This blog is written by a girl living in Baghdad. She's just a citizen, but this is what makes the blog interesting, because everything she writes is about her own experiences and her own views. She is unconnected to the war, but directly exposed to the results of it.
This particular post is about a wall being built in Baghdad, how Sunnis and Shia weren't always in conflict, that it's a result of the war, and how things have become so bad that she and her family have decided to become refugees and leave the country.
http://riverbendblog.blogspot.com/2007_04_01_archive.html
just like the previous blogs, the reader is able to see yet another point of view by someone influenced because of the war. "riverbend" writes in this post about the wall being put up in order to separate Sunni and Shia Muslims and how she finds it comparable to concentration camps, conflict in Palestine, and further discordance in Germany. however, while it is obvious that she wants to talk about these issues ("let's talk war, politics, and occupation"), i get the impression that instead of being led to think the way she does because of witnessing violence or death first hand, that she is more disheartened that the wall has resulted in a loss of communication with her fellow Muslims. as she stated, no one ever had problems with the other, even if a Sunni was neighbors with a Shia, and things were fine. then, some "imbecile," as she puts, decided to invade the country and life as she knew it changed. while she is clearly opinionated towards American government and certain public officials, i think what she wants most is a return to normalcy. ".. I'll meet you 'round the bend my friend, where hearts can heal and souls can mend...," to me, says that she misses her home and friends, as of her last post she was living in Syria. this is backed by the fact that in the post "bloggers without borders" she says she cried upon learning the generosity and friendliness of the Iraqis living with her.
ReplyDeleteoppositely, i find the blog strange in how plain it is. i also looked at 5 different posts and was not able to find any comments.
I totally agree with Katherine, I found it interesting to compare the tone of her words with the design or lack there of, for the site. She was obvious in pointing out her opinion of foreign intervention. I also noticed that this blog was last updated in 2007, and after taking a look at the last blog, I felt like I had been left hanging, waiting to see what would happen next. Our blogger gave us an inside view to the feelings and decisions that had to be made so that her family could have a chance at a happier safer life.
ReplyDeleteThis blog is interesting as well as it bears stark contrast to all of the other blogs that we have seen. In this blog, while slightly older, we are able to gain insight into what exactly this certain Iraqi is thinking and the conditions that they are living in. While browsing the site I came upon many interesting posts. For example her post, at
ReplyDeletehttp://riverbendblog.blogspot.com/2004_12_01_archive.html
,she gives us a description of what an “Iraqi Christmas list” would be like. I also came upon numerous posts outlining the difficulty doing seemingly mundane every-day tasks can be. For example electricity and water are cut off for many days in a row, and when the water does come back on it comes back in a trickle and has to be collected in pails and stored for later. In the end I think that it is extremely interesting to get this newer perspective from someone who is actually feeling negative effects of things in Iraq. However one thing that I would have like to see would be an update on how things are going. Her last post is about her and her family and whether or not they are going to be moving. I just kind of leaves things hanging as I would like to know if she stayed or not. If she would have stayed it would have been interesting to see the progression of things in Iraq. For example, would things get any easier in terms of driving water and electricity?
I found this blog entry to be very sad. The author seems to be in a lose lose situation. This was written in 2007 yet I never heard anything about a wall being built. I think it is unfortunate that Americans are being compared to Nazis. It just goes to show that people don't appreciate or want our help. It is sad that the writer is being forced to leave their home because it isn't safe yet it is very hard to go anywhere else. I would really enjoy an update from this person to see if their outlook had changed at all. Maybe her view of Americans has changed? I really like the quote that is at the top of the blog. It seemed to set the tone of the blog entry. This isn't a pretty blog, yet it will probably be the one that I remember the most. It would be awful to be a prisoner in your own life. I found the last line very emotional: "It's difficult to decide which is more frightening- car bombs and militias, or having to leave everything you know and love, to some unspecified place for a future where nothing is certain. " I really hope she found a safe home. Everyone deserves a safe home.
ReplyDeleteI was completely astonished and amazed by the blog written by this unknown Iraqi girl. It seems she really doesn't care about whether readers could know who she is, cause' she doesn't have a profile and photo and all information about herself is just a short sentence which simultaneously indicates her attitude specifically.
ReplyDeleteThe author is a Iraqi but her English proficiency is quite excellent. After reading her post, I can confidently say that she's pretty well educated and probably an university student just like us. In the post The Great Wall of...she started her writing expressing her point of view towards a very political and relevant topic. Afterwards she moved her thought onto her own recent life. I think she really did a good job because the post looks like much an integrity than being separated. Readers mind just follow her words and sentences from beginning to the end naturally.
Based on her post, I find she's really erudite on these issues and possesses several independent opinions which seldom appear among most people at this age. I mean, she, like many other her compatriots, hates the result of war and the occupation of America, but she in fact writes them down in a very professional and level-headed way. It's pretty amazing. However, I appreciate her providing such wonderful blog while I do hope she can live a pleasing life and no longer writes about these unhappys more.
