Welcome...and initial guidelines...

This blog will be used in the spring of 2008 by 80+ students at Drexel University to investigate the effects of Iraq on culture and the reverse. Our goal will be to better understand why the US is in Iraq, and to question whether literature can help us on this journey.

Weekly plans and other materials will always be posted in Vista, not this blog. So go to Bb Vista to get the discussion prompts and other instructions.

I intend this blog to manage our discussions and track our collective investigation.

You should have received an email from me inviting you to become a contributor to this blog. The email was sent Monday afternoon to your official Drexel email address.

Sunday, May 18, 2008

Doc in the Box

This blog is written by a Navy Corpsman stationed in Iraq. This is his 4th trip there. His name is Sean Dustman. A good portion of his blog reflects how he wants to share his skills with other servicemen. He also mentions that sometimes he does manage to rub people the wrong way, and there isn’t much he can do about that.
Throughout the blog, he shares personally stories. Most of them really show that he and his servicemen try to enjoy themselves. For example, they always make sure that there is coffee available for each other. Sean talks about an espresso maker he has with him in Iraq. He got it at a yard sale back in Arizona for $2.50. Another observation he makes is about the lifestyle change that was make now that they are in Iraq. Men who dreamed of being jocks, but never had 3 hours a day to lift weights, now have that time after their work for the day is complete. Another group enjoys playing Halo and Call of Duty. Sean enjoys reading and spending time online catching up with events back at home.
Throughout the blog, Sean seems to be in a very upbeat mood. This is surprising to me, because of all of the violence they deal with. In addition, they put in very long work days. This blog shows that Sean is a real American, just like everyone back at home.
Sean’s blog makes me feel a little bit better about the troops. His stories show the troops are very dedicated to their job, but also try to enjoy some time away. All of the troops are unique and have different hobbies and lifestyles. They all seem to find people who have similar interests as them, and they enjoy that sense of community.

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