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A friend of one of my family members sent this email from Iraq and it was forwarded to me. I thought you all might be interested in reading it. I don't know the guy but it sounds like he is a former soldier who now works for one of the military contractors in Iraq. I have removed the names and some other information to help preserve his privacy. Of special interest would be the comments in the middle of the letter about the "lack of fiscal responsibility", the current state of order in Iraq, and the prospects for "religious tolerance" in Iraq. I find it appalling that 6 1/2 years into Bush's war, we still have people "uparmoring" vehicles because nobody thought to order "uparmored" vehicles in the first place. Wonder how much armor Bush's tax cuts would have paid for?
From: __________
Sent: Wednesday, July 16, 2008 4:28 PM
To: ____________
Subject:
hello mr. _______
yep, it's ____ ______ all the way from sunny baghdad. i hope you and your family are healthy and enjoying the summer. i'm having a wonderful time here - it's a little warmer over here than in michigan - today was 111 degrees, and tomorrow it is supposed to get a bit warmer. my job entails me to be outside about twelve hours a day, so i get a bit baked by the end of the day!
i'm working on a project to "uparmor" the M1 series tanks deployed around the country; we add reactive armor, belly plates, and new thermal sights to the tanks, as well as a .50 caliber machine gun that uses the tank's ballistic computer to help the good guys get the bad guys. our product has saved a number of lives, and helps bring the soldiers home in one piece.
i also am an instructor in the care and use of the new equipment, and get to fly all over the country to remote "forward operating bases" to train the soldiers, and to repair battle damaged tanks. it is a lot of fun, and sometimes pretty exciting - like when the insurgents lob mortar rounds at you. seriously, i have never felt unsafe - maybe it's my faith in God; or maybe i'm just too stupid to get scared. i do know that if i wasted any energy on thinking negatively i couldn't be as effective as i could at my job. it's pretty important to stay aware of the situations i am in; when you're not paying attention is when you get hurt.
most of the guys on this particular project have been moved to kuwait for logistical reasons, but i was chosen to stay here and fly around in helicopters, which is pretty fun - sort of like the dumbo ride at disney world with machine guns. i usually fly in blackhawk helicopters, but i occasionally get to ride in chinooks; those are the really big helicopters with two rotors. i am based out of a place called camp _______, which is right next to baghdad, and the living conditions are good. i have an airconditioned 10' x 10' hootch that i share with another guy - pretty close quarters - and i get showers most every day. the food is excellent, as it should be, considering the government is being charged about $100 a day by the company that feeds us.
the complete lack of fiscal responsibility is absolutely mind boggling; next time i see you i'll buy you a beer and give you some details.
this country is a real mess; we are just barely able to keep order, and that's only in certain places. there are neighborhoods like sadr city that are completely out of control, and up north there are still fucking al-quaeda assholes making trouble. down in this neck of the woods, it's mostly iraqis killing other iraqis, but if somebody bags an american, it's a pretty special event for them. the improvised explosive devices are so big they take out tanks - i know because i have been tasked with trying to fix them. it's pretty tough to work on the tanks that soldiers have died in - death over here is pretty messy, and the vehicles smell like rotting meat. the soldiers don't do a very good job cleaning their buddies' body parts out of the vehicles, as it is pretty emotionally devastating for them to do so. most of the guys i work with take special care in scrubbing the tanks out so when the soldiers get them back they don't have physical reminders of their lost comrades. this shit is for real, buddy - a pretty far cry from the coffee shops and malls of the good ole usa. i just pray that we can somehow help these folks develop an honest police force and army, and help them rebuild their infrastructure and economy. the iraqis cannot conceptualize a democratic form of government, and religious tolerance will never happen here.
i just got back from my first R&R; i met ______ and the boys in _______ for about two weeks. we had a nice time, and it was hard to leave them. i will be back in the states for two weeks in novembe. my contract ends in november 2009, and i think _______ and i will be able to put the pieces of our lives back together.
it is amazing how much we take for granted in our lives - a place like this, separation from loved ones - makes me realize how blessed i have been. ______ and the boys are healthy and safe, and i am for the first time in my life making decent money. i've made some friends here, and we all look out for each other. all of us are former soldiers, and are very comfortable with the military atmosphere and the occasionally dangerous environment, although some folks freak out when the bombs go off and the bullets fly. i have great faith in my body armor and God!
well, gotta close. i am pretty wasted by the end of the day, and need my beauty sleep in order to be ready for tomorrow!
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