The Greening of Iraq

This post by Timshel alerted me to a local story about Iraq, published in today's Advocate. After taking about 30 seconds or so to disprove a few assertions made in the piece, Mr. Prado concludes:

I don't mean to diminish the hard and entirely necessary work Major Juan Rodriguez and his brothers are doing in Iraq, but sometimes a little context is necessary for these things. Iraq won't ever be a better place with more people out there like him. Unfortunately rebuilding a boardwalk isn't going to make up for indiscriminate bombing, tortuous prisons, and near-total lack of a plan for victory. This is a completely screwed situation I don't have any answers for, and while these stories are welcome, a little bit of context couldn't hurt. Things aren't a picnic over there.

That's a pretty effective summation.

One other thing: as I noted in comments at his site, the report indicates, perhaps erroneously, that the boardwalk being repaired is within the Green Zone. Unfortunately, the reporter, Debra Lemoine, doesn't make it clear whether or not she understands what the Green Zone IS, namely the part of Baghdad where a modicum of security exists and where the administrative headquarters of the US and the Iraqi government are. Interestingly, it is the part of Baghdad where Saddam built his own set of administrative structures--which the US and interim government are using.

I wonder if Iraqis feel a little like 'meet the new boss, same as..."

The Green Zone is surrounded for the most part by a twenty-five foot high concrete wall, and access is extremely limited for average Iraqis. By the way, the Zone isn't entirely safe--mortar attacks occur with some frequency, along with bombings in or around the entrances--but it's a lot safer for Westerners than other areas (particularly Sadr City, which is pretty much a no-go, except for the odd convoy).

So, I guess it's nice to see that some sort of project is ongoing--and, hopefully, it will be something of benefit to the population one day. But under the circumstances, it seems as if this is the proverbial drop in the bucket, while the rest of Iraq is experiencing the outer eye-wall of a figurative hurricane.

Or, as I concluded in my comments, it's like trying to bail out the Titanic with a demitasse cup, even though it's been quite some time since the ship struck the iceberg.