To think we take it for granted......

Don't be fooled by the general tenor of news coverage of overseas events. Most people in the world want no more than what we already have.......pure freedom. Here's an interesting exchange between an American and an Iraqi.

"This evening I went to the ING [Iraqi National Guard] compound – mainly to coordinate another shopping trip to Dahuk – I am trying to buy heaters and blankets for the poor people with no heat. As always when visiting with Iraqis, there is an art to the conversation – you must “make small talk” — it is expected and polite to converse about little things before getting down to business – our conversations will usually flow from insignificant things, to business and back again. Tonight was no exception. I was able to make more plans to work with the ING to help the Iraqi people – we will help the ING get kerosene to their compound, and then they will share the kerosene with me so I can distribute it to the schools and some poor people."

"Anyhow, at one point after being there about an hour and a half, LTC Amar asks if we mind if he asks some questions. He first asked about some of our leaders, mentioning Condoleezza Rice – he asked if in America there is prejudice against African Americans. We said that it is against the law to be prejudiced, however unfortunately there are still some people who feel that way. Then he asked a question that almost brought me to tears. He asked us, “Your freedom, the freedom that you have in America, can you feel it? – is it something you can feel inside of you?” I immediately answered “Yes, I feel it very strongly.” He then asked other questions, like, what if your president does something you don’t like – like he becomes like Saddam Hussein – what do you do about it? We explained the balance of power between Executive, Legislative and Judicial. Said that the President just can’t do what he wants. To which he replied, then what is the President for if he can’t do what he wants?"

"He also asked: what if someone doesn’t like the president and says bad things about him – what happens to that person? We told him that as long as someone doesn’t threaten to hurt the president, that person is free to say whatever he likes. LTC Amar raised his eyebrows at this. Our conversation turned to the towers in New York, why we think they were bombed, and about the evilness of terrorists who choose to murder innocent people. It was a very interesting discussion that will stay with me forever."