Ever since the War of Iraq has begun, I have become accusstomed to hear read articles that describes the brutal life women experienced in Iraq. Usually, women are victims of abuse and nothing is really done by the government to prevent it. However, this article was different and had some irony to it. As I was reading the article in the beginning, I thought that the narrator was sobering over how she might be restricted from going to college and how she cannot continue her education. The tone in the first paragraph seemed depressing since it seemed as if the narrator is use to living in a environment where she is restricted do anything or even live her life freely.
Throughout the article, the tone of the article become repetitive. For example, its about the narrator being occupied with college activities or exams, while the family always have guests over for several occasions. In addition, it interesting how, the narrator's life depicts similarites to my life. For example, I am always occupied with my college life and my family always tends to have relatives or friends over. However, I liked the end of the article, which was the "power to say no." This line indicates that it is a privilege to saying no is a privilege for women in nations like Iraq. Even though saying no should be a natural born right, it is a privilege to say no. In the end, the narrator feels good saying NO, since hardly do women get the right to say no in Iraq.
Thursday, May 22, 2008
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
Albanian Memorial Day
In my country there’s a memorial day too. It is celebrated on May 6-th every year. When I think of this, it always comes to my mind the patriotic songs they made us study in school. They were made in war time (when my country was fighting for independency against fascists and Nazis). They were made to encourage Albanian soldiers (a.k.a Partisans) who weren’t in fact proper soldiers but normal people fighting for their own country, for their own families.
That is the relationship I can make to myself and Memorial Day. Even when I forgot about it, I just had to turn on the TV and see that every channel was broadcasting war songs. This way I could tell that it was Memorial Day.
That is the relationship I can make to myself and Memorial Day. Even when I forgot about it, I just had to turn on the TV and see that every channel was broadcasting war songs. This way I could tell that it was Memorial Day.
Monday, May 19, 2008
Blog 8- Baghdad Burning
‘Bloggers Without Borders’
This blog is written by a girl who has escaped
The Mesopotamian
This blog is by an Iraqi man who recently moved to Canada. Reading his comments about our politicians and candidates and the Iraq war is really refreshing. His tone implies that he knows a lot of insightful stuff. Thankfully, he gives original perspectives, in my view, of how the Iraq war is going. He is against the jihadists and terrorism, and firmly believes that success in Iraq is paramount for the Iraqi and American people. His english is different from what I'm used to, but his ideas and thoughts around world events imply that he knows more than me and is worth reading to gain a good perspective on the war.
My War: Killing Time in Iraq
This blog is about an Iraq veteran and author that gets called back to duty. He wrote a book about his time in Iraq and what he did while he was over there which is sold through the blog. He also published an article in the San Francisco Chronicle right before he was redployed to Iraq. In the article he states how he always knew that it was possible for him to be called back to Iraq but he always wished it would never happen. He says how if he had enough money and a secure job he never would have enlisted. He is negative towards people that do not enlist in the military and rich people that can afford to avoid having to. I feel a little bad for the author of this blog but he did know what he was signing up for and regardless of what happens he should defend this country with honor and courage until his contract ends, regardless of whether or not it is what he wants to be doing.
Daimnation!
This blog is fairly cynical and critical of the actions of the United States. This seems appropriate for the blog, seeing that the main contributors are from Halifax, Nova Scotia, Ottawa and the strongly liberal New York City. I agree with what they write but is still get annoyed with stereotypical liberal tone that is constantly pitying the United States actions. I'm suprised by the contributors knowledge of the United States, they greatly concern themselves with the flaws of the United States' government but rarely reference the Government of Canada. But when they do they are also fairly critical and do not hesitate to expose it's own flaws. Realizing this, i have to admit that this blog isn't overly biased, just overly critical. I don't disagree with the blog, but I think its unfair to criticize the U.S's efforts to aid the disaster victims of Myanmar.
Sunday, May 18, 2008
A Star from Mosul
Since my name starts with the letter "s," I chose to read the blog A Star from Mosul. The reason I initially chose this blog is that, out of the blogs I had to chose from, it was the only one that involved the point of view of an Iraqi citizen. Instead of all the other blogs, which in general focused on news and media, or perhaps the point of view of a soldier, this blog focused on the life of a student at the University of Mosul, in Mosul, Iraq. I thought it would be interesting to see the war out of the eyes of someone who was about the same age as me.
I'm not totally sure what I expected from this blog, but I was definitely surprised by what I read. I was expecting stories of a young man struggling to live a normal life and get a good education in a turbulent and troubled place, yet there were few to no explicit references to the war, other than perhaps mentioning how annoying it was to have mandatory curfews and such. Yet still these problems were casually regarded, as though only a simple nuisance, while if any American student were forced to live in the same conditions, they would not now how to react to the lack of justice. The author, Namja, talks about things any normal teenager would, from the joys of sleeping in, to playing sports and hanging out with family. Now while this may seem sexist on my part, I cannot deny that I expected the author of this blog to be a guy, so I was reasonably shocked to discover that the author was actually a girl. I would never have expected a young girl, in Iraq, to be able to talk so freely. Although I hate to admit it, I suppose this foolish idea led me to the misconception that the young women in Iraq were much more reserved and un-opinionated than those around the rest of the world. As I read more of the author's posts, which were always about her day to day life, I realized she was like many girls I know, and I began to feel guilty for being so judgmental. Her tone differed from post to post, angry to happy, but were always simple and honest. Now that I think about it, I can't believe I was surprised by something that should probably be regarded as normal.
I'm not totally sure what I expected from this blog, but I was definitely surprised by what I read. I was expecting stories of a young man struggling to live a normal life and get a good education in a turbulent and troubled place, yet there were few to no explicit references to the war, other than perhaps mentioning how annoying it was to have mandatory curfews and such. Yet still these problems were casually regarded, as though only a simple nuisance, while if any American student were forced to live in the same conditions, they would not now how to react to the lack of justice. The author, Namja, talks about things any normal teenager would, from the joys of sleeping in, to playing sports and hanging out with family. Now while this may seem sexist on my part, I cannot deny that I expected the author of this blog to be a guy, so I was reasonably shocked to discover that the author was actually a girl. I would never have expected a young girl, in Iraq, to be able to talk so freely. Although I hate to admit it, I suppose this foolish idea led me to the misconception that the young women in Iraq were much more reserved and un-opinionated than those around the rest of the world. As I read more of the author's posts, which were always about her day to day life, I realized she was like many girls I know, and I began to feel guilty for being so judgmental. Her tone differed from post to post, angry to happy, but were always simple and honest. Now that I think about it, I can't believe I was surprised by something that should probably be regarded as normal.
Aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln
The author of the blog, M.L. Lyke, is a journalist who spent three weeks in March 2003 on the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier in the
Postcolonial Iraq
As I was reading the blogs for Postcolonial Iraq, I realize that the most previous blogs were written in February of 2007. Now, one year isn't that much, but still, a lot has happened in a year. The dates of the posts seem to be very distanced and I feel like there are not that many posts for the blogs. I don't feel like I can use this blog as a reliable source just because of that. Other than that, I feel as if the words of the posts are very inspirational towards the future.
