Views from Iraq - The Untold Story

In the wake of the removal of Saddam Hussein from power, Iraqis are already enjoying a marked improvement in personal freedom. Although it's obvious that Iraq is a very dangerous place, it is also obvious that a large number of Iraqis are wealthier, more free, more optimistic, and more driven to pursue democracy than ever before. This is quite clear after a quick review of the Iraqi blogs that are popping up daily.

Here are a few excerpts taken from Iraqi blogs:

From http:\\iraqataglance.blogspot.com

• *I heard that the governor of Basra promised to arrest and punish anyone trying to breach the peace in the city (pointing to Muqtada's thugs).. Basra is now safe and secure . The ICDC and IP are everywhere.
  
  
• Inspite of all the events and hard time we are passing through due to those extremists and terrorists, many officials and teachers ( like me!) Obtained new furniture, new electric equipments and other things.. We neglected our house for many years, we couldn’t do anything to repair it because of the lack of money, but now we did it up, it is repaired completely, painted, furnished with nice curtains and new chandeliers.. The view became so lovely that a person feels very relaxed and comfortable.. We also planted several kinds of flowers and plants that made the garden so beautiful..All of these changes came after the liberation, we are so happy with the new Iraq in spite of the difficulties.. But as the saying goes .. No gains without pains..
  

From http://www.roadofanation.com - selected quotes from Iraqis asked about the new president and prime minister:

• Hi ….. it’s a new start for us ..we hope every thing be good .
  Thank you
  Ali .
  Hello,,,,,as a Kurdish I feel very happy for all ,and I am happy 2 for all one Iraq .
  Kawa .S.J
  Hi …..as an Iraqi I feal great ,this time is our time .
  Hassan M.
  We all see this is the first step only ,but “one mile trip start with step”.
  Rana Mansor.
  Great peoples and educated ,we depend on them to prepare for the elections .
  Dr. Jamal said
  Yes I agree with Dr.jamal ,we depend on them to prepare for the elections.
  Dr.Abas Al jnabi.
  Hello.i love what I saw on TV they were great ,hope to see good work soon.
  Luma Ahmed.
  

From http://sunofiraq.blogspot.com:

• The situation in Al-Falluja still with war and no news from any one in Al-Falluja it is under USA Army circle.
  I know we will win with (USA and UK) help and we will build the New Iraq.
  Long live USA….. Long live New Iraq…Long live UK.
  

From http://hammorabi.blogspot.com

• Above all those who are going to be in responsible jobs (in the new government) should forget about their ethnic origin or religious back ground and the party they belong to. They should work for their country as Iraqis only. No difference in this matter whether they are Kurds or Arabs or Turkman or Assyrian or Shia or Sunah or Christian or any one else.
  

Obviously, not every Iraqi will express such optimistic sentiments. However, after reviewing upwards of 2 dozen sites it's clear that the majority of Iraqis are optimistic about the future, they are already earning higher wages, and they have a positive view of the US and the coalition. For my money, if I want to gauge the success of the US policies on Iraq, I'll take a good Iraqi blog way before some lame Michael Moore film.