Monday, July 10, 2006

The other world of Baghdad's Green Zone.


Is it any wonder that the "Coalition" forces seem detached from the reality of the rest of Iraq?

All the people in the Green Zone have their bodyguards," one Baghdad man told RFE/RL recently. "It all belongs to the U.S. Army and the [Iraqi] National Guard. We Iraqis remain here; it is just explosions and no security in the streets. They are provided with electricity and water, provided with everything. The Green Zone is protected from all sides. They protect themselves, but no one protects us, the Iraqis.”...

Today, the most noticeable feature of the Green Zone is construction cranes – a rarity in the rest of the city. The cranes are building a new U.S. Embassy complex that will ultimately comprise 21 buildings on riverside parkland...

“Streets are clean there," says another Baghdad man. "Electricity and water are available. Everything is available there; even prices are different there than here. All the streets there are clean, and you can feel as if you are not in Iraq. It is like outside Iraq.”

Well, that's kind of because it is outside of Iraq. It's now American soil, and those people don't give a crap about the rest of you, as long as they have their electricity and running water and Starbucks and McDonald's and all the rest of it.

Welcome to America. You can look, but you can't touch.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

OMG, bleeh!@#$% Is this what Butch meant about bringing democracy and freedom?
I guess with our involvement with these meglomaniac empire builders, it is probably not wise to go through Europe anymore with a Canadian flag on the backpack. Someone should warn the Americans.