Why when you talk to military people that have returned from Iraq?

As someone who did time in iraq recently I will say morale is high. Things are mostly in order and most Iraqis are good people and are happy we have gave them hope, to live a possible free life. The complaints I would have from my experience is lack of quality living conditions for our troops there. We need funding for that and well sadly it does not sound like we will. We need armored equipment and we need body armor. it just is to sad we will not be getting that.

What else would they say .. they won't admit things are bad .. their just glad to be home .

The problem is that the suicide bombers and others look like everyone else , and they have no fear of death , they can play their games for ever .. Those people have been fighting amongst themselves for century's and that will never change .

SO why keep troops over there to get picked off one by one .. If it was your brother or father what would you think then .. NO war is good and when you really don't know why your fighting it's even worse .. it started out to search out and destroy weapons of mass destruction , when none were found it became a war on terror .. what will it be called next ?

Saddam has been put to death and now its time to get out and let them look after themselves .. Spend that money on a Health care system for anyone who can't afford it or feed and cloth some of the poor people who don't get a decent meal or have a pair if shoes to wear .. and yes all this stuff is right in your own back yard..

Always, always consider the source of the information. There are times when military people who have just returned are a good source and their information is spot on...but many times they are seeing only a small part of the overall picture.

On the other hand, the news media seem intent on selling their version of the news and, whether it is "right" or "wrong" within the context of the whole, it appears to make little difference to them. For example, gory pictures of the aftermath of a car bomb, do not mean the whole country is being torn apart any more than the pictures of a pile-up on one of our Interstates mean all the cars and trucks in the country are crashing into one another.

The only way to be reasonably comfortable with what you hear is to check several very different sources and try and ascertain the facts. Once armed with as many facts as you can find, make up your own mind as to what is real and where the truth lies.

You should trust the soldiers, they are the ones with boots on the ground and our not financed or influenced by special interest groups etc. Take it from an OIF vet things are not as bad as the news (especially CNN) make it seem. Another trick they have is they say 10 people etc were causalities and the normal main stream American watching it on the news assumes US soldiers however usually they are Iraqis that were injured by anti Iraqi (other countries and terrorist groups' insurgents) forces. So it is slightly Miss leading. But the best answers are going to come from the people that have actually experienced it an trust me its no picnic but it is better than the news media is trying to represent. Also it is not just the troop build up that is working so well but also the excellent training and fighting spirit that the INP (Iraqi national police) are receiving from our guidance an also from joint patrols that are lead by INP and supervised by US coalition troops. I hope this answers some of your question........Shadow Stalker

You're a veteran, as you say, but you can't answer that question yourself? What the hell does one soldier know about what 's going on over there? I had two tours over there. Ask me? It's screwed, but that's me. I'm not a general. I'm an ex (civilian now thanks) specialist who sat in the turret of an M-1114 looking backwards with a 50 cal or booted down haji doors at all hours of the night. I didn't plan the damn thing, and i didn't read every INSUM. From where i sat it looked fcked but that's me.

If you're a veteran than you'd know it isnt your job to worry about the whole picture at that point, it's your job to worry about your lane. Let the self-righteous bastards on CNN and FOXNews and this dmn website discuss how the wars going and watch your own damn lane.

we are doing the same thing we did in Nam. The Dem. are playing the do good roll and the heck with American solider or the welfare of our country, as it is we are losing the respect of the other country's. Now the two bit countries are saying we can do what ever we want. This is being caused by the press and the TV reporting which has been one side. If world war 2 was fought today Hitler would still be in power as the do Gooders would holler the loudest and the same junk would be in the paper and on TV.

I live in midwest and the same thing happens here when our service men come home. The media has no interest in telling anything positive about Iraq. Personally I think it is a shame they would rather listen to the movie stars than listen to the people that have been there.

Getting better for what? We have created a situation that we dont understand because of the religious war between the Sunni's and Shihites. What better a country torn apart and thousand of Americand and Irqais dead. Better for cheap oil, or just cause....

Iraq.... Its a war that isn't near ending, Yet you want to believe people. Guess what...! People are not talking about who to believe, But they are talking about the NOT likely time table. Anyway, The war is on in Iraq. Its a war for God's sake. Come on, its a war, & ever wars are wars.

Certainly is working, just the other day two people were killed and dozens injured IN THE GREEN ZONE, the most protected area in Iraq.