"I believe this document can be defined as an historic event in the annals of the Palestinians in Israel and of their relationship with the Jewish majority and establishment. This is the first time a representative national body of Palestinians in Israel has prepared and published a basic paper that describes both the existing situation and the changes that are needed across a broad spectrum of Arab life: relations with the Jewish majority, the legal situation, land, social and economic issues, the status of civil and political institutions, etc. "
As I read this, I felt a sense of excitement that there is such a document that defines the firm principles and the desires of the solutions for this situtation. The tone of the blog is motivational and makes it very easy to read because I want to know what exactly this document does.
http://jelloul.blogspot.com/
"I believe this document can be defined as an historic event in the annals of the Palestinians in Israel and of their relationship with the Jewish majority and establishment. This is the first time a representative national body of Palestinians in Israel has prepared and published a basic paper that describes both the existing situation and the changes that are needed across a broad spectrum of Arab life: relations with the Jewish majority, the legal situation, land, social and economic issues, the status of civil and political institutions, etc. "
As I read this, I felt a sense of excitement that there is such a document that defines the firm principles and the desires of the solutions for this situtation. The tone of the blog is motivational and makes it very easy to read because I want to know what exactly this document does.
http://jelloul.blogspot.com/
Guardian.CO.UK
The Guardian is a newspaper that seems to have a very big following in the UK area. The site that the blog http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/diary/ comes from, is a branch of this newspaper. The Guardian by the looks of it, spans a large spectrum of subjects. Of these subjects, the US has it's very own section on the site. Also on this site are blogs that users (or employees) create. Just like the one I'm reading now.
So the blog is basically a collection of links from writers picking certain articles (usually their own) to post. The authors, from what I've seen, are professional writers for the newspaper or the Guardian Website. What is cool is that some of the authors are actually in Iraq and have their own personal stories.
Since the blog is a collection of other articles. it doesn't have much more than a basic summary of the article within the posts. So there isn't really room for a tone. The blog is also not up to date. The last of the posts is from April 28th. So it seems like the blog is focusing on main stories or really good articles to post. It acts sort of like a filter. Choosing only what the writers feel should go onto it.
So the blog is basically a collection of links from writers picking certain articles (usually their own) to post. The authors, from what I've seen, are professional writers for the newspaper or the Guardian Website. What is cool is that some of the authors are actually in Iraq and have their own personal stories.
Since the blog is a collection of other articles. it doesn't have much more than a basic summary of the article within the posts. So there isn't really room for a tone. The blog is also not up to date. The last of the posts is from April 28th. So it seems like the blog is focusing on main stories or really good articles to post. It acts sort of like a filter. Choosing only what the writers feel should go onto it.
For the People, by the People
Upon looking over Command-Post.org, I was confused as to what purpose this blog served. When the site first loaded, I was wondering whether or not the site was, indeed, a blog. However, when I first read the initial message at the top of the page, I was quickly informed as to why the page looks so odd. The Command Post is simply a collection of web blogs recorded over recent years surrounding the current war.
According to the presumed owners of the site (who go by the name of Alan and Michele), they believe that this site serves no purpose anymore as the internet has seen a substantial influx of other similar blogs over the years. As a result, Alan and Michele have decided to close the site and simply use it as an archive of blogs that people can gain access to. Simply put, The Command Post represents a piece of journalistic history.
In the opening message, the assumed tag-line of the site seems to be "For the people, by the people." Thus, I got the vibe that the entire site is not written by one such person, but by a group of people who represent the general public in trying to represent multifaceted views on ideas. Upon further speculation, I discovered that, there are, indeed, approximately 13 contributers to the entire blog.
However, I wanted to make sure that my assumption proved to be true when I previously assumed that the individual blogs represent multifaceted political views. Thus, I dabbled into some journalism. Once perused, I found most of the articles to be simply informative with little to no personal emphasis or input. On specific topic of blogs I read, entitled "Global War on Terror," seemed to display this quality to a "T." It seemed as if every blog post (usually posted by a contributer under the name of California Yankee") was pulled directly from the news source itself. Thus, I came to the conclusion that this collection of blogs simply serves a historic piece of archived news events.
