result #84642 - DO YOU BELIEVE WHAT THE MEDIA TELLS YOU ABOUT IRAQ OR DO YOU ACTUALLY ASK A SERVICE MEMBER WHAT IS GOING ON THERE TO GET A BETTER VIEWPOINT?

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result #84642 - DO YOU BELIEVE WHAT THE MEDIA TELLS YOU ABOUT IRAQ OR DO YOU ACTUALLY ASK A SERVICE MEMBER WHAT IS GOING ON THERE TO GET A BETTER VIEWPOINT?

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worst : culture : DO YOU BELIEVE WHAT THE MEDIA TELLS YOU ABOUT IRAQ OR DO YOU ACTUALLY ASK A SERVICE MEMBER WHAT IS GOING ON THERE TO GET A BETTER VIEWPOINT?

[+] serious ballot by jappy
ACTIVE Dec 16,2005 - Wed Sep 10, 08

This is something a lot of people should really think about, especially a few of the idiot senators/congressmen who seem to have a completely ignorant viewpoint of what is happening here.

Before I start, let me tell you what we do, day after day we escort Iraqi workers in the area we are in, from 0700 in the morning till sometimes nearly 1900 at night, we talk at great length about politics, religion, history, many topics. And yes, I know, 2 of those topics are SUPPOSED to be off limits, but conversation almost always ends up back on those topics, and it's good conversation, we don't really have arguments about anything. The Iraqi people are absolutely amazing, they are dynamic, intelligent, very hard working, family oriented (VERY family oriented, even in the work place), and proud. Rightfully so that they are proud, something a lot of westerners do not realize is that Iraq has at times thoughout history been the most powerful civilization on the planet, from the earliest known civilization of Ur, to the Sumerians, to the Babylonians, and others. So rightfully so they are very proud of their culture, and with the right government they can easily achieve status today.

Let me give you what I SEE from being here the last couple of months:

The VAST majority of Iraqi people realize the need for having American and other coalition soldiers here, to help stabilize things until they can get up on their own feet.

The media loves to ask misleading questions, like rather than ask the public if they NEED Americans here, they ask a completely preposterous question like "Do you like having American soldiers here?", which has an obvious answer, because they don't LIKE having us here even if they understand the reason for us being here, no more than WE like BEING here.

The main people running the insurgency are the former ruling party, the Baa-th party members. From what the local Iraqi's tell us (who are mostly Shiite, some Sunni), most of the Sunni are willing to try and work with the Shiites, they are just scared to death of repercussions by the Shiites for the oppressive rule of Saddam. They say that Baa-th party members though, are completely against the new government, not because it's a puppet government of the United States, but because they don't have any power, and they shouldn't, Baa-th members make up such a small minority of the overall background of Iraq, they will never again have the power they once had. So they continue to brainwash the youth to do car bombs and suicide bombs, or pay people to lay out explosives beside the road to try and kill coalition troops. It is not even remotely the majority of Iraqi's that support the insurgency. If you ask a local here, they will tell you that 95% of the people of Iraq would never support that, perhaps even a higher percentage, because all they seem to end up doing is killing innocent Iraqi's now.

The reason for this, is that even when you hear about these people being killed one day, or some killed another day, there were MORE people dying under Saddam every day during his regime. Also, this idea that "100,000 innocent Iraqi's have died due to American Forces..." is crazy, and THAT is from comments by Iraqis.

Ali, an engineer we work with, wondered why it is that the total number of deaths attributed to this 'war' includes the civilians killed by suicide bombers and other insurgency methods. I hadn't thought of that before, but he's right.

It's amazing to see how all the workers will race to the nearest radio on the hour to hear the newest developments from the Saddam trial, or to watch an Iraqi, a grown man, break down and cry if you ask him about his thoughts on Saddam.

I asked a man, a Nazarene, who had just spent 10 years in Germany because he was exiled by Saddam, about what Saddam had done under his rule, and this was his response, "How many days do you have" he said slowly, thoughtfully, days to listen to him talk about the many many horrible things that Saddam had done. The sadness you will see on someone's face when they talk about loved ones that they TO THIS DAY have never seen again, THAT is why I know what we are doing is right.

FXCK weapons of mass destruction, okay? And sorry, but not even 9/11 compares to this, Americans who talk about how '9/11 has nothing to do with Iraq', you should realize how selfish you look to Iraqi people who went thru that sort of hell EVERY DAY for more than 30 years under Saddam, and now have the chance for a representative government, where their voice matters.

