2003-10-13 - 8:59 p.m.
Try it! It's fun!
Dear Editor, (U.S. NEWSPAPER),
I have been serving in Iraq for over five months now as a (NOUN) in the 2d Battalion of the 503d Airborne Infantry Regiment, otherwise known as the "(NOUN)." We (VERB)ed the country at midnight on March 26; 1,000 of my fellow soldiers and I parachuted from 10 (PLURAL NOUN) (known as C17s) onto a cold, muddy (NOUN) in Bashur in northern Iraq. This parachute operation was the US Army's only combat jump of the war and (VERB)ed up the northern front. Things have changed tremendously for our battalion since those first cold, wet weeks spent in Bashur. On April 10, our battalion conducted an attack south into the (ADJECTIVE) town of Kirkuk, the city that has since become our home away from home and the focus of our (NOUN) and development efforts.
Kirkuk is a hot and dusty city of just over a million (PLURAL NOUN). The majority of the city has welcomed our presence with open (PLURAL NOUN). After five months here, the people still come running from their (PLURAL NOUN) into the 110-degree heat (VERB)ing at us as our troops drive by on daily patrols of the city. Children (VERB) and run up to (VERB), and in broken English shout, "(EXCLAMATION)."
The people of Kirkuk are all trying to find their way in this new (ADJECTIVE) environment. Some major (PLURAL NOUN) have been made. A big reason for our steady progress is that the soldiers are (VERB)ing among the people of the city and getting to know their (PLURAL NOUN) and the needs of the neighborhