IRAQI Bloggers at the end of another year of occupation

First, there was an excellent wrap-up of the Iraqi bloggers posts in 2007 written about the journalists at McClatchy Newspapers. The McClatchy blog is called “Inside Iraq” and is updated regularly by several staff members who risk their lives to report on Iraq. This article (written by an American) talks about the blog posts on the many aspects of daily life in Iraq, and how the Iraqi people feel threatened by the Iraqi military, police, militias and US military. It is excellent overall, and I recommend reading the whole thing, but here is the last two paragraphs about Iraqi feelings on the US military in their country, and if the US military should stay or leave:

The question on everyone's mind, of course, is whether the Americans should stay or go. On this, Leila Fadel told me, her Iraqi staff is divided. Some of them think the Americans should leave at once. While withdrawal would probably result in a bloodletting among Iraqis, they believe the country would be better off if this happened sooner rather than later, thus avoiding the effects of a prolonged occupation. Others think the Americans should stay and fix all the destruction they've caused over the last four and a half years. But, she adds, the staff's views on this keep shifting: "They're at war within themselves—on whether they want the Americans to stay or not, and whether they think that staying would make things any better. It's something they go back and forth on."

Whichever side they come down on, however, there is one feeling that predominates: humiliation. "They remind me of this constantly," Fadel says. "Americans believe their soldiers are working for the greater good. The Iraqis don't see that. They see people who are here for their own self-interest—who drive the wrong way on roads, who stop traffic whenever they want to, who they have to be careful not to get too close to so that they won't be shot." When one of her staff members wrote the post about the student who threw a rock at a US soldier, Fadel says, she asked him, "Why did this kid throw a rock at a man with a weapon, a helmet, and a vest? What was he thinking?" "These are foreign soldiers," he replied. "This is an occupation." That, Fadel notes, is a very common feeling among Iraqis. "Everybody I speak to thinks this. They don't have power in their own country."

The above was from an article about the bloggers at McClatchy News in Baghdad who post at Inside Iraq blog, here is part of a direct post, written by Jenan. She talks about the New Years celebrations, and her wishes for the next year.

Last night was the New Year's Eve night and because I used to have special night every year at lest it is special night according to my taste as a Moslem woman. In the last years I used to spend this night with my family at home watch TV, eat cookies and fruit and talk about our wishes for the New Year. This year I tried to start it with extraordinary activity to approve to myself that we will receive a new and different year if God Will so I decided to take my sister and her two children (Haidar 5 years old and Dody 3 years old) on a tour in the city. I drove the car toward the crowded street to share the celebrated people in Baghdad's streets their celebration. It was wonderful hours fill with fun and laugh and that rare in Iraq these days. The people were dancing and singing with joyful togather. There weren't any differences among them. It is impossible if you want to recognize the Sunni, Shiite, Christian or any other sects. Everybody were waving with Iraqi Flags and glorifying their lovely country Iraq. But I cann't say the fears of terrorist's attacks have totally disappeared from our minds because what we saw through the last two years wasn't easy to forget. Really it was a big tragedy "I wish this tragedy will end soon" that my wishes for the New Year.

Finally, a New Year’s wish by Laith at Inside Iraq blog:

Its only few hours left until we say goodbye 2007 and hello 2008. I have big hopes and wishes but my biggest wish is that all the politicians all over the world realize that the we are all the same (the citizens and the politicians who rule the countries in the oppressed countries especially in my wounded Iraq) and we all having the same feelings and needs. Happy New Year Everyone.

Sunshine talked about her trip to Baghdad to visit her grandparents. She comments on how Baghdad weather is cool, but you can shut the windows because there is no explosions there (unlike Mosul), and she details how a 4 hour drive becomes 10 hours when you have to take alternative routes to avoid the US military.

