View from the ground

"Because I have been serving for nearly 18 months in Iraq, I have a greater sensitivity to the debate in the media about the war.


Iraqis work on a new water treatment plant for the Sadr City section of Baghdad, which has become a bright spot in U.S. security efforts. It seems it is an obligation that I should share a different perspective from what the media focus on. My views are not those of someone who has 'visited' Baghdad for a few days, as some pundits have. I serve in the day-to-day, sometimes monotonous battle for freedom. As a simple grunt colonel, I don't have the power of the press, but I certainly have the power and responsibility to express my perspective and opinion.
I'm concerned by the recent wave of attacks on President Bush, Congress and others for going to war and, now, for pursuing it to a successful conclusion. Several factors seem to be contributing to the criticism, including the political motivation of the critics and the 'instant news' in this shake-and-bake, ever-flattening world. "

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