Letter from Medic Serving in Iraq
 

This is a letter from Ray Reynolds, a medic in the Iowa Army
National Guard, serving in Iraq:

As I head off to Baghdad for the final weeks of my stay in
Iraq, I wanted to say thanks to all of you who did not believe the
media. They have done a very poor job of covering everything that
has happened. I am sorry that I have not been able to visit all
of you during my two week leave back home. And just so you can
rest at night knowing something is happening in Iraq that is
noteworthy, I thought I would pass this on to you. This is the
list of things that has happened in Iraq recently: (Please share
it with your friends and compare it to the version that your paper
is producing.)

* Over 400,000 kids ha! ve up-to-date immunizations.
* School attendance is up 80% from levels/* before the war*/.
* Over 1,500 schools have been renovated and rid of the weapons
stored there so education can occur.
* The port of Uhm Qasar was renovated so grain can be off-loaded
from ships faster.
* The country had its first 2 billion barrel export of oil in August.
* Over 4.5 million people have clean drinking water/* for the
first time ever*/ in Iraq.
* The country now receives 2 times the electrical power it did/*
before the war*/.
* 100% of the hospitals are open and fully staffed, compared to
35%/* before the war*/.
* Elections are taking place in every major city, and city
councils are in place.
* Sewer and water lines are installed in every major city.
* Over 60,000 police are patro! lling the streets.
* Over 100,000 Iraqi civil defense police are securing the country.
* Over 80,000 Iraqi soldiers are patrolling the streets side by
side with US soldiers.
* Over 400,000 people have telephones/* for the first time ever*/.
* Students are taught field sanitation and hand washing techniques
to prevent the spread of germs.
* An interim constitution has been signed.
* Girls are allowed to attend school.
* Textbooks that don't mention Saddam are in the schools for the
first time in 30 years.

Don't believe for one second that these people do not want
us there. I have met many, many people from Iraq that want us
there, and in a bad way. They say they will never see the freedoms
we talk about but they hope their children will. We are doing a
good job in Iraq and I challenge anyone, anywhere to dispute me on
these facts. So If you happen to run into! John Kerry, be sure to
give him my email address and send him to Denison, Iowa. This
soldier will set him straight. If you are like me and very
disgusted with how this period of rebuilding has been portrayed,
email this to a friend and let them know there are good things
happening.

Ray Reynolds, SFC
Iowa Army National Guard
234th Signal Battalion