Peace Blogs
My last name starts with P, and I had two options, PostColonial or PeaceBlogs, and since someone just did PostColonial, I thought I would do PeaceBlogs. PeaceBlogs is a site that is made of a collection of blogs made by other people. The site started after the first bomb hit Baghdad and the site only accepted posts for about a year. There is a collection of 2272 blogs on the site from 89 countries around the world. The site is still active for everyone to read the feelings of people around the world the war on Iraq as well as war in general. It was interesting to see that mostly all people agree, that war is not the answer to America's problem. The most interesting was seeing all the blogs, and most of the international one could not be read because they were written in another language other than English. Other than having American blogs dominate the blog, Brazilians weren't that far behind them in the number of blogs. It looked like a battle between the two countries going back and forth.
It seems like eveyrone is against war and would like to see this war end, and this blog began as the first bomb was dropped. The authors were from all over the world from different backgound and different cultures. It would be to hard to generalize them. From the blogs though, I did feel where they were coming from because I was opposed to the war from the beginning. There was a picture of an elderly woman and man eating their breakfast and it looked as if nothing had changed because of the war. Life is still the same, and war made no difference at all.
It seems like eveyrone is against war and would like to see this war end, and this blog began as the first bomb was dropped. The authors were from all over the world from different backgound and different cultures. It would be to hard to generalize them. From the blogs though, I did feel where they were coming from because I was opposed to the war from the beginning. There was a picture of an elderly woman and man eating their breakfast and it looked as if nothing had changed because of the war. Life is still the same, and war made no difference at all.
Waiting in the Light
As I read through the blogs that Waiting in the Light concluded I felt pretty upset. The subjects of most of the blogs were concerned with the people in Iraq and Palestine. The tone was very dismal and had no hope. I thought there would be comments on the US in Iraq, but most of the blogs dealt with the damage that the Iraqi and Palestinian people have dealt with. Most commented on how the US has made it even worse for the people to live and how their friends and family are dying left and right. The first blog was titled, "there are no words" and basically described how there were no words for the suffering in Iraq. I felt sympathetic to the Iraqi people because I got a new perspective on their side. I have been so focused on what we are doing over there, I tend to forget what it must be like for the Iraqi families.
What I tend to forget is that they are people too, they have feelings and families and we are over there killing and ruining their cities. To hear comments about life from the other side made me realize the effects of war. We are really devestating thier lives and the blog was quite and eye opener.
What I tend to forget is that they are people too, they have feelings and families and we are over there killing and ruining their cities. To hear comments about life from the other side made me realize the effects of war. We are really devestating thier lives and the blog was quite and eye opener.
I Want Out
The article i read was about a young college student living voer in the middle east during the War. He talked mostly about how angry he was that he was stuck over there during these times. He was suppose to go to college sor his studies but because most of the girls werent't going back to college he decided not to gom back either. His mom who worked at the college still had to go and work but on her first day she found out that they were shutting down the college and stopping all lectures and classes. There had also been a new curfew set forth that required people to stay in there homes for most of the day or night. He was angered by the fact that he was trapped in his house and trapped in this country he wanted to leave. He ended up spending most of his days watching tv and eating worrying about gaining weight and becoming a clostrophobic. The main tone in this stroy was of anger and frustration over the situation he was put in. This is very understandeable i know that if i was stuck in my home and wasn't able to do anything i would want to leave to.
American Soldier
The title of the blog I read is American Soldier, which is pretty much self explanitory since it is about a day in the life of an American Soldier. The entries range from topics about the war to soldiers talking about their families to information helping soldiers get used to regular daily life again. It starts off with one story in particular about a soldier who gave his life to save those of his fellow army men when their post came under heavy attack. It then goes to a post about mortgage offers and programs for veterans and talks about a promising documentary about war and veterans life after war. The creator of this blog was actually nominated and was a finalist for the 2007 weblog awards. The tone of the blog is informal and is basically the author putting all of his thoughts online for people to comment and think about also. The author of the blog itself seems very friendly, knowledgable, and his goal is just to make people aware. He is very opinionated and there are a few entries where he just seems to be blowing steam. When I was reading the blog each post brought out new emotions. The stories made me feel for soldiers and their families and it made me think about all the people going through similar situations now. Reading the posts where the author got heated actually made me smile just with the way he worded things and I thought it was admirable how strongly he felt on certain issues. Overall, I think this blog is good because it offers many different aspects of the war and gives suggestions on other media connected with the war that would be correct and interesting.
