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Report On Iraq by Jeff Smith

Today, we were blessed with a phone call from our son and brother who is now in Irbil, Iraq, east of Mosul. He and his brothers in the 37th Engineer Battalion, Combat, Airborne, are providing security for Light Equipment Engineers and Heavy Equipment Engineers who are repairing an airfield for the Iraqi people there in Irbil.

My daughter called me at work to tell me to come home right away. I was sitting down fortunately, and I asked her what she meant and why. She said her big brother Ryan was on the phone calling from Iraq. My office is only 7 or 8 minutes from home, so I made a batcave exit in my trusty

4-Runner and arrived home in about 4 minutes. Hmm, I think the local traffic cops are still looking for me.

It was wonderful to talk to him, hear his voice, know that he is alright, and that his unit is doing well in spite of the 115 degree temperature in the shade, the sand attacking their weapons, eating MRE's every day, lack of sleep, the intermittent mortar attacks by insurgents, and the long days looking over their shoulders in Mosul and Irbil.

When I asked him what happened when the Hussein brothers were captured and subsequently killed resisting arrest, he said his guys didn't even know it was happening. They were in a different part of the city at an OP (Observation Post) manning machine guns and watching the population there while protecting soldiers working in the streets and repairing infrastructure. He informed us that Mosul is about 8 - 9 million people and Irbil is quite smaller at about 8 - 900,000. We had no idea that Mosul is that large. Even little Irbil is about three times larger than our town of Left-ington, KY.

When asked about the population over there and their attitude towards our troops, he again stated that the people are very glad we are there and that Hussein is history. They were very accommodating and friendly. He said that in Irbil they are friendly also, even more so since they are about 85% Kurdish Muslim while Mosul is about 80% Arab Muslim. Even so, he said the people in Mosul were great too. He mentioned that the Kurdish people are the largest ethnic minority in the world without a country of their own. Regarding relations with the Iraqi people he once again stated that it was Baghdad where they felt the most tension but were welcomed by many Iraqis there also. Of course, that was in early April on the way up North from Kuwait. He described Baghdad as "intense".

My son said, now get this, their "arms are tired from waving so much". Did you get that? Their arms are tired from doing so much waving to the appreciative Iraqi people! He said it is like a 4th of July parade every day and they are the stars, our troops. Heh heh heh. Why am I not surprised that this is the opposite of what the media are shoving down our throats? I am not surprised at all, and am happy that he and his comrades are seeing first hand how the media lie and deceive and focus only on the negative to promote their leftist agendas. There could be no better political school for these young men anywhere. Thanks liberal media for once again proving Mario correct, see www.patriotvocals.info, and for providing an invaluable education for our young protectors of freedom.

Regarding the reports coming out of Iraq from the mainstream liberal media, he said that he had received a package from our neighbor Shannon, and in it was a Time magazine dedicated to the War in Iraq. What he said next pleased me as it let me know they are not letting the negativity of the media get them down. He said it was "pretty funny", indicating that they treated this "news publication" like a comedy magazine since it was so far off the mark. I got a kick out of that. I won't be so careful about what I send them in the area of news now since I know it is not getting them down.

Regarding the ASP (Ammo Supply Point) they were destroying, he said that they are just about done with that mission, one of the most dangerous in Iraq since it required the destruction of everything from missiles to mortars to small arms and ammo. He said that one of the Sergeants in his Battalion had to be sent stateside after receiving internal organ damage due to the concussion from a large blast - I guess he was too close. Another troop had a shrapnel injury and yet another had a smoke inhalation injury, but all in all, they are faring well. Bravo Company will be going up to Mosul to replace his Charlie Company that is now in Irbil on the latest mission there. His platoon of combat engineers will move back to Mosul to switch places with their "brother platoon" from Bravo Company once the Irbil mission is completed by his Charlie Company.

He said they are now staying in a military establishment called "Key West" by night and convoying up to Irbil by day to work airfield protection and patrols. Their living conditions in Key West are being upgraded with Iraqis helping to do the work. There are Iraqi entrepreneurs with food stands set up as well as other innovative businesses like renting the use of cell phones to call home. He commented that these people are very resourceful having lived under tyranny and poverty for so many decades. They know how to survive. Their tenacity impressed him.

I let something slip while talking to my son and felt bad about it later. I informed him of the new "smoking ban" in LEFT-ington (formerly Lexington) that makes it illegal to smoke in any public place, except of course, the government buildings that have designated smoking areas. Man, was he upset. Here he is putting it all on the line to provide MORE freedoms for the people of Iraq, while his hometown will welcome him home with LESS freedoms for this American soldier. How ironic indeed. He said some soldier might put on his class-A uniform and go downtown to a bar and light up when some soldier returns. Hmm, that would be interesting. I can read the headlines now...

... "Soldier Returns from Iraq and is Arrested for Smoking in LEFT-ington KY Bar". Hmm! How ridiculous!

If any of you wish to send something to the troops, get it to me. I am not going to publish the address, but will be glad to forward anything you wish to send, even if it is merely a thank you note. They are "jonesing" for entertainment. They have a dvd player and have picked up a tv that they can watch "en masse". They would like dvd movies - action films, comedies, Adam Sandler movies, classics by John Wayne, Gregory Peck, Jimmy Stewart, etc. Also, Gatorade mix (blue is best), beef jerky, newspapers and magazines, books, cans of tuna, the kits of tuna and crackers, cigarettes, handy wipes, cookies, Peanut M & M's, etc.

He said that the boxes we have been sending take about a month, and the envelopes seem to be taking about 2 weeks or so. If you are interested, email me at freeourpows@yahoo.com or jds@intermaxcomputer.com.

Please say a prayer for our troops and for their families, especially the families that are suffering the supreme sacrifice. It is the soldier that keeps us free, not the reporter or the entertainer.

God bless America.

Yours in Liberty - 

Provided by God,

Saved by Jesus Christ,

and Preserved by the American Veteran,

Mario 

Take heed that no man deceive you.
Matthew 24:4

Speaking of not letting anyone deceive you, REMEMBER - Captain Michael Scott Speicher, POW in Iraq since 1991, has yet to be found. www.freescottspeicher.com

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