Jane, I tip my hat to you for printing this. It is not easy to eat a little humble pie and still hold your head up. I must admit I was a bit skeptical of Bob myself, it sounded a little to rosy to be real, but had a sound of truth to it. I do enjoy reading your posts, keep it up!

"I have to disagree with Bob that the way to report what's happening in Iraq....."

If you were doing your job of being unbiased would not not report both?

Maybe Bob is just trying to balance your (and most Western media's) failure to show both sides. It is easy to dwell on the failures, but ~!@#$ give credit to when things go well. I disagree with the war but men & women like my baby brother are in Iraq giving everything they have to make it a better place. Show the world what they are doing right, rather than what is still to be done. Nobody is going to forget that war is messy if you take a day to talk about something going right.

Everyday people die in Baghdad, what about the rest of the country. If all we got in the US was news about the latest rape or murder in NYC someone would start asking what was life like in Memphis, Phoenix or even Kalamazoo. Isn't it about time you do so as well??

amazing. everything is not doom and gloom as you people would like us to believe. Amazing.

People like Bob are like a light at the end of a tunnel. No one can perdict the future (some try at short term), but people do remember the little and kind things and that's what makes up this thing called humanity. God Bless the Bobs, our troops, and our Founding Fathers who also faced incredible odds. -- Pierre

Wow. That didn't paint a rosy picture for me at all! Students kidnapped (and apparently, always prepared to be), and returning with broken bones doesn't sound even close to positive (okay, the returning part is better than horrific, but not even close to 'rosy'). Yes, I think the press often tends to exaggerate for impact, but I don't think we've heard all of the negative there is to report in the case of Iraq. I suspect our senses would be stunned by the full truth of it.

It's a difference in attitudes between "cans" (Bob) and "can nots" (Jane). He's not a teacher but he teaches English...did I actually read that?

Everyone has his or her bias. Yours allows you to see the things not going as expected; Bob's allows him to see things being done that help. Maybe take a week to report on only good things and Bob look at what things are not could go better. Most people know there are two sides to every story...show them both.

The point that needs to be emphasized is that people like Bob are trying to do their best in a situation that is a direct consequence of a disastarous foriegn and military policy. That the situation has come to this and everyday lives of Iraqis is in tatters is a reality that we need to hold the administration accountable for. The neo-cons seem to pride on the fact that their mere intent to "Secure America" and "Defeat the terrorists wherever they are" is sufficient enough to give them a free pass. I admire Bob for what he is doing personally, but that pales into insignificance when the need of the nation and the world is to highlight the colossal failures that has resulted in this mess. The Administration said, it is going to be milk and honey flowing the streets of Baghdad once Sadaam is ousted from power, but today, Iraqi residents are glad just to be alive every single day. If they had done their job right or even refrained from causing such a monumental catastrophe on the Iraqi people, the need for good hearted samaritans like Bob would never have arisen. The fact that people want to just brush aside the immense destruction that has been wrought and do not want anyone to keep harping on this, but want the so-called "good" things to be highlighted is just delusional. For God's sake, Iraq was not on anyone's radar until the Bushies went in and messed it.

So a kid in Bob's class was kidnapped? That kind of blows Bob's theory for me.

Where Jane was cynical, Bob is hopeful. Realistic, but hopeful. I'm with Bob.

People tend to see their own world as a brighter place then the greater world around them…the “it won’t happen to me,” syndrome is alive and well even in a war zone. The folks in Bob’s classroom are optimistic and promise to meet again in 7 years? What ELSE are they supposed to do? Doesn’t mean the situation is better then you’re reporting it. It only means folks aren’t giving up and they shouldn’t, no matter how tough things are now.

I am amazed at the parallel between my own experience in Korea, circa: 1958-59. Conditions in Korea were more settled, but none the less similar in respect to having faith in the emergence of Korea as a free, democratic, and viable country. I lived with Koreans for sixteen months, taught English and Americanism in local village as an aside to military duty. Most Americans believed South Korea was a backward country and would never amount to any thing worthy of mention. How wrong they were. Similarly, the Iraq's described by Bob, seem very much like my Korean students and many members of their Army services whom I came in contact with. I urge all Americans to have faith they will survive and thrive given American staying power and some gumption on the part of our countrymen.

Just remember if Bob is working for a U.S. contractor, he is making excellent $$$$ for his efforts. And for the right amount of money, anyone anywhere can ooze optimism!

Iraqi's lived in fear before the removal of Saddam (unless they were Sunni and/or Baathists for the most part) and it is true that many of them live in fear now. The difference is that they now have hope for a brighter future where before they didn't.

You can zoom in on anything to the point that the ugliness (or beauty) is just outside the frame. I think in Iraq you have to zoom in real close to see any beauty, which is what Bob did. As nice as his anecdote is to hear when compared to the exodus the country is experiencing http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/news/world/15726661.htm due to the violence and the massive amount of dead due to the sectarian conflict (i.e. civil war) and our military you can't help but think that those like Bob are either hopelessly optomistic or hopelessly uninformed (maybe both). The real Iraqi success story can only begin when we leave the country.

Who is our enemy? is it the insurgents. . .the Suni killing Shites. . .the Shities killing Suni. . .who is killing Americans. . .Bob speaks of what comes into his classrooms. . . .Does Bob dare go into Sad'r City? 2 to 3 million Iraqis in an area of Baghdad we cannot enter???

My solution for Iraq. . . .All Iraqui's turn in your arms all of them. . .if you have a weapon after the deadline then the we can tell you are the enemy and will be treated as such. . .If a weapon is found in your home you will be sent to prison. . .You don't need weapons for peace.

Jane, where is it he wrote he's a teacher in "Iraqi schools"? He teaches English to Iraqis which in turn makes him a teacher. If we apply the same rule you applied to Bob then you may report your spin on things but you are not a real reporter which I never thought you were to start with.

