A Blogger Reports From Iraq........get the REAL news........

[Joanne98]

A VIEW FROM IRAQ: RIVERBEND'S LATEST

My favorite Iraqi blogger reports:

"The last few days, Baghdad has been echoing with explosions. We woke up to several loud blasts a few days ago. The sound has become all too common. It's like the heat, the flies, the carcasses of buildings, the broken streets and the haphazard walls coming up out of nowhere all over the city﾿ it has become a part of life. ﾿I found E. flipping through the news channels, trying to find out what was going on. "They aren't nearly fast enough," he shook his head with disgust. "We're not going to know what's happening until noon."
"But the news began coming in much sooner. There were clashes between armed Iraqis and the Americans on Haifa Street- a burned out hummer, some celebrating crowds, missiles from helicopters, a journalist dead, dozens of Iraqis wounded, and several others dead. The road leading to the airport has seen some action these last few days- more attacks on troops and also some attacks on Iraqi guard. The people in the areas surrounding the airport claim that no one got any sleep the whole night . . .

"So how did I spend my 9/11? I watched Michael Moore's movie, Fahrenheit 9/11. I've had bootleg CD version since early August. (Grave apologies to Michael Moore -- but there's no other way we can see it here﾿) The copy has been sitting in a drawer with a bunch of other CDs. One of my cousins brought it over one day and said that while it was brilliant, it was also quite depressing and distressing all at once. I had been avoiding it because, quite frankly, I cannot stand to see Bush for five minutes straight- I wasn't sure how I'd cope with almost two hours . . .

"I was caught up in the film from the first moment, until the very last. There were moments, while watching, when I could barely breathe. I wasn't surprised with anything- there was nothing that shocked me- all of the stuff about the Bush family and their Saudi friends was old news. It was the other stuff that had an impact- seeing the reactions of Americans to the war, seeing the troops in Iraq being interviewed, seeing that American mother before and after she lost her son in Iraq . . .

"All in all, the film was﾿ what is the right word for it? Great? Amazing? Fantastic? No. It made me furious, it made me sad and I cried more than I'd like to admit but it was brilliant. The words he used to narrate were simple and to the point. I wish everyone could see the film. I know I'll be getting dozens of emails from enraged Americans telling me that so-and-so statement was exaggerated, etc. But it really doesn't matter to me. What matters is the underlying message of the film- things aren't better for Americans now than they were in 2001, and they certainly aren't better for Iraqis."

http://riverbendblog.blogspot.com/

[clevergirl]

1. 9-11/Peace Rally cancelled?

I heard about a month ago that "everybody in Iraq" -- enlisted soldiers -- watched Fahrenheit 9/11 and are voting against Bush...

I heard on the radio today that the National Park Service refused a permit for a peace rally scheduled this Saturday for Capitol Hill because of the "code orange" status in DC. Has anyone heard about this?

[yodermon]

2. I'm a bit worried

Her last post is month and a half old.
And yes, hers is a wonderful blog site.

[Joanne98]

3. She's probably busy..........

Saturday, August 07, 2004

Clashes and Churches...
300+ dead in a matter of days in Najaf and Al Sadir City. Of course, they are all being called ‘insurgents’. The woman on tv wrapped in the abaya, lying sprawled in the middle of the street must have been one of them too. Several explosions rocked Baghdad today- some government employees were told not to go to work tomorrow.

So is this a part of the reconstruction effort promised to the Shi’a in the south of the country? Najaf is considered the holiest city in Iraq. It is visited by Shi’a from all over the world, and yet, during the last two days, it has seen a rain of bombs and shells from none other than the ‘saviors’ of the oppressed Shi’a- the Americans. So is this the ‘Sunni Triangle’ too? It’s déjà vu- corpses in the streets, people mourning their dead and dying and buildings up in flames. The images flash by on the television screen and it’s Falluja all over again. Twenty years from now who will be blamed for the mass graves being dug today?

We’re waiting again for some sort of condemnation. I, personally, never had faith in the American selected proxy government currently pretending to be in power- but for some reason, I keep thinking that any day now- any moment- one of the Puppets, Allawi for example, will make an appearance on television and condemn all the killing. One of them will get in front of a camera and announce his resignation or at the very least, his utter disgust, at the bombing, the burning and the killing of hundreds of Iraqis and call for an end to it… it’s a foolish hope, I know.

So where is the interim constitution when you need it? The sanctity of private residences is still being violated... people are still being unlawfully arrested... cities are being bombed. Then again, there really is nothing in the constitution that says the American millitary *can't* actually bomb and burn.

[milkyway]

4. Thanks for the heads-up. I was beginning to worry about Riverbend.

It's great to hear from her again.

[Joanne98]

5. Your welcome........

:)