Soldier in Iraq

[thedrifter]

Passionate Ltr From A Grunt To Sec State Powell



Sent: Wed 9/24/2003 4:30 AM

To: secretary@state.gov

Subject: Soldier in Iraq

Honorable Mr. Powell,

A cancer has begun to spread in the military - especially those currently serving in Iraq. Sir, that cancer - as you probably already are aware of - is the dissatisfaction of service members for having been lied to by our Commander in Chief and his staff.

Sir, we know now that this war was not about Weapons of Mass Destruction. Sir, we know that this war was not about terrorism. Sir, we are unsure anymore of what exactly this war was about.

No one serving with me over here will deny that the removal of Saddam Hussein and his regime of tyrants was a great thing and we are proud of what we accomplished. I will continue to serve my country with honor and I am proud of the men and women and civilians with whom I work. They are all heroes.

But the men and women of Iraq know why we are here. They are very intelligent people and are able to see right through the lies that our President used to justify this war. That is why they view us now as an occupying force and believe it is their Muslim duty to fight us. Sir, you see the trends probably better than I do as an Intelligence Analyst. The attacks are on the rise and it is not the former Ba'ath party members conducting them. The attack last week on a convoy near Al Fallujah that killed 3 soldiers was carried out by a local man fighting for his Islamic belief. He left behind a letter to his family telling them not to mourn his death, but to rejoice it in the name of Allah. The people in his neighborhood call him a martyr. Sir, my unit commander visited the Abu Ghurayb prison to see the damage done by a mortar shell which killed 2 soldiers. His convoy took a wrong turn which took them through a nearby neighborhood. The people were unfriendly and some shouted, "Die, Americans! Die!".

Sir, I am wondering how you sleep at night knowing that America's sons and daughters are being wounded and killed every day by a people that we "Liberated" and for reasons that were untrue. I can see it in your eyes whenever you are before a camera. You are a good man and you were a great General. You need to speak out, sir. You need to tell us the truth. I know we are not going to be pulled out of Iraq any time soon. I can live with that and continue to do my job honorably if only we can hear the truth. That is all I ask for. And you, Mr. Secretary, will be viewed as a hero again.

Respectfully,

SSG United States Army

http://www.sftt.org/cgi-bin/csNews/c....6142768483455


Sempers,

Roger