I am very happy to bring you part two of a series of posts featuring questions and answers from American Soldiers and Iraqis. In Part one Baghdad resident, Iraqi blogger and journalist 24 steps to liberty had a list of questions for Sergeant Tim Boggs who is currently serving his second tour of duty in Iraq and blogging from somewhere near Mosul.

In part two Sgt. Boggs has a list of his own questions for 24. Here is their latest exchange:

Sgt. Boggs: Do you have any relationships with Americans, whether soldiers or civilians in Iraq right now?

 

24 Steps: Yes. I work with them daily. Civilians I mean.

 

Sgt. Boggs: Do Iraqis have any misconceptions about Americans that you know about?

 

24 Steps: Yes. I know many Iraqis who think the Americans came to Iraq to fight “Islam” and steal the country’s wealth and also to make it easier for Israel to grow safe in the region! You know, the traditional conspiracy theory.

Sgt. Boggs: What do you think America has done best in Iraq?

24 Steps: Gave me the freedom to choose between being a loser and fighting my way to be a successful and productive human being. I chose the second one!

Sgt. Boggs: What do you think has been America’s biggest mistake in Iraq?

 

24 Steps: Not paying attention to the youth and only depend on the old-fashioned politicians, who haven’t witnessed the changes in the community and economy in Iraq for the last 40 years. As a matter of fact, I am still amazed how little they gave to and took from the youth of this country. Who said politicians and advisors should be at least 40 years old? It is my friends and I who suffered here and it is us who know how to deal with it. It is us who know exactly what we need to continue living, not only the outsiders who didn’t know, and still don’t know what Baghdad or any other city in the country looks like from behind the curtain.

Sgt. Boggs: Would you rather America never came into Iraq in the first place?

 

24 Steps: No. without that, I wouldn’t be freely expressing myself and thoughts with you now.

Sgt. Boggs: Do you think a unified Iraq (Sunni, Shia, and Kurds living together under one government) is possible?

 

24 Steps: No. when we mention sects and religions, that means we have differences. If you ask me about “Iraqis” it would be a different answer. I just don’t know why should we care about religion and backgrounds!

Sgt. Boggs: A lot of people accuse Americans of being intolerant of other people’s cultures and religions, however, in my experience Iraqis seem to be even more intolerant
and nationalistic then Americans. Do you agree with me or do you see this where you live?

 

24 Steps: Yes. People with more than 7000 years of history and heritage cannot understand or justify how fast their culture was destroyed and for no reason!

 

Sgt. Boggs: In my experience a lof of American soldiers have no clue why they are in Iraq and have no clue what is at stake in your country. I believe their lack of knowledge is their own fault and I blame them for not accurately researching what is going on and why. Do you see this as a fault of some of your own countrymen?

 

24 Steps: No. no one has come to me and asked me to lecture American soldiers in Iraq’s history or traditions. When this happens and I refuse, them it would be my fault.

 

Sgt. Boggs: Where do you see Iraq in 5-10 years?

 

24 Steps: The same place it is in now!

 

 

Sgt. Boggs: How do you think Iraqi history will look upon what Americans have tried to do in your country?

 

 

24 Steps: History books for most of the time lie. Also, it depends on what country’s history we are talking about? For instance, I believe the Iraqi Shiite books will say America and its allies helped Iraq rid its people of Saddam Hussein and create justice and democracy. The Sunnis books will say America invaded Iraq and destroyed its infrastructure and killed its people. The American books will say that America has paid sacrifices and money to build a new democracy in the Middle East and rid it of one of the strongest dictatorships ever. They are all right by the way.

 

 

Sgt. Boggs: Do you have any advice to American soldiers who are in Iraq right now or will come in the future?

 

24 Steps: For those who are in Iraq now, I say “take care and be safe. Thank you.”

 

 

For those who are yet to come, I say “try to learn more about this country’s culture. Half of the time, you can win people by just showing them that you care and know about their life and traditions. Take care and thank you.”

 

 

I hope to have more of these exchanges for you in the near future. If you have questions or something you would like to say to either of these brave men who are fighting for a better future in Iraq, please leave them in the comment section.

 

***Update***

 

Gateway Pundit has another great post today that puts the American Military and Iraqi civilian death tolls in perspective compared to other wars. Every person killed is a tragedy and my heart breaks every time I hear the new reports of violence from my Iraqi friends 24 Steps to Liberty and Treasure of Baghdad. I doubt these graphs will mean much to them and cliches are hard to swallow when your friends and family are the ones that are dying.

That makes it all the more important for those of us who are removed from the violence to keep some perspective and understand that although horrible on a personal level the death toll in Iraq is very low compared to other recent conflicts.

We must to continually remind ourselves and our Iraqi friends of the choice they are facing. They can either submit to Islamofascists and would be dictators who wish to imprison them all again and who will not give up power easily, or they must fight for their freedom and their safety. They must fight to live in a free Iraq. They must fight for their their childrens future.