HW 28: An Open Letter to Riverbend

Dear Riverbend,
After reading your posts throughout August in Baghdad Burning I have seen an entire new side of the War in Iraq. I am firmly against the war but prior to reading your book I really was only concerned about our troops and losses that they were facing. Your insights made me realize that what the troops are going through is by no means fair or just but it does not compare to what Iraqi civilians are going through on a daily basis. At the beginning of the war I was an arrogant and naïve American thinking justice had to be served and Saddam Hussein and Iraq had to be taken down. It is clear that you, and many other Iraqi’s knew what kind of disaster lay ahead. I gained the up most respect for you when you mentioned you do not hate American troops at all times because the majority of those young men are just like me and don’t think what their doing is right. I cannot imagine being in your shoes and having someone invade my hometown and waking up to gunshots and explosions. Being scared or worried to step outside of your own house and losing a job you loved for postwar reasons is something I most likely will never will experience. Your blogs have opened my eyes and I will never think of the war in Iraq the same. Your intelligence is far beyond the average American, and you have my sympathy, as the civilians of Iraq just want their everyday lives back.
-Joe