Here's the link to the page: http://www.soldierlife.com/
Here's the link to the page: http://www.soldierlife.com/
A Star From Mosul
The blogger is an Iraqi woman of about 20 years of age. She writes under the pseudonym Najma (for security reasons) and currently resides in Mosul despite being born in Baghdad. She is a communications major at the University of Mosul, but, according to Najma, the university is currently closed to students.
Najma blogs about her activities and thoughts on different topics stretching the last couple of days. Her current blog mentions a curfew and that students attending the University of Mosul were told to go home. It seems her mom works at the college and Najma wanted to go with her but she overslept. Once her mom comes home, she tells Najma she only received her salary and that there were no lectures for the few students that remained at the university. She repetitively lets her readers know how bored she is and that she cannot stand the curfew. Najma believes she will gain weight as a result of staying home for long periods of time and that she will regain her natural skin color. Lastly, she mentions having her favorite cousin over and playing badminton for a while with her family.
It is very surprising and interesting that Najma is able to read and write English so well. From my experience, students learning a new language do not master it on their own unless they had some sort of tutor or lived in another country for a period of time. The blog she maintains is much like a diary. She is straightforward about her likes and dislikes and also expresses frustration and happiness at certain points in her blog. For example, Najma seems to be frustrated about not waking up in time to go to the university with her mom. In the end, however, when she talks about having a great time playing badminton, she seems to momentarily forget about all the horrible things that go on in Iraq.
Najma blogs about her activities and thoughts on different topics stretching the last couple of days. Her current blog mentions a curfew and that students attending the University of Mosul were told to go home. It seems her mom works at the college and Najma wanted to go with her but she overslept. Once her mom comes home, she tells Najma she only received her salary and that there were no lectures for the few students that remained at the university. She repetitively lets her readers know how bored she is and that she cannot stand the curfew. Najma believes she will gain weight as a result of staying home for long periods of time and that she will regain her natural skin color. Lastly, she mentions having her favorite cousin over and playing badminton for a while with her family.
It is very surprising and interesting that Najma is able to read and write English so well. From my experience, students learning a new language do not master it on their own unless they had some sort of tutor or lived in another country for a period of time. The blog she maintains is much like a diary. She is straightforward about her likes and dislikes and also expresses frustration and happiness at certain points in her blog. For example, Najma seems to be frustrated about not waking up in time to go to the university with her mom. In the end, however, when she talks about having a great time playing badminton, she seems to momentarily forget about all the horrible things that go on in Iraq.
"Kurdo's World" Review
The blogs in this particular section were about life in Kurdistan, more particularly about voting in Kurdistan by a Kurdistan blogger. The blogger finds his or herself in a position where they are deciding not to vote, and a friend calls the blogger out about not voting by noticing that the person's thumb was not purple. They use purple ink, by thumb, to indicate the votes on the ballots. The blogs start off mentioning the imprisonment of a writer for so much as swearing towards the Kurdistan President. The writer tells a story of an election a friend went to where they ran out of ballots even though there should have been enough. When going to vote the official said they had already voted for him. The voter made a scene about voting for who he chose and was allowed to vote and told to not tell anyone anything of the matter. How easy the ink was able to be washed off and how the elections were always frauded was also detailed by the blogger.
The tone of this is as of straight forward, here is how it is, manner. I would characterize the blogger as wanting something to be done about the issues, but is not entirely a radical or extremist in the situation. Reading these blogs confirms more of feeling that there is alot of corruption in these foreign countries and that people like hte blogger have become rather accepting of this, while others who are accepting, like the friend who voted, will be content with doing what they are suppose to do even though it may be completely rigged and fraudulant.