I really enjoyed reading this blog because the author wrote in a way that people could connect with, even if they hadn't been in a similar situation. She describes leaving home in a way that anyone could understand. The emotional appeal of the entire blog was so strong, that it made me want to continue reading further posts to find out more.
ReplyDeleteI found it interesting that in her first post, the blogger writes, "A little bit about myself: I'm female, Iraqi and 24. I survived the war. That's all you need to know. It's all that matters these days anyway." Through reading her other posts, it's clear she's much more than that. Her voice is very conversational and stood out by describing her thoughts vividly, but in an original way. I'm surprised that there aren't more comments on this blog, considering how intriguing it is.
I have to admit that until reading this blog, the gravity of Americans being the bad guys somewhere didn't register with me. I take it harshly that the author of this blogpost is comparing Americans to Nazis. I think that she is effective in portraying Americans as the bad guys. Of course I would not want to admit that what my country is doing is wrong, but I feel as though I have no choice in this case. I know that if I were in a situation where foreigners were making me feel trapped in a nightmare then I'd want to get out as well. I really can't imagine what it must've been like for the author to be in that position.
ReplyDeleteThe "lose-lose" that Jackie talked about struck me especially hard. The last sentence - "It's difficult to decide which is more frightening- car bombs and militias, or having to leave everything you know and love, to some unspecified place for a future where nothing is certain" - really makes me feel as though I shouldn't take for granted my fortunate state of living free and without fear. I think this blog out of all of the blogs that we've read has made me greatly appreciate what I have and should be thankful for...I guess, then, that it makes sense that this is the blog closest to Thanksgiving. Har har.
Even though this blog is simple, it packs a punch with how deep the girl gets into her life. She save anything when she writes, like what Evan said about how she viewed us as Nazi-like. It was a perspective that I feel is just a little harsh, but I can see where she is coming from. Also, it was touching when she talked about knowing that she must leave her country and her home. And how they must choose what to take with them, it is a sad thing to think about. If you put it in the light as in the time of the Nazi's, it was like they were the Jewish people trying to get away from Germany. I felt this was a blog that played with the emotions of the audience, and really brought them into the life of this girl. I really felt this was a good blog, even though it is negative toward Americans.
ReplyDeleteThis blog is special because it is written by a civilian. As the subtitle suggests, she never hides her political view. This is definitely a sad post. The author use a lot appalling comparisons, for example, the different of the way people live in Baghdad before and after war, they didn't care about sect or religion at all, but now they do. The author just tries to reveal her personal life to readers, which seems so real and sorrowful. After these, the author turns to a very urgent problem--leaving the country. She is thinking many urgent things, what to bring and not to bring. It would touch readers who now have a stable place to live. I guess few had ever thought of leaving a country forever, so few could understand what it feels. The last sentence of the post is even more sad, it is like a summary of her concerns.
ReplyDeleteFrom the moment I started reading, I was impressed by the author's tone. In the post that group six pointed out, she displays a completely understandable indignance over what's happening around her. What I liked about it was that it was such a fresh perspective on the opposition to American involvement.
ReplyDeleteI've heard plenty of arguments both for and against our actions overseas, but after reading this blog, many of them felt kind of selfish. People often debate the war effort in terms of what America has to do or what America shouldn't do. We tend to think of the war in terms of America's safety or America's foreign policy. To me, this blog post was saying, "What about US, the people actually living in Iraq? Why don't you think more about how your decisions affect our lives?"
There was also a strong emotional impact in seeing that kind of attitude. Whether a person has been for or against the war, it's easy to forget about the civilians impacted by our country's actions on a day-to-day basis. I admit, that's exactly what I've done for a long time. Reading this blog genuinely made me feel bad for thinking about the Iraq war but kind of ignoring the Iraqi people.
This girl is a hard-working and high-yielding blogger and she provides many valuable facts and opinions. Overall, I found this blog useful and interesting.
ReplyDeleteI look at the very first posts of the blog. She depicted how life has changed after the war, for example, organized criminal and the rise of gasoline price. Her blog title strikes me as clever because “burning Baghdad” suggests not only the chaos, but the heat as well------ “the sun shuts out the rest of the world from its glory and concentrates its energies on us”, The blogger also displayed her sense of humor all over the posts, which makes the blogs more interesting. I’m also able to learn about the hazardous life of Iraqi people----you have to watch out for looters, hijackers and rapist every minute, One can’t help feeling sorry for these people.
What I like most about this blog is that she reveals some “ugly truths” by her personal connections. The rebuilding of Iraq are done by foreign corporation with over-priced contract while many brilliant Iraqi engineers are available( her brother being one of the engineers)! With this evidence, the blogger argued that Iraq War is for company interest and oil! That’s appalling!
She hates the idea of Iraqi society being separated and she hates the uncertainty, the idea of leaving homeland and acquaintances behind It seems to me that she’s that kind of ordinary citizens who don’t bother themselves with ideology or partition, all she wants is peaceful civilian life. But do the majority of Iraqis not care if their neighbors are shunnite or shias? In his book The Clash of Civilization and the Remaking of World Order, Samuel Huntington concludes that the difference of culture and religion is the major reason for discordance. I believe the religious difference of Shunni and shia must stand in the way of harmonious coexistence to certain extent. But to what extent? Will some power seeker take advantage of the cultural gap to achieve their political goal while other citizens just want to lead a peaceful and coexistent life despite those differences? These questions bother even the most learned sociologists, let alone me. But I’m glad that I can be better informed by reading this blog, by knowing what some Iraq citizen are thinking about.
