The life in that city is based on ethnic hatred, and its bad, but its improved, still the cleansing goes on, and hospital care outside of the IZ at 28 CSH is dismal, due to the Sunni vs Shiite, not because of the US or Coalition Forces.
Instability is caused by the unrest of the Sunni vs Shiite, and both are as bad as one another. We had this one LEC, Ahmed, 21, skinny as a rake, but polite and a good worker. He made over $80US a week, for them thats good money. Strangley enough, he was 1/2 Sunni and 1/2 Shiite, we used to joke within ourselves, saying when he gets mad, he wants to kill himself, ha! Thats the insanity of it all.
Our translator was paid $400 per week, plus he ran a shop, and had his fingers in the pie of other things. Corruption in all levels of their society is rife, and always was and will be. Its cultural. He was a former officer in the old regimes's army, and was in the push to Kuwait in 1990. Many locals work, and get excellent pay, including thoes hired as day labourers for rebuilding, and that is evident everywhere, as many parts of the city are being fixed up and rebuilt. I don't see that on the news.
Sure the average wages might be low, but things are cheap there, and some people do not have jobs, and are bad off, look at poverty in our own cities and the homeless. Baghdad does have tonnes of serious issues, I cannot deny that, but considering what has gone on there since 1979, its been down hill since the 80-88 war, as the regime got fat, the people paid for it, many with their lives.
Suprisingly some suburbs are semi-calm, while others are still a violent place for anyone.
As for poverty, while thats a fact, and again this was present long before Saddam, and the ghettos which are common are bad, beyond a joke, again full of hatred for each sect of muslims which semi-co-exist.
The poverty will always be there, nothing will change that.
Power and water are there within the general population of greater Baghdad. Outages for both power and water do happen, and it might be on/off a various times, but overall reliable.
In country areas (not far from the city), I observed many many many primitive mud huts (ya, the same 'blue prints' used when Christ was a CPL), no power, and very much lived in. There had never been power there (even when the old regime was in power), and if so, it would be by private generator.
The media are always quick to make things worse than what they are, and thats from my 207 days of living in Baghdad. Sure, we experienced some wild times, and seen things no one ever should, but thats war. I have zero respect and zero tolerance for the media, and as far as I am concerned, they have Coalition blood on their filthy hands. All are gutless spineless lifesucking misery mongers, who obviously thrive on contraversy, exageration, and misconception, all to glorify and sensationalise a story for what? Ratings! Which is not even really news. The truth is really never being told, shy of the casualties, and at times these casualties are brought on by the attitude and stories they carry, and thats both Coalition Forces and the locals. They should hang their heads in shame!
I rate this story in the link a 1/10 if that, and a 9/10 for the obvious Democrat propaganda. Too bad they don't do stories on positive stuff there, like reconstruction, and cohesion, rather than focusing on the negative stuff. I guess the negitivity sells, and buys Democratic votes.
IMHO, more good goes on there then bad, but bad gets the news.
Shops are open, and bakeries, as are markets (for everything from car parts to veggies to clothing) , police are on street corners, and traffic at times is full on busy. Over 4,000,000 residents. Its a city being reborn, but slowly, and violence is a way of life. Corruption, criminals, terrorists, and the innocent all in one basket. Remember, householders are entitled to one AKM assault rifle, and look what happens when they win a soccer game! The sky is flooded with hot lead, and then we hear of how many were killed by stray gunfire.
So, believe what you want.
Now do I have an attitude about the media? Yes. Am I bitter and twisted about the media? Yes, and I always will be.
My 2 cents,
Wes