The tone of this is as of straight forward, here is how it is, manner. I would characterize the blogger as wanting something to be done about the issues, but is not entirely a radical or extremist in the situation. Reading these blogs confirms more of feeling that there is alot of corruption in these foreign countries and that people like hte blogger have become rather accepting of this, while others who are accepting, like the friend who voted, will be content with doing what they are suppose to do even though it may be completely rigged and fraudulant.
Baghdad Journal
This blog is about soldiers in Baghdad and the way they interact with other troops and soldiers and how they deal with their current war situation. The tone of the blog is relaxed but you can sense that the soldiers are ready to come home. They admit that they can not win this battle alone and that they need help from the UN and other outside allies. The blog starts out talking about what the soldiers' favorite baseball teams are and they make jokes. Reading the blog made me realize how real the war in Iraq is and how these soldiers deal with being in Iraq. It helps me see what the soldiers feel and think about and how they interact with each other. It is a realistic good blog to keep up with if you are following the war in Iraq.
Postcolonial Iraq
This article talked about the state that Iraq is in now after the peak of the war and troops being there for five years. It was interesting to read because opens your eyes to what Iraq is really like. The author compared it to conditions in Africa where the poverty rate is around 75%. This article made me question why we're really in Iraq. We've been there for five and years and I can't think of a major achievement we've had. Other than capturing Saddam, which could have been done without tearing a country apart, no pluses have come out of it. Increasing poverty rates, unnecessary civilian and soldier deaths, hundreds of billions of dollars being spent, those are the major affects the war has had. It's time to leave Iraq and let them form their government. They need to control their own land.
Birding Babylon
This blog is about a soldiers time in Iraq and the wildlife he encountered around him. The tone of this blog is hope especially in his posts about the geese. There were these geese that traveled over 3000 miles through the chaos and war in Iraq. The author I felt like he looked toward these animals for comfort in knowing if they can survive then he can make it too. Reading this blog made me feel good that at least this soldier had something to look towards as oppose to seeing all the bad he was using these animals to look toward the good.
Cigars in the Sand
Cigars in the Sand
This blog was written by an individual named “Ryan” who describes himself as “Farmer by genetics, Lawyer by training.” Currently he considers himself “vacationing” in Iraq as he advises on security issues to the Iraqi government.
The tone of this blog is rather informal as Ryan begins his most recent blog with “So…” as if we are his friends and he is having a rather relaxed conversation. His blog seems rather personal as he states that he has recently just found out after only a short amount of time back in the states that his father is diagnoses with lung cancer. He uses a most sincere tone as he refers to the people in Iraq as “his brothers and sisters” and states that he has experience times where “I've needed to be a lawyer, a time when I've needed to be a "diplomat"- but right now I need to be a son.”
However, the majority of his blog talks about his experience in Iraq and how it feels to live in a war zone. In one blog he exclaims that living in a war zone seems to “dull the senses.” As he gets used to hearing bombs and gunfire constantly, it no longer phases him.
Ryan seems most honest and genuine as he professes the great respect he has for the military. He makes a reference to the military forces as he gives examples of how self sacrificing they are, helping Iraqi car bombing victims. He makes it known to the public that the military is not just looking for terrorists to kill but looking out for the wellbeing of the Iraqi people.
This blog mainly expresses Ryan’s thoughts and opinions of the going s on in Iraq as he experiences life in Iraq first hand. He not only makes references to the reality of the matter but he tries to relate it to past events that help us understand his nature, providing quotes from past presidents and making references to the “Guardian.” The blog did not try to evoke from me any fake emotions but mostly led me to think more about the situation in Iraq. It provoked thought and helped provided insight on the matters, which is what I think a real blog should do.
