"Did you notice that one who calls him/herself dogday said that the Marine was a liar because the soldiers aren't allowed to eat Iraqi food?"
Isn't it amazing that people who have not served over there know more than the people who have? /sarc
Yep. Here's two pertinent sections from an article I wrote about our local Guard unit last year. They did an Iraq tour of almost 16 months, deployed from before the end of major combat to July of '04.
Here's the stuff about acquiring food from Iraqis:
During most of their tour, the 333rd operated in rural areas of the country. Rural Iraqis endured crushing poverty. Most lived in mud houses grouped in communities that Wenzel described as “very tribal.” The economy was barter-based, and cash was almost non-existent. Soldiers on patrol would buy lunches from the local farmers, who were eager to exchange food for cash. “Sometimes we were giving them the first money they had ever had,” recalled Wenzel, who estimated he had eaten 50 or 60 meals prepared by Iraqi families during his tour.
Here's the stuff that skylark will like. :-)
The soldiers of the 333rd are building their futures. Some remain in the unit, and others, like Specialist Bausman, have gone to active duty. Leverton and Wenzel both finished their military service.“If I were single I would go back,” Leverton said. He tends bar at Diamond Dave’s. He said it’s common for those who oppose the war to give him their opinion at length, “whether I want it or not” when they find out he’s a veteran “They don’t know the good we’ve done there…They just tell me ‘it’s all about oil.’” “They’re experts,” his wife jokes. “They know way more about Iraq than he does!”
Wenzel made it to his second wedding date, and he is a phlebotomist at Freeport Memorial. He is jovial in his manner and optimistic about the outcome of the war, but he too feels he has a perspective that many civilians miss. “They watch all the same news shows that show people dying in a few cities and nothing of the good that’s going on.”
One last thing: I've had a few run-ins with leftists, and whenever I tell them stuff that real soldiers have told me about Iraq, they all have the same reaction...they simply discount the information. I even had one old fool try to tell me he knew what was going on because his brother was on the staff of an Army four star general stationed there. The problem is, the four star general in question was Norman Schwarzkopf. He really believed that knowing some Lieutenant Colonel who was there 15 years ago means he has more insight than guys who've patrolled Iraqi cities and done guard duty at Abu Ghraib. Actually, I'm sure he doesn't believe that. I sure he thinks watching Dan Rather gives him more insight than real Iraq vets.
But don't forget, they support the troops...they just don't trust them or honor them.