by Brock Johansen

Created on: March 04, 2007   Last Updated: April 19, 2007

Opinion from the USMC.

As a Marine who has been in Iraq multiple times. I myself have mixed feelings about the war. I have been in a place that is destroyed but still has beauty underneath. In the desert there is nothing but death, and In Baghdad a large city beautiful craftsmanship and rivers and grass.

Its weird to see a place where most of the people are supportive in stopping the terrorism but are too afraid to do anything. When you talk to the Iraqi people they look grateful and happy to speak to you even saying that before we came their families were at risk of death daily under Saddam's rule. It makes me feel at this point what we have done is justified and will work out for Iraq, as well as the rest of the middle east.

The other side of the house is talking to friends who are with the training teams, out there in the battlefield (at least more often than me) fighting the insurgents daily. Their story of the Iraqi's is one of cowardess and a complete lack of discipline. The "Soldiers" of the Iraqi Army would give up their weapons and run if a large attack was happening. This is not a country that wants our help, nor wants their own freedom and peace.

We see now the civil war that is starting up once again. Once that has been going on for centuries. We expect this to stop and for a time it did, but now that power could be taken its back again and in full force. So what to do with a country that runs away from battles and decides instead to fight amongst themselves. I don't know, but I hope that someone in power decides quickly as I am soon to be returning to Iraq to see what happens in the next year.

So the questions lies, Justified or Not. The answer Yes for the individuals who were attacked by Saddam's regime. And for the cowards and those who can't get over their own squabbles to run a country. Sadly enough the answer is no.

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