On Saturday 15/12 we went to Baghdad , we heard from people that the road now is better and safer. We left mosul at 8:00 am and arrived Baghdad at 6:05 pm!!!!!!!!!! Can you imagine the delay?!! We usually reach Baghdad in 3 hours and half, or 4 hours if we stop in the restaurant!!! but because of the so many troops we reached Baghdad after 10 house! Thank god we didn’t sleep in the street, when the US vehicles drive we have to stop aside, or drive 100 meters away, slowly with the lights on, if we drive nearby they point with lazer on our car or shoot!

……When we arrived Baghdad, I could barely walk !! because of the small space and long time sitting , we had supper my grandma made her famous chicken and red rice (it is like a tradition in my family, when we go to Baghdad our first lunch should be chicken and red rice with soup and salad, and when we come to mosul my grandma make delicious okra and rice). At 10 am I went to bed, the weather in Baghdad is cool, I didn’t freeze at night, and they also can close the windows because they don’t have explosions.

She then goes on to describe the various relatives she visited and has descriptions and pictures of the wonderful food – along with pictures of some very cute kiddos. She ends with this discussion with a Shi’ite (Sunshine is Sunni):

the Father “A” is an engineer, the conversation interested me a lot, “A” talked about how silly is the differences between the first day of Eid for Sunnis and Shiites (for the Sunnis the first day was on Wednesday, for he Shiites who follow al Sadir the first day was on Thursday, and for the Shiites who follow al Sestani the first day of Eid was on Friday), it’s wrong and ridiculous , because it depends on the moon, everyone knows the first day should be on Wednesday, “A” said “ the religion should gather us, not separate us, if the religion separate it’s people, then I don’t want to belong to any, but I am sure this thing is made by the government , they want to see the Iraqis separated, but anyway it’s not going to happen” I loved what he said and wrote it at once.. well I celebrated Eid for 8 days, with the Sunnis, Shiites , and Christians.

Sunshine’s mother, who goes by Mama, posted a blog earlier this month about the extravagant cost of medicines.

She had a post last month that was very upsetting. She was suffering from some type of illness, probably due to high blood pressure and stress, and the country is lacking in doctors to treat people. This woman is a dentist by trade and is certainly under 40 years of age:

On Friday I suffered from heat flashes, with upsetting nausea I fainted for more than 15 times, I looked very pale like the dead faces, on Friday and Saturday we couldn't find a doctor , on Saturday I was not any better, with the girls around me crying I was conscious but had no ability to open my eyes or even answer them ,I was half dead.

I remained like that till Sunday without doctor consultation ,on Sunday my husband put me in the car and took me to my work ,left me in the car and went straight to my mate asking for her help ,her cousin and two sisters are doctors, she came with him and took me to the hospital where her cousin works, I was very much dizzy and almost fainted ,he examined me and find out my blood pressure very high, he asked for some blood tests and asked for brain CT- scan ,in the next day my tests revealed normal results, but I am still very tired …I did not faint since Monday but I feel very weak ,I can't stand up for even a short time, I didn't go to work till now…
the differential diagnosis is that I had sever psychological stress and probably hormonal dysfunction or probably a viral infection…

Treasure of Baghdad had commentary on a Wall Street Journal and their misleading report on what Baghdad people know about Christmas.

In Baghdad, every December 25^th, the three State Television networks under Saddam covered the Christmas Mass live on TV and celebrated the holidays with the followers of Jesus Christ willingly every year. Greetings of the holidays marked the bottom of the TV screen which showed joyful songs dedicated by Christians to their fellow Christians on the occasion. People would call the songs TV show and dedicate these songs in a live broadcast. With all this publicity, Saramd did not know when Christmas was held. “…when we watched New Year’s Eve celebrations around the world on TV, we thought that was Christmas,” the Wall Street Journal claimed. It is surprising how Sarmad did not notice that not only Christians celebrated Christmas, yet their Muslim friends did too. Christmas trees- the real and fake ones- along with Santa Claus’ posters and outfits were always visible to the eyes of Baghdadis.

He also had a couple of photos – one of Iranian police women and one of the recent Iraqi police women – he labeled it “Coincidence?” - go and take a look. The similarities are striking.

Najma, A Star from Mosul, also talked about her Eid holiday. She’s also learning English cuss words, now that she is in college. Later in the post, she talks about how cold it is in Mosul.

