't sound like to me that they are very happy to have us there. Maybe we should leave.
Disclaimers: I only heard a portion of the show, but I intend to download it and listen to the entire thing once it is available online. You can also listen to the repeat at WUNC at 8:00 PM EDT tonight. I also intend to purchase and read the book. The above "transcription" is my own and done from memory. Any errors are mine.
Thanks for reading.