Letter from the 82nd Airborne Division

This gives me some hope.  If it's accurate, and I trust it is
at LEAST as accurate as CNN or CBS or FOX
or anything from that ilk, it paints a more hopeful picture. 
>>>>><<<<<<<< 
The following is an excerpt from a military flier and paper
distributed by the 82d Airborne Division. 
It is about as factual as one could expect from people
literally in the midst of it all.  You know, from the 
horse's mouth, etc. 

~~~~~~~~~  ** ~~~~~~~~~ 

Rip another page off your calendars!  August was a tough month
for the Regiment and we're glad to have 
it over with.  The troopers who were here will never forget
the heat of 6-12 August when thermometers 
pegged out at 136 degrees on the 10th and averaged 133 the
whole period.  It was a mistake to let bare 
skin touch metal - you would come away with a blister.  Even
so, the little Iraqi children cheerfully 
scurried across the blacktop in their bare feet. The kids are
something.  They are always smiling and 
waving.  Troopers get a kick out of them running to the street
and saying 'Hey mister, mister, chocolate - 
you give me chocolate'.  Of course, they have already learned
GI slang and some of the boys practice 
spitting to imitate paratroopers. 

It will probably have US troops there for at least another
couple of years, so the Army has decided to 
spruce it up.  We are going to throw up barracks (with flush
toilets even!) and then build up quality of life 
additions around ourselves. 

Part of 2nd Battalion will remain in a Ba'athist compound that
they are in now - at least for a while.  We 
may turn that spot into a recreation area later. 

I wanted to take a few lines and explain the big picture of
this operation as I see it.  Our nation has asked 
the US military to do some seriously heavy lifting - with the
help of some staunch coalition partners.  The 
global War on Terror is an extremely ambitious undertaking on
par with liberating the continent of Europe 
while simultaneously defeating the Japanese in the Pacific
during WW II.  This war is about ending 
terrorism and the culture that breeds it. To do that, we had
to come to the source. 

Some say that there was absolutely no connection between
terrorism and Saddam's regime.  If that's so, 
how did  Abu Nidal, the most notorious terrorist of the 80's
and 90's, find sanctuary here in Baghdad until 
he died last year?  How did Ansar Al Islam, a radical
surrogate of Al Queda, operate training camps in 
Northern Iraq until 83 of them were killed by US Special
Operation Forces.  How was it that our forces 
found Al Queda training materials including recipes for bio
toxins here?  Who bombed the Jordanian 
embassy, the UN building, and the Shia mosque in Al Najaf? 
> 
In spite of what you hear from the hyped up election year
media, we are winning this fight.  At the tactical 
level, your loved ones are conducting operations every night
that directly target the remains of Saddam's 
murderous regime, along with those who seek to prolong the
post-combat chaos in Baghdad for their own 
personal gain. 
> 
We have hired almost 2000 Iraqis who are working alongside of
our troopers every day to preserve 
security and protect critical infrastructure.  We have
recruited and are now training the first members of 
the Iraqi Civil Defense Corps and the new Iraqi Army.  There
are now almost 6000 Iraqi policemen in 
Baghdad and training will continue until there are 16,500.  In
AO Falcon, we have also started our own 
security force called Neighborhood Watch.  We recruited men
from each neighborhood to protect their 
families and property from criminals and enemy fighters. 
There are now over 1300 men who prevent evil 
doers from entering the Al Rasheed community. We have also
formed both Neighborhood and District 
Advisory Councils made up of Iraqi citizens who support our
cause and they are beginning to take charge 
of their own affairs.  The fledgling representative government
is taking shape and the Iraqis are learning 
that freedom, prosperity and Islam can in fact co-exist. 
> 
Each of these groups is beginning to understand that the
propaganda being spread by the anti-coalition 
media is simply not true. We are not here for their oil, or to
destroy their religion or install a Jewish 
government. 
> 
They now  understand that what was caused by 35 years of
neglect and decay cannot be repaired 
overnight.  They have come to know our troopers for what they
are: decent, caring, honorable people who 
treat everyone with dignity and respect unless given reason
not to.  They also realize this - the absolute 
worst thing that could ever happen to them is to have American
Paratroopers as their enemies. 
> 
The Iraqis of our district are learning that they can trust
us. Consequently, they are no longer afraid to 
approach us with the information we need to eliminate the
resistance fighters.  The Iraqi people remain 
our best sources of intelligence.  Because of this, we have
transitioned from a strategy of near 
continuous presence on the streets to one of precision. We are
no longer alienating innocent Iraqis by 
conducting searches of entire city blocks.  Instead, we wait
until we know for sure, and then strike 
quickly to snatch our enemies from their hiding places. 
> 
Every hospital and clinic in Baghdad is now operating.  The
coalition is printing 5 million new textbooks, 
handing out school supplies to 1.2 million children and 
rehabilitating 1000 schools.  Iraq is producing 
over 1 million barrels of oil a day.  For the first time in
history, Baghdad has a garbage collection service. 
Power production has jumped from 300 mega-watts per day after
liberation to 3300 mega-watts per day. 
There are 1.3 million Iraqis drawing salaries, 92,000
receiving social security payments, and 90,000 
working to clear irrigation canals of obstructions. 
> 
So the next time you listen to the presidential contenders and
media - with their predictions of another 
Viet Nam, failure and hysteria, you know the real deal. 
Military campaigns are never easy - and replacing 
a tyrannical dictatorship with a democracy where one has never
before existed is especially difficult.  But, 
our troopers are making it happen and making it matter. 
> 
We will not fail and with the help of the Iraqi people, we
will finish this fight and head on home. 
> 
Let's Go! 
xxxxx 

~~~~~~~~~  ** ~~~~~~~~~