Three break days followed Eid because our Eid and the Shia Eid were 2 days apart (a result of the so-called Iraqi freedom), and Christmas was right after the latter.

On Wednesday we went to college, I met two of my professors on the way to my classroom in the second floor, I greeted them and wished them Eid Mubarak and was accompanied by one of them to the second floor, then I met two of my classmates again greeting and etc. and up I went to the third floor.. I was faced by many boxes and a closed door. I was shocked and seriously thought I was dreaming (Where the hell is my classroom? :(( ).. then I realized I have mistakenly gone up an extra floor leading to the roof.

Faiza, of A Family in Baghdad, is living in Amman and trying to help the Iraqi refugees. She went on a tour with Global Exchange and found out the situation was worse than she knew.

Then we went to Syria, and that was the first time I met with Iraqi families there…
The conditions of the Iraqis in Syria are indescribable…
The international organization's work there is limited and restricted, compared to the wide space they have in Jordan, in spite of some families' complaints because of the slowness and injustice of the given aid, but at least here there are some doors which the poor Iraqi family can knock upon in the hope that one of these doors might open to them…but in Syria, all doors are almost closed….

All my life I have never seen poverty like I saw among the Iraqis in Syria… widows or women who lost their sons because of criminal gangs and militias that entered Iraq after the occupation, and killed all Iraqis alike… whenever I met a woman who told her story while crying, I cried with her, at her situation, at the conditions of the sad Iraq, and at what happened to it; the destruction, the shredding. And when the women all gathered and we heard their stories with a member of the American delegation, I had my friend with me; Selma; a Turkish-American, a Muslim… I asked the women, with sorrow- but I had to ask the silly question: Are you Sunnies? Shia'ats?

It turned out they were a mixture of both sides…
This woman was a Sunnie; they threatened her and killed her son…and this is a Shia'at; threatened, and her husband was killed…
There is no difference; the Sunnies and the Shia'ats were displaced from Iraq to live side by side in exile, waiting for that who would pity them, give them a charity of food rations, a blanket, or a heater because winter is near, await some humanitarian organization to take care of their disabled children, or afflicted with cancer as a result of the depleted Uranium, with which the Iraqi environment is contaminated, since the Kuwait war in 1991, then the occupation war in 2003.

Faiza is running a project called Collateral Repair, in conjunction with some American supporters. If you can help out financial, they certainly will put your money to good use to try and help Iraqi refugees with micro-credit projects to start an income source for them. Please help if you can. This is particularly a good idea if you are wondering “what can I do about this situation?” You can made a big, big difference for a few of the Iraqi refugees.

Raed, with his blog called “Raed in the Middle” has some fine suggestions for contacting the US State Department and asking them some questions about the new Lakota Nation.

please ask them to make sure the press release answers some burning questions, like: *What should the new evil backwards separatist firebrand anti-american nation be called? *are we going to liberate them? preemptively strike them? pick on their human rights records? or make fun of the way they treat their women?

Riverbend has not posted since October, and last indications are that she is still a refugee in Syria. Last of Iraqis is still in Baghdad, and he is a 25 year old dentist who has decided that he will stay with Iraq, no matter what. That’s why he calls himself the ‘Last of Iraqis’. He does have a deep wish for the new year:

Today is the last day in 2007, the last day of a year filled with surprises and sudden changes for Iraq, a year with many explosions and terror, a year with many innocents death and many miseries but yet a year with some good achievements. as a new year begins, I wish peace will get back to the streets of Baghdad and Iraq in general, i wish that Iraqis could live like the rest of the world do, I wish that fanatics, terrorists, insurgents.....etc. call them whatever you want disappear, I just wish they disappear, I wish that anyone who wants to harm any human being disappear from the face of the earth, I wish the violence and the hatred in Iraq will go and be from the past like 2007 did, I wish everything is settled and the violence is over so the US government will have no excuse to stay in Iraq and Iraq can be as it used to be; a free, strong country.

I also posted this on Daily Kos blog.