I've said a lot more here than I started off intending to, but I think you get my point. The media makes it's money through controversy, and there isn't much controversy when you show an American soldier giving a child a soda, or candy, or digging trenches to install sewage pipes for a town that has never had a sewer system... there are literally a thousand stories like this for every bad thing you hear about. The media needs 'the bad' to sell it's papers, to keep people watching it's 24 hour news stations. Imagine how devastating it was for them that the elections here were so quiet and successful? That had to suck for them.

So, does it not make a little more sense to talk to a servicemember than to someone from the media about what really happens over here???

I trust Iraqis more	12
Yes, a service member has a better viewpoint	4
No, I still trust the media more	2
I try to listen to every side possible	2
I do my own research	2

Ballot #84642: has 22 total votes.
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COMMENTS:
Another really interesting thought that I forgot to add above...

Right now the Baa-th members are working with the al Qaida and al Zarqaw, which is really odd when you think about it.

How you ask? Well, Baa-th members are fighting for secular power, where as al Zarqaw and al Qaida are fighting for power under the guise of religion (which, I might add, is complete and total bullshit).

The funny thing is this fact: If the United States left, right now, those two groups would be hunted down and destroyed, along with it, thousands of Sunni would likely die, because the Shiite majority is very angry, number one about 30 years of what the Baa-th party did to them, missing loved ones, torture, etc, and now they are very angry about the al Qaida's continued attacks on innocent people in marketplaces, mosques, etc.

So how strange is it that the United States being here is actually protecting the very people who work hardest to kill US servicemen and women? That folks, is yet ANOTHER bit of irony that the media tends to ignore.

by jappy on Fri Dec 16, 05 9:40pm [+]

Bah, and I forgot, if the US left, Baa-th and al Quaid would go to war with one another, because the only mutually inclusive part of their current fight is that they are fighting the United States, so if the US was suddenly out of the equation, nothing they are fighting for matches.

by jappy on Fri Dec 16, 05 9:42pm [+]

I don't understand where the quotation marks are supposed to be in your description. Are you in Iraq right now?

by Applerod on Fri Dec 16, 05 11:05pm [+]

I've asked my brother questions about Iraq, and he does not like to talk about it that much

by larrynelmira on Fri Dec 16, 05 11:41pm [+]

I get my info on the war from a variety of sources.

by FiddleFaddleOnLSD on Sat Dec 17, 05 3:22am [+]

Although... the mainstream media ranks a bit lower on the list.

by FiddleFaddleOnLSD on Sat Dec 17, 05 3:23am [+]

You say all this Jappy, however the polls in Iraq say that the majority see the US as an occupation force and theywish to have self determination as asoon as possible.

by Steelhamster on Sat Dec 17, 05 4:42am [+]

You trust the media?
The media that select(from many items) which news items to run by you.
and which NOT.

ou've obviously never worked in the media!

Trust me... the media gives you what The Powers That Be want you to know about, in that specified form.
Don't be so gullible, please.

by aplmac on Sat Dec 17, 05 5:13am [+]

"Right now the Baa-th members are working with the al Qaida and al Zarqaw, which is really odd when you think about it."

Odd? not really.

There's an old saying among Arabs, and it goes something like this.
and it ranks in this order of priority.

Me against my brother.
Me and my brother against my cousin.
Me, my bro. and my cousin against the rest of the family.
Me and my family against the rest of the Arab nation.
Me and my Arab nation against other Arab nations.
Me, my bro., and all Arab nations, against the rest of the world.

In other words, always fighting and squabbling (mainly over water-holes, which is how it all started!),
and convenient, ever-changing alliances are just another daily routine out there in sand land.

by aplmac on Sat Dec 17, 05 5:18am [+]

I don't know any of the media people over there. I DO know seven soldiers on station there, though. Trust the ones you know...

by Truthseeker013 on Sat Dec 17, 05 6:03am [+]

I would trust what an Iraqi living in Iraq says is going on more than what the American media says, or what you say.

by Mithrandir on Sat Dec 17, 05 8:00am [+]

^yeah, you can talk to Iraqis on line, I think people should do.

by larrynelmira on Sat Dec 17, 05 8:39am [+]

"You say all this Jappy, however the polls in Iraq say that the majority see the US as an occupation force and theywish to have self determination as asoon as possible."

Uh, thanks for reiterating what I just said, Hamster. Again, polls are designed to give the desired answer that those giving the surveys are looking for, hence the idiotic nature of that one you just quoted. What did they ask them? "Do you like having American troops occupying your land?" What are they supposed to say "HELL YAH!! I LOVE IT"??? I don't think so. It's like putting up a poll on bestandworst and having only one option without the ability to add options.

by jappy on Sun Dec 18, 05 1:46am [+]

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