This blog was written by an individual named “Ryan” who describes himself as “Farmer by genetics, Lawyer by training.” Currently he considers himself “vacationing” in Iraq as he advises on security issues to the Iraqi government.
The tone of this blog is rather informal as Ryan begins his most recent blog with “So…” as if we are his friends and he is having a rather relaxed conversation. His blog seems rather personal as he states that he has recently just found out after only a short amount of time back in the states that his father is diagnoses with lung cancer. He uses a most sincere tone as he refers to the people in Iraq as “his brothers and sisters” and states that he has experience times where “I've needed to be a lawyer, a time when I've needed to be a "diplomat"- but right now I need to be a son.”
However, the majority of his blog talks about his experience in Iraq and how it feels to live in a war zone. In one blog he exclaims that living in a war zone seems to “dull the senses.” As he gets used to hearing bombs and gunfire constantly, it no longer phases him.
Ryan seems most honest and genuine as he professes the great respect he has for the military. He makes a reference to the military forces as he gives examples of how self sacrificing they are, helping Iraqi car bombing victims. He makes it known to the public that the military is not just looking for terrorists to kill but looking out for the wellbeing of the Iraqi people.
This blog mainly expresses Ryan’s thoughts and opinions of the going s on in Iraq as he experiences life in Iraq first hand. He not only makes references to the reality of the matter but he tries to relate it to past events that help us understand his nature, providing quotes from past presidents and making references to the “Guardian.” The blog did not try to evoke from me any fake emotions but mostly led me to think more about the situation in Iraq. It provoked thought and helped provided insight on the matters, which is what I think a real blog should do.
A Star from Mosul
When I saw that this blog was written by a young Iraqi woman, actually living within Iraq, I thought that it would be much more interesting to hear her thoughts rather that more from American soldiers and reporters. The author’s name is Najma, and she is a student of Engineering at the University of Mosul. Most of what she discusses in her blog relates to how hard it is to live in Iraq and how she is trying to find the good in living where she is. Her writing is very informal, choosing to detail the events of her day in a way that many teenage girls do. For example, “There wasn't anything to do if I woke up so I closed my eyes only to be awaken by mom after what seemed like only minutes later.. it turned out to be 1 PM however!!” Her tone is one of frustration and depression from a life that she is unhappy with. “Possible results of the curfew are (unless I killed myself before its end): gaining some weight, getting back to my natural skin color and I think I am going to be a claustrophobic.” She is definitely unoptimistic about her situation and surroundings. The author seems to always feel down or look for things to be bad before they happen, even when someone gives her encouragement or reasons to feel good. To be honest, the blog kind of depressed me because the author was always down on things, but, I guess it is hard to expect her to optimistic when so much bad is happening around her.
A Minute Longer
The blog that I read was about a soldier who toured in Iraq and Kuwait back in 2004. His last entry to the blog was in April of 2004 at the end of his most recent tour. Since he has not written to this blog since then, I would assume that he has not been redeployed. His final entry was one of joy and anger at the same time. He seemed very happy to be home, as all soldiers typically are, but he still held a grudge. It was quite evident that he supported the war and believed in what he was fighting for. He literally called out the Iraqis by telling them they control their own fate. He told them that if they wanted the US to leave then they should stop fighting and finally control their government. At that point, they would be able to tell the US to leave, which he said we would gladly do. It is always great to see the perspective of someone who experienced it. He knows more about the war then I would ever know, and he basically said what no one believes. Everyone seems to believe there is no end to the war, but he came out and voiced his opinion on exactly how the war can come to an end.
Family in Baghdad, A
This blog is shared by a family of three sons and their mother. The father in this family did not want to contribute. They have been writing in this blog for a long time now, since November of 2003. When they started the blog, they lived in Baghdad. Since then, they have moved to Jordan. The family writes about both serious things regarding politics and the war, but also about what they have been up to in their personal lives. It is such a good example of how no matter where you are from or what language you speak, everyone is fundamentally the same. They have likes, dislikes, wants, and fears just like we do. They have jobs and friends and dreams. It is so amazing to think that there is a regular, everyday woman - a mother - sitting at a computer half way around the world writing a blog that I'm reading from my dorm room. It put a personal touch to the war, to the stories that we hear regarding that portion of the globe.
