HW 25: A long response to Riverbend

After reading the foreword and introduction to Baghdad Burning by Ahdaf Soueid and James Ridgeway, there is a need to summarize what was said, and what I read. To start off, Baghdad Burning is a book, full of blog entries written by an Iraqi woman who we don’t know much about. In the foreword, all we are told is that she goes by the name Riverbend, she’s twenty-four, she has a brother named “E”, and a mother. (Soueid 1) Her blogs are written to give those who read them an idea of what it is really like to be in a country where the war is actually going on. She explains how it angers her when those who say they support the war are behind their computer in a safe environment, not having to worry about being killed from a war going on, “I wish every person who emails me supporting the war, safe behind their computer, secure, in their narrow mind and fixed views, could actually come and experience the war live” (Souied 1.) As I continued reading, I moved into the introduction. In my opinion the introduction seemed short, yet very detailed, somewhat in a sense, which was hard to understand. However, Ridgeway explains what is going on, when everything started, bringing the reader up to date. Ridgeway explains that the background is how everything happened beginning in the “opening of the 20th century” (Ridgeway xii.) The background starts us with Gulf War and what goes on afterward, all the way up to date to the 2003 War. In these two informative sections, Ridgeway explains the background behind each war, and what led up to it, along with some personal opinion. Ridgeway then explains the “puppet show” as to what Riverbend calls people who don’t know what they’re doing and are run by others. Ridgeway ends the introduction with Liberated Iraq, which he explains as the frustration to do with “the rise of religious fundamentalism in what was once among the Arab world’s most secular societies,” (Ridgeway xxi.)
In my opinion I found the foreword more tasteful and understandable than the introduction. Although the introduction was very informative, I have always had a problem with those who explain their opinion and what they consider sources in such intricacy, it’s hard to understand. It bothers me. I also am for the war for my own reasons, and I’m sure I would be uneasier if I was actually living in Iraq. I’m sure every soldier who fights for this country are for the war, but once they are there, they realize it’s a living hell, and they don’t want to be there. They know why they are there, however. I remember when this war started; I (in my opinion) believe it is for good reasons. I don’t’ understand why people want us to take the troops out of Iraq, because then more violence will continue in the US. Do we want that? Do we really think that there will be peace when we take out troops out? I feel terrible for all the innocent people being killed, and who am I to say something? I am just this person in the US who is safe, and no I am not there for the real live war, and I wouldn’t want to be, but I know we’re there for a reason. What bothers me is how I know the text is changed when they take quotes from the presidents speech by including … to take out certain words and then adding [ ] to change words to make it sound the way the writer wants it to and make the president look bad, I feel that we need to be careful when doing such things.