Most American media tells you nothing at all about what’s happening to real people on the ground. This lack of information is astounding, given the Bush Administration’s constant claims of “success” in Iraq. I’m tired of reading sterilized accounts of life in the Green Zone. I really want to know what we are getting for the $13 billion we spend on the Iraq occupation each month.
At the recommendation of an article in Salon Premium (“The unsung heroes of Iraq war coverage“), I have now found what I’ve been looking for: a blog called “Inside Iraq,” which is
updated by Iraqi journalists working for McClatchy Newspapers. They are based in Baghdad and outlying provinces. These are firsthand accounts of their experiences. Their complete names are withheld for security purposes.
At Inside Iraq I have finally found voices that sound authentic who are telling me about the real lives of real people who live in Iraq. The words of these journalists are written in plain English, but they’re difficult to read on an emotional level. I plan to visit this site regularly.
Whatever is "really happening" in Iraq, one thing is certain: by the time this Easter weekend is over, the death toll of American troops will likely top 4,000. Not that this matters to the Bush Administration, which appears to place no limit on how many people should die to protect Bush's legacy…er, I mean, to protect America from all those scary terrorists.
And, speaking of all those scary terrorists, the sad thing (well, among all the other sad things about Bush's nightmarish presidency) is that the total number of genuine, hard-core, anti-American terrorists on this entire planet is probably much less than 4,000.
Meanwhile, as the American economy slides into oblivion (the U.S. dollar is now worth less than the Canadian dollar!), I continue to be amazed by how much damage Osama bin Laden has caused to America with a handful of boxcutters and a score of followers. Who could ever have imagined that America would shoot itself so badly in the foot?
Refugees International estimates that up to five million Iraqis have been displaced since 2003. That’s one-in-five Iraqis who have had to flee their homes since the US-led invasion of their country. Two-and-a-half million Iraqis have been internally displaced, and an equal number have managed to leave the country to Jordan, Lebanon, Egypt, Turkey, the Gulf States and, most of all, Syria, which hosts 1.5 million Iraqis.
http://www.democracynow.org/2008/3/31/exodus_wher…