Recently, only the mother has been writing. She writes about her cat that brings her so much joy, about going to visit her son in Cairo, and about her job, to name a few things. She takes time out of her day to write long, detailed, very truthful posts that anyone in the world could read. It goes to show that we can all learn from each other.
In some of the posts, the tone is funny and light, in others it is very serious. Some posts are hopeful, some are full of worry and concern. The posts change with the moods and emotions of the writer. But in all of them the women seems like a very smart and strong person. She travels a lot and is very dedicated to helping people. I think that her posts are really a reality check for people who think that all middle-eastern woman are a certain way.
A sentiment that really stuck with me that seems to be shared by the whole family, and probably a lot more people, is that although they know that they did not have the best life before, that although they know that they were oppressed and that things that they deserved were withheld from them, at least they had a life. Now, they don't feel like they do anymore. They have to worry about stray bullets, bombs, and ambushes every time they leave their house. These sorts of blogs were written in the end of 2003 and the beginning of 2004.
Another amazing thing to think about is how much of their lives, and consequently, their blog entries, revolved around having/not having gasoline and having/ not having electricity. Neither of these things are available 24/7 like they are here. Although we complain about the prices of these things, at least they are always available.
Recently, only the mother has been writing. She writes about her cat that brings her so much joy, about going to visit her son in Cairo, and about her job, to name a few things. She takes time out of her day to write long, detailed, very truthful posts that anyone in the world could read. It goes to show that we can all learn from each other.
In some of the posts, the tone is funny and light, in others it is very serious. Some posts are hopeful, some are full of worry and concern. The posts change with the moods and emotions of the writer. But in all of them the women seems like a very smart and strong person. She travels a lot and is very dedicated to helping people. I think that her posts are really a reality check for people who think that all middle-eastern woman are a certain way.
A sentiment that really stuck with me that seems to be shared by the whole family, and probably a lot more people, is that although they know that they did not have the best life before, that although they know that they were oppressed and that things that they deserved were withheld from them, at least they had a life. Now, they don't feel like they do anymore. They have to worry about stray bullets, bombs, and ambushes every time they leave their house. These sorts of blogs were written in the end of 2003 and the beginning of 2004.
Another amazing thing to think about is how much of their lives, and consequently, their blog entries, revolved around having/not having gasoline and having/ not having electricity. Neither of these things are available 24/7 like they are here. Although we complain about the prices of these things, at least they are always available.
Much hope for peace
The blog 'Stand down', is based on articles about the middle east war conflict and its background. It primarily discusses about the US invasion in Iraq and its after effects. The president of the US, George.W.Bush has been accused of intervening with a country's sovereignty which finally lead to war. The authors of the articles declare that if Bush had not been involved in this conflict, it would have been a much simplified issue. Authors present a plethora of information from a significant number of sources to prove what they say. there are figures of the actual numbers of deaths and causalities to support the argument. The tone of the articles is aggressive as it talks about a controversial issue at hand. The authors go against the Bush government with proven evidence.
By reading this blog entries, i absorbed a lot information i didn't know about the issue in the middle east. The techniques the authors have used to prove the case is impressive. Even though the information is accurate or not, the authors have been successful in tempting the reader to read this article. It is up to the reader to decide whether the information given makes a good argument or not.
By reading this blog entries, i absorbed a lot information i didn't know about the issue in the middle east. The techniques the authors have used to prove the case is impressive. Even though the information is accurate or not, the authors have been successful in tempting the reader to read this article. It is up to the reader to decide whether the information given makes a good argument or not.
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