Posted on 06/29/2004 4:30:35 PM PDT by swilhelm73
From the Iraqi blogger Omar at Iraq the Model: (Via Andrew Sullivan):
The hall was busy and everyone was chatting and laughing loud. They had Al-Jazeera on (something I never managed to convince them to stop doing). Then suddenly Mr. Bremer appeared on TV reading his last speech before he left Iraq. I approached the TV to listen carefully to the speech, as I expected it to be difficult in the midst of all that noise. To my surprise everyone stopped what they were doing and started watching as attentively as I was. The speech was impressive and you could hear the sound of a needle if one had dropped it at that time. The most sensational moment was the end of the speech when Mr. Bremer used a famous Arab emotional poem. The poem was for a famous Arab poet who said it while leaving Baghdad. Al-Jazeera had put an interpreter who tried to translate even the Arabic poem which Mr. Bremer was telling in a fair Arabic! "Let this damned interpreter shut up. We want to hear what the man is saying." One of my colloquies shouted. The scene was very touching that the guy sitting next to me (who used to sympathize with Muqtada) said "He's going to make me cry!"
Then he finished his speech by saying in Arabic, "A'ash Al-Iraq, A'ash Al-Iraq, A'ash Al-Iraq"! (Long live Iraq, Long live Iraq, long live Iraq).
I was deeply moved by this great man’s words but I couldn't prevent myself from watching the effect of his words on my friends who some of them were anti-Americans and some were skeptic, although some of them have always shared my optimism. I found that they were touched even more deeply than I was. I turned to one friend who was a committed She'at and who distrusted America all the way. He looked as if he was bewitched, and I asked him, "So, what do you think of this man? Do you still consider him an invader?" My friend smiled, still touched and said, "Absolutely not! He brought tears to my eyes. God bless him."
Another friend approached me. This one was not religious but he was one of the conspiracy theory believers. He put his hands on my shoulders and said smiling, "I must admit that I'm beginning to believe in what you've been telling us for months and I’m beginning to have faith in America. I never thought that they will hand us sovereignty in time. These people have shown that they keep their promises."
I can only hope that the message you posted is true. It is certainly welcome news amidst all the reports the hand wringers celebrate each day.
I ALSO HOPE THIS IS A TRUE STORY. I WILL PASS IT ON TO MY CRAT FREINDS ANYWAY!
Omar is a real Iraqi. He's not prone to foolish boosterism, but he has reflected a far better situation in Iraq then the media likes to spin.
Of course, I suppose if you spent most of your time interviewing former Baathist party members, as the mainstream press does seem to do when interviewing "ordinary" Iraqis, I can see why you would find a negative view of the future in Iraq.
Man am I a sucker for this kind of story. Simply wow.
Omar has been blogging from when the war started. Even showing some anger, fear and skeptism when he couldn't get online due to electricity problems and such in the beginning of the war. He has slowly tried to convince others that America wasn't taking over. I am so happy for Iraq!!! They have thier freedom now. Freedom from Saddam, and even now freedom from us. This has got to be a glorious and scary time for them, but I am happy for them!
To paraphrase Ben Franklin: "They have their freedom now - if they can keep it."
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