Putting My Money where my mouth is. My View of Iraq from the inside.

Rob Ballew before a mission

As many know I am currently serving in Iraq as a soldier in the U.S. Army. I had a choice last year to serve my second tour in Iraq or to get out while I could. And as many might have guessed my mind was made up before I was ever even asked. I chose this path I am on and although there are more days than I would ever admit to that I kick myself for doing this I would never ever change my decision. The reasons for me coming back are many, first and foremost I believed I could do more good to both the U.S. as well as the good people of Iraq by coming over for the second time. Another reason is because I was sick of getting the news from biased media sources on both sides and wanted to see if any of it was true. Another reason is because I have many friends who where set to deploy and what kind of person would I be to not go with them. And last but not least I have always supported our troops, and what better way to support our troops is there than to fight side by side with them. In other words "I put my money where my mouth is".

There have been numerous let downs in this deployment. The mobilization process is hell, by far worse than anything I have experienced in Iraq thus far. The fact we have no interaction with the Iraqis, a fact I have complained about on a few occasions. And the mission although very vital, lacks some of the excitement you might expect. This leads to me not having much to write about and if I do the articles lack the knowledge a lot of newsvine wants to hear.

But as you might guess I do have a lot to say about Iraq and the things I do see. Things have changed a lot in the few months we have been here. Attacks are down a lot and although we still get hit with rockets and mortars on occasion the attacks are down from when we first got here. There has also been a decrease in attacks both IED and small arms on convoys, this can be accredited to both the Coalition Forces as well as the Iraqi Forces who maintain the roads relatively well. And there has also been less attacks on civilians by insurgents which is a very good thing. All in all, although it coming along rather slow it is still coming along and even slow progress is better than no progress.

The other thing I see is the people are out more. There are more small businesses opening up by the day. It almost seems like there is less fear throughout the streets. The infrastructure although not up to standards is also getting better daily. I think this because if the work both Iraqis and Coalition forces have done in taking the streets back from the insurgents. We hear very little of this on the mainstream media, it seems only the bad news makes the headlines. It makes people not want to believe there is any good going on over here. Or when there is good news it just isn't good enough. But the way I see it even a bunch of small steps can turn into a great distance in time. And all these people need here is time and a some help and we have the resources to give them both. I am not a politician and in truth hate this war as much as anyone here. But I also feel our presence here is needed. Every day here is another day away from my life, my family, friends, and a lot of things I took for granted in the past. But also every day here I feel is also worth while for the good I am involved in here.

Last but not least I will do my best to keep you updated on things as I see them progress. I can't promise anything ground breaking or worthy of many other writers here. But what I can promise you is the truth and what I observe on my missions and daily life here in Iraq. And lastly, I want to apologize for my lack of insight on the Iraqi side of the story, and if ever I get the chance I will do my best to get that side out . Thanks to all that have read this I look forward to your input.

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