Wednesday, May 21, 2003
Recommended: "US troops eye Iraq's future with realism, philosophy"
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Headline: US troops eye Iraq's future with realism, philosophy
Byline: Warren Richey Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor
Date: 05/21/2003
(BAGHDAD)American soldiers in Iraq are learning firsthand that sometimes the
hardest part of writing history is not knowing how it will end.
There are few places in this war-torn country where the final outcome
of Operation Iraqi Freedom is more uncertain than in the heavily Shiite
Muslim neighborhoods of eastern Baghdad.
In Thawra, also called Sadr City by many of its Shiite residents, US
commanders are maneuvering their way through an ever-changing political
landscape.
Various Shiite clerics are sending conflicting signals to US officials,
telling military officers one thing and then acting and saying
something completely different to others. US troops also face an
ever-present threat from remnants of the Saddam Fedayeen, Baath Party
stalwarts, and a large group of armed criminals.
On the other side, the US government's Office of Reconstruction and
Humanitarian Assistance (ORHA) in Iraq seems to have adopted a go-slow
posture - perhaps, analysts say, to allow Iraqi infighting to sort
itself out before identifying appropriate local leaders.
Caught in the middle of this swirl of posturing and jockeying are US
soldiers - America's sons and daughters, mothers and fathers -
patrolling the front lines of the second phase of the war in Iraq.
Many are beginning to form opinions about what will likely be written
in the final chapter of Operation Iraqi Freedom.
The soldiers quoted here from the US Army's 2nd Armored Cavalry
Regiment are not Middle East experts, learned political scientists, or
foreign-policy specialists. They are simply a cross section of the US,
ordinary Americans who have had the benefit of two months on the ground
in Iraq seeing the situation for themselves.
Many of them have had to dodge bullets. All of them face the prospect
of a dangerous and uncertain stay in what to them is a very foreign
land.
Most see much painstaking work ahead - work that will hardly be
completed in a few months' time.
"As long as we are here, everything will be stable, but as soon as we
leave, another Saddam will pop up, and it is this thing all over
again," says Sgt. Eric Fitzgerald of Baltimore. "It will turn out like
another Bosnia or Kosovo."
Pvt. John Hecht of Merrill, Iowa, wants to know where the next
generation of Iraqi leaders are - the Iraqi version of America's James
Madison, Thomas Jefferson, and Alexander Hamilton. Men with courage and
vision and an honest conviction to place the goals of the nation above
those of any individual or faction.
"They need a strong leader who won't take sides," Private Hecht says.
The problem in Iraq, Hecht and others say, is that many of the most
talented potential leaders were discovered first by Saddam Hussein's
security service and executed.
Others see an important role for ordinary Iraqis. "The Iraqi people are
going to have to start taking care of themselves before this gets
better," says Pvt. William Craig of Neosho, Mo. "I don't know if the
new Iraqi government will be democratic," he says. "But if it doesn't
happen right away, I think five or 10 years down the road it will be
democratic."
Pvt. David Padilla of East Los Angeles, Calif., agrees on the task's
lengthy duration. "It's going to take 10 to 15 years," he says. "What
I'm hoping is we help the younger generation because ... the only way
we can help this country is through the kids."
He adds, "We're just helping them get their foot in the door. It is up
to them to save themselves."
Says Pvt. Joel Burden of Winter Park, Fla.: "We're here for 10 years of
occupation so the younger generation gets to understand what democracy
feels like and enjoy it," But he adds, "Then in 15 years, we will have
to come back and do the same thing all over again because war is
ingrained in these people."
If democracy comes to Iraq, Lt. Stephen Johnson of Lompoc, Calif., says
it will most likely be a "false democracy" with rigged elections. He
says there will be more freedom than under Mr. Hussein, "but a true
democracy is decades off."
The lieutenant adds, "I don't think we will be out of here until the
Palestinians and Israelis have peace."
"This place could be a paradise," observes Sgt. Herman Herrera of
Gunnison, Colo., but only as long as the US is willing to maintain a
military presence here.
"We are going to get the country above where Saddam had it," he says.
"But I believe it is going to go right down as soon as we leave."
(c) Copyright 2003 The Christian Science Monitor. All rights reserved.
Click here to email this story to a friend:
http://www.csmonitor.com/cgi-bin/send-story?2003/0521/p02s01-woiq.txt
The Christian Science Monitor-- an independent daily newspaper providing context and clarity on national and international news, peoples and cultures, and social trends. Online at http://www.csmonitor.com
Click here to order a free sample copy of the print edition of the Monitor:
http://www.csmonitor.com/aboutus/sample_issue.html
_________________________________________________________________________
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|
spliffslips@aol.com has recommended this article from
The Christian Science Monitor's electronic edition.