The first thing I noticed about the blog was how plain in appearance it was. Whether I am interested in the blogs topic or not, I am automatically a little less interested because of the lack of appeal at first first glance of the blog. However, after reading the first few paragraphs I was immediately interested in the topic, partly because I was interested in it before I read the blog, but also because of the way she writes. She does an excellent job of using persuasive sentences, that have a strong voice, helping to illuminate how she feels about the wall closing off a potentially dangerous Iraqi group. Its this wall that means so much more to the writer than just a wall. The wall clearly represents, to the author, the separation that has continued to increase over the years of the Iraqi people because of their personal beliefs or simply where they grew up. I was a bit surprised when I saw her make her claim about the war being about corporate profits. She helps her argument when she talks about the rebuilding being done by engineers that aren't citizens in Iraq. She then discusses how her brother was one of those engineers. This really helps to give some credibility to her claim when she has such a close tie to someone who is very much involved.
ReplyDeleteI also enjoyed the fact that the author is a civilian. Unlike most other blogs where they are written by a soldier or a soldier wife, this takes on another point of view. The civilian sees the everyday happenings within their living space. This is good because they are able to offer accurate stories and evidence to help back up their claim, especially when appealing to emotion because they can paint a picture for what it was like when they witnessed each event.
Joe Butkovic
This is my first time seeing an argument to compare America’s involvement in Iraq to the concentration camp by Nazi government. That made me shocked. I learnt a little about America’s foreign policy in high school and I clearly remember it was in the “Hegemonism and Power Politics” lesson from the chapter of “Globalization”, and the next lesson was about the overall peace and chaos in some areas. Naturally, I’m not in favor of the policy of intervention, but I think the comparison in this blog is exaggerated. However, the author’s life “depending on the group of masked men who stop you or raid your home in the middle of the night” and that her family had to leave really reminds me of the escaping Jews for surviving. Maybe it’s because the chaos takes place in a relatively small scale that people in other countries don’t take serious thinking for the civilians in the war. Anyway, I don’t want to be the ones “who haven't been to the country in decades pretend to know more about it than people actually living there”.
ReplyDeleteIn addition, the author made an day-to-day account of her family’s leaving plan. It’s a little less interesting, but I don’t think it should be deleted, for the more trivial, the more real. By the way, I wonder why there isn’t any comment, and same case in her other articles. That’s sad, as I don’t see this blog much deficiency comparing with other blogs.
I agree with Joe that the blog is very black and white and almost blah, but the text is very interesing and tugged me along. It's obvious that she's an excellent writter and is well educated. I think the way she writes defientley helps keep my attention but her story is also just as intersting. Normally people that have very opinionated blogs, such as hers, irritate me or push me away. In this case hers did not have that effect on me. I thought her story was compelling it gave me a different insight.
ReplyDeleteThe blog looks very simple, and not too inviting to read at first. But the quality of writing from this blog is very good, and almost poetic at some points. Even though the Americans were compared to the Nazis, I was not too surprised because of her given situation as a civilian. The author's point of view is not taboo, but just different because of the side she has taken. And with the fact that the last update from the blog was in late 2007, it makes me wonder why there have not been posts since, and what has been going on.
ReplyDeleteThis blog kinda upset me due to the face that the writer calls Americans the bad guys and in a very small amount of situations I would agree, but by no means would I put us in the relm of Nazi's. Also I agree with alot of other people that this blog is written very simply and almost to factually and boring at some points.
ReplyDeleteRyan brings up a good point! What has been going on in their lives. At one point in her blog, she states " Our existence depends on hiding it or highlighting it- depending on the group of masked men who stop you or raid your home in the middle of the night," speaking about religion.. but maybe her family have not only had to hide religion, but possibly even the entire family had to dissappear for awhile and that's why there has been a lack in frequency of blog posts.
ReplyDeleteThe writing of the blog is much more complex than the layout, and although at first I was not drawn in by the plain background and text, the writing was much more interesting than I would have expected. My favorite part is when the author contrasts how it was in the past and how it is now:
ReplyDelete"I remember Baghdad before the war- one could live anywhere. We didn't know what our neighbors were- we didn't care. No one asked about religion or sect. No one bothered with what was considered a trivial topic: are you Sunni or Shia? You only asked something like that if you were uncouth and backward. Our lives revolve around it now."
I think this is a really strong point because it makes me think about what Iraq in a deeper meaning than I have thought about it before. It is amazing to think that there was one peace in Iraq...all that we hear about now is bombings and war. Everytime someone mentions this country the first thing that pops into my mind is the violence; I forget about the people and the culture of the country. I agree with Ryan that the writing is almost poetic at some points. I really like the way the author expresses herself and draws in the readers. This blog is so good that it makes me wonder what has happened to the author since her last post in 2007.