[Am-info] Fwd: Letter from an Army Chaplain in Iraq

[John J. Urbaniak]

John Angelico wrote:

>My last post <g> on this is a fwd fwd from INSIDE Iraq 
>

What an inspiration on the good things being done for the Iraqi people 
who have sffered so much.

And what a condemnation of our media, who for ideological purposes, 
refuse to give the truth.  I ask leaders of NBC, ABC, CBS, CNN, 
Hollywood and even leaders of the Democratic Party,  "Have you no shame?"

John

>
>Best regards
>John Angelico
>OS/2 SIG
>talldad@kepl.com.au
>________________________
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>
><>Letter from an Army Chaplain in Iraq:
>
>Dear Friends and Family:
>
>I am addressing this letter to you to express a frustration that I know 
>has been voiced time and again, yet is met with little change. It 
>concerns the media coverage of this war and the effect of that coverage 
>on the morale of our troops. As a battalion chaplain I hear the comments 
>and complaints of soldiers who, while performing an incredibly difficult 
>job under hostileand stressful conditions, constantly see their efforts 
>portrayed as futile. NBC's coverage this morning (your Thursday evening, 
>16 September 2004) is a prime example that I believe shows the gulf that 
>exists between the truth of what is happening here and the deceitful 
>agenda of the mainstream media at home and abroad.
>
>Only 24 hours ago the NBC media crew arrived here and filmed hours of 
>footage with our unit. They were told of numerous projects in which our 
>unit is involved, not only in the area of force protection and Troop 
>Medical Clinic support, but also in humanitarian aide to a local village 
>here in Baghdad. Here is an example of some of the projects to which 
>they were introduced:
>
>1. The reconstruction and furnishing of a clinic
>2. Miscellaneous enhancements for a local elementary school and a local 
>day care center
>3. Reconstruction of the decimated electrical, sewer and water systems
>4. Reparation of exterior walls and gates surrounding the village
>5. Rubble and garbage removal projects to clean up the entire village
>6. Construction of a protective chain link fence around the local Shi'a 
>Mosque
>7. Studies to examine the development of agricultural systems and a 
>garment industry to help the locals provide for themselves
>8. The ever-growing clothing and school supplies drive for the children 
>of the village
>
>In the roughly one minute clip that they drew from their day of filming, 
>what did they show? The First Lieutenant who is the primary driver of 
>these projects was shown with one quote about never believing he would 
>be in Iraq, being a National Guard soldier. This was followed by their 
>interview of another soldier's wife, saying her husband was supposed to 
>have retired this summer, that his responsibility to the military should 
>be over and that he should be home. They showed NOTHING of the great 
>humanitarian efforts that are going on here!
>
>It is coverage like this that is convincing more and more soldiers that 
>the consistent media agenda is to show you, the American people, the 
>futility of our current efforts and how everything is going wrong. There 
>is no apparent attempt to show all the good that is happening that, for 
>those of us who are here, far outweighs the very weak, though 
>spectacular, moments of insurgency. And we see it via satellite, just as 
>you do. In a day of great violence across the country, last Sunday, 
>where the insurgency failed to take one American life, what one film 
>clip was shown over and over? They showed the lone burning Bradley 
>fighting vehicle, with Iraqis dancing on and around it, waving flags of 
>the insurgency. Out of the thousands of troops who made it safely around 
>Baghdad and the country that day, the media focused on one piece of 
>impressive footage and repeated it over and over until the viewer 
>receives the message that this is all that went on in Iraq today - an 
>insurgent victory. I also remember how the body count, for two days 
>thereafter, was printed in ever-increasing increments, never mentioning 
>who the casualties were - giving the impression that they were American 
>casualties.
>
>The despair and depression, as well as the thankfully limited anti-war 
>sentiment, over our country's efforts in Iraq are not based upon all of 
>the facts. They are rather based on what the media has chosen to show - 
>and what they have chosen NOT to show. The media knows that they can 
>always find those willing to complain, grouse, protest and disagree. And 
>they splash those voices all over their screens and pages, drowning out 
>the voices that will tell you, as I am, that there is good going on here.
>
>There are things going on here you would be proud of, things that would 
>bring tears to your eyes; like the looks of parents whose children are 
>going to school for the first time in years, equipped with pencils, pens 
>and paper and clothed with clean new clothes. There are essential 
>services being provided to people to whom they were denied under the 
>oppressive regime of Saddam Hussein. There is a trial going on for that 
>man and at least eleven of his evil cronies who, let us remember, killed 
>over 300,000 people under the watchful eye of the United Nations (pun 
>intended) during the 12 years they had responsibility for the health and 
>welfare of this nation (yes, the same, inept organization that is 
>currently ignoring the Darfur, Sudan, slaughter of Christians by Islamic 
>fundamentalists). This was the same time that the oil-for-food program 
>monies were being used to line the pockets of Saddam and his friends and 
>build luxurious palaces like the ones our forces now occupy as he had 
>quarters all over this nation. And Saddam all the while complained that 
>it was "American Sanctions" that were killing his people. I don't 
>remember a sanction that required a mass grave.
>
>Please know that the media is NOT giving you the right picture, much 
>less the WHOLE picture. They have an agenda, it is clear, and that 
>agenda does not include the current administration claiming success in 
>this endeavor.  It is unclear if their sensationalist "reporting" will 
>change if the administration changes. The one thing I know as I watch 
>the morale of the men who are here doing the job is that every time the 
>enemy's paltry attacks are made out by the media to be marker events in 
>Iraq, it becomes a little harder for soldiers to see value in even the 
>greatest things we are doing.  Your care packages, your letters and your 
>constant prayers are the only
>things that remind us that the majority of thoughtful Americans are 
>truly behind this effort and that what we are doing has great value. 
>Don't let that go. Keep supporting your troops, not just in word, but in 
>action.  Remember this: You cannot support the troops AND denigrate the 
>war effort.  It is a logical and a practical inconsistency. While the 
>soldier fights the enemy, he needs those behind him to offer support to 
>his back, not daggers.
>
>The news media is one of the greatest threats to this war. Just ask a 
>terrorist. Every time he can do something desperate and spectacular and 
>have the effect with one man blowing himself up in a crowd that an 
>entire U.S. Brigade has in securing a city, the media has thrown terror 
>the victory. It is not the side that wins the most ground anymore that 
>is victorious, but the one that can satiate the blood-hungry media. We 
>have given them the stories they need to show how much we are truly 
>doing.  The question then must turn to why they have a fascination with 
>making the villain the victor. If we win this war, it may not be much of 
>a story for them, but if we lose it...
>
>Your troops are doing amazing things here - things many of them are not 
>even trained to do, like a medical platoon leader doing public works 
>projects! I hope that either the media start showing the REAL stories 
>here or that you will show your contempt of their deceitfulness with 
>your complaints and, ultimately, with your vote. Don't watch the news 
>media that thrives on the death of American soldiers to bump their 
>ratings! And remember your troops. Support of victory is support of your 
>troops.
>
>Sincerely, CH (CPT) Chris Bassett Baghdad, Iraq
>
>
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