On this inaugauration day we should remember the sacrifices being made by the troops. Here’s an update I received today from a friend of mine now serving in Baquba, Iraq.
With the elections are just around the corner, the pace of everything here has intensified. We are working flat out on many fronts. Terrorist activity has picked up in the last week or so, as we expected. The insurgents are threatened by the march of freedom, and are increasing their attacks. We were on the receiving end of one on Sunday evening, when mortars suddenly slammed into our compound. After seeing the blue flashes of a few exploding shells outside the window of the small building we were working in, and being covered by a thin film of dust that filtered down from the ceiling, my fellow soldiers and I said, “Phew, those were CLOSE!” Only the next morning did we learn that one of them was a direct hit on the roof of our building, and another landed ten meters away. We were glad they were smaller 60mm mortar rounds and not the larger ordinance used in IEDs and VBIEDs. Close, indeed! Still, the elections are moving inexorably forward. People have registered to vote, parties have issued their lists of candidates, posters have been plastered on walls and buildings in the marketplaces, and politicians are even appearing on television and radio. We are not looking for perfection, but for “free and fair” elections, which is the international standard, and the first step on a long road to recovery in the region.