_________________________________________________________________________
-- ADVERTISEMENT --
SCS Insurance - since 1975. Providing Long Term Care Insurance, Medicare Supplement Insurance plans, SCS Care insurance for Christian Scientists, Life Insurance and more ... call 1(800) 631-7980 for free, no-obligation information or click the link below to email us.
http://www.csmonitor.com/bannerads/scs/p-scsform.html
_________________________________________________________________________
Click here to email this story to a friend:
http://www.csmonitor.com/cgi-bin/send-story?2003/0521/p02s01-woiq.txt
Click here to read this story online:
http://www.csmonitor.com/2003/0521/p02s01-woiq.html
Headline: US troops eye Iraq's future with realism, philosophy
Byline: Warren Richey Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor
Date: 05/21/2003
(BAGHDAD)American soldiers in Iraq are learning firsthand that sometimes the
hardest part of writing history is not knowing how it will end.
There are few places in this war-torn country where the final outcome
of Operation Iraqi Freedom is more uncertain than in the heavily Shiite
Muslim neighborhoods of eastern Baghdad.
In Thawra, also called Sadr City by many of its Shiite residents, US
commanders are maneuvering their way through an ever-changing political
landscape.
Various Shiite clerics are sending conflicting signals to US officials,
telling military officers one thing and then acting and saying
something completely different to others. US troops also face an
ever-present threat from remnants of the Saddam Fedayeen, Baath Party
stalwarts, and a large group of armed criminals.
On the other side, the US government's Office of Reconstruction and
Humanitarian Assistance (ORHA) in Iraq seems to have adopted a go-slow
posture - perhaps, analysts say, to allow Iraqi infighting to sort
itself out before identifying appropriate local leaders.
Caught in the middle of this swirl of posturing and jockeying are US
soldiers - America's sons and daughters, mothers and fathers -
patrolling the front lines of the second phase of the war in Iraq.
Many are beginning to form opinions about what will likely be written
in the final chapter of Operation Iraqi Freedom.
The soldiers quoted here from the US Army's 2nd Armored Cavalry
Regiment are not Middle East experts, learned political scientists, or
foreign-policy specialists. They are simply a cross section of the US,
ordinary Americans who have had the benefit of two months on the ground
in Iraq seeing the situation for themselves.
Many of them have had to dodge bullets. All of them face the prospect
of a dangerous and uncertain stay in what to them is a very foreign
land.
Most see much painstaking work ahead - work that will hardly be
completed in a few months' time.
"As long as we are here, everything will be stable, but as soon as we
leave, another Saddam will pop up, and it is this thing all over
again," says Sgt. Eric Fitzgerald of Baltimore. "It will turn out like
another Bosnia or Kosovo."
Pvt. John Hecht of Merrill, Iowa, wants to know where the next
generation of Iraqi leaders are - the Iraqi version of America's James
Madison, Thomas Jefferson, and Alexander Hamilton. Men with courage and
vision and an honest conviction to place the goals of the nation above
those of any individual or faction.
"They need a strong leader who won't take sides," Private Hecht says.
The problem in Iraq, Hecht and others say, is that many of the most
talented potential leaders were discovered first by Saddam Hussein's
security service and executed.
Others see an important role for ordinary Iraqis. "The Iraqi people are
going to have to start taking care of themselves before this gets
better," says Pvt. William Craig of Neosho, Mo. "I don't know if the
new Iraqi government will be democratic," he says. "But if it doesn't
happen right away, I think five or 10 years down the road it will be
democratic."
Pvt. David Padilla of East Los Angeles, Calif., agrees on the task's
lengthy duration. "It's going to take 10 to 15 years," he says. "What
I'm hoping is we help the younger generation because ... the only way
we can help this country is through the kids."
He adds, "We're just helping them get their foot in the door. It is up
to them to save themselves."
Says Pvt. Joel Burden of Winter Park, Fla.: "We're here for 10 years of
occupation so the younger generation gets to understand what democracy
feels like and enjoy it," But he adds, "Then in 15 years, we will have
to come back and do the same thing all over again because war is
ingrained in these people."
If democracy comes to Iraq, Lt. Stephen Johnson of Lompoc, Calif., says
it will most likely be a "false democracy" with rigged elections. He
says there will be more freedom than under Mr. Hussein, "but a true
democracy is decades off."
The lieutenant adds, "I don't think we will be out of here until the
Palestinians and Israelis have peace."
"This place could be a paradise," observes Sgt. Herman Herrera of
Gunnison, Colo., but only as long as the US is willing to maintain a
military presence here.
"We are going to get the country above where Saddam had it," he says.
"But I believe it is going to go right down as soon as we leave."
(c) Copyright 2003 The Christian Science Monitor. All rights reserved.
Click here to email this story to a friend:
http://www.csmonitor.com/cgi-bin/send-story?2003/0521/p02s01-woiq.txt
The Christian Science Monitor-- an independent daily newspaper providing context and clarity on national and international news, peoples and cultures, and social trends. Online at http://www.csmonitor.com
Click here to order a free sample copy of the print edition of the Monitor:
http://www.csmonitor.com/aboutus/sample_issue.html
_________________________________________________________________________
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