The taste of crow is never sweet...so I applaud you. The "neo-cons" as one responder puts it, simply choose to look at the glass of life as half full. If you are so disillusioned by living in America there is an easy answer. Freedom and liberty come at a cost. After living in America it is easy to forget that unless you look at our history or realize the sacrifices our military men and women have made and continue to make for us.

As much as one can admire what Bob is doing, I'm sure there are some positive spin that can be put on any war zone. The fact is Iraq is on the verge of civil war, if it's not in fact in the middle of one. I saw a reporter for another network state that they are not always allowed to report the opening of a new school or hospital, since it would bring attention to those places and make them targets for terrorists! I don't think the reporting on the disaster in Iraq has been unfair. Anyone can look at it through rose colored glasses and pretend things are getting better.

We all hope and pray for a good outcome for the Iraqi people and Bob's story is an encouragement to us all. Unfortunately, data is not the plural of anecdote. The hard data suggests that the US is doing neither Iraq or itself any good under the present course. We tried "Vietnamization" in the early 70's. In the end, Vietnam healed itself--not the way we wanted but in a way that allows us to interact with them in positive ways. Let's let the Iraqis take over their own destiny.

Jane,
In your reply regarding Bob, you say "the few clinics that have been built rather than the many more that haven't been." Perhaps this is Bob's point. You quantify clinics that do not exist by assigning them a value of many more. Liken it to the many more stories you may or may not write. I think stories are where you find them, sometimes by effort and sometimes by chance. Perhaps Bob deserves a visit from you and the opportunity to have his and his student's story told. Just a thought.

Be Safe,
Bill

THIS COUNTRY, IN THIS WAR, HAS THE OPPERTUNITY LIKE NEVER BEFORE. IF EVERY IND. FAMILY JUST DID ONE SMALL GIFT OF KNDINESS TO ANOTHER FAMILY IN IRAQ WHOM HAS SUFFERED YEARS OF ENDURNING MISERY LIKE WE HAVE NEVER KNOWN, BOTH THERE WORLD AND OURS WOULD BE A FAR BETTER PLACE. OUR SON IS SERVING HIS THIRD TOUR IN IRAQ IN THE ARMY AND DURNING HIS FIRST TOUR HE REQUESTED A SPECIAL BIRTHDAY GIFT, IT WAS FOR HIM TO HAVE TOYS, CLOTHES, PENCILS ,PAPER, ANYTHING THAT WE COULD SEND WOULD BE A WONDER GIFT FOR THOSE IN NEED. HE EXPRESSED HIS KNOWING WHY HE WAS THERE. HE FOUND THE ANSWER IN THE EYES OF THE CHILDREN. WHAT A WAKE UP CALL FOR US. YOU KNOW WE ALL HAVE THINGS THAT WE TAKE FOR GRANIT HERE . WE CAN WIN THE HEARTS OF MINDS OF MANY , AND WITH THAT WE CAN CONTINUE TOWARD THE SUCESS OF WINNING THIS WAR.SO THE NEXT TIME YOU SIT DOWN TO HAVE A CONVERSATION ON THE MANY ISSUES CONCERNING WHY WE ARE STILL THERE. MAY BE THE REAL QUESTIONS THAT NEED TO BE ANSWERED IS " WHAT HAVE I DONE TO CONTRIBUTE TO IT SUCESS. WELL I HAVE TO RUN NOW . I'M ON MY WAY TO MAIL A PACKAGE OF CLOTHES AND TOYS TO MY SON, WHO WILL MAKE SURE A CHILD OR FAMILY IN NEED GETS THEM. THANK FOR LISTING . A SOLDIERS MOTHER

GREAT reporting on BOTH of your stories. AND, I think you have GREAT reader, at least from most of the comments above.

Good for Bob, and I mean that sincerely. It is disappointing one of his students was kidnapped because we do not know if it was for attending class or his religious beliefs or something totally unrelated such as a simple criminal act. What I did not read and would like to know is how comfortable he is roaming the city. Can he go wherever he wants? Does he need security when he travels? Is his family with him? Can they travel without guards? Why do so many bodies continue to appear daily? Are all the utilities running uninterrupted, can one purchase gas whenever one chooses, are stores open and available for consumers to shop, are all schools open and running at capacity, can one travel freely from one part of the country to another? Perhaps the media, at least some possibly, take an unecessarily negative view of the Iraq situation. Perhaps what we hear is the truth and some people just do not want to hear the truth after having been lied to by the administration. With the military planning on troops in Iraq at least through 2010, this would be the longest American conflict on record since I do not beleive Viet Nam started counted until the large troop build up in 1968. I for one would like to hear more of Bob's thoughts before making any final judgment on his views.

Bob obviously wears US Army issue blinders. I spent all of 2004 in Baghdad, completed several Civil Affairs projects (I am an army officer), met dozens and dozens of Iraqis of all sects, and married an Iraqi beauty. We speak with her family in Baghdad every week. They are in hell. They have no life. They have no future. The are prisoners in their own homes. We did this to them. It does not matter if they are Shiite or Sunni, they are all in hell. We did this to them. They did not invite us to destroy the country. They did not ask for this. We followed the lead of the corrupt and disgusting exiles like Chalabi to lead us into Iraq. The Iraqi people may have hated Saddam, but they certainly do not like this any more. Bob is a fool. We cannot make a difference in Iraq. We need to find a way out. We need to give them the ability to pick a strong leader and get the hell out of the way. Bob can teach english to anybody he wants. What they need is for Bob and everyone like him to leave and let the Iraqi's find their own way. All we do is make matters worse and continue to undermine the pride of a wonderful people. Shame on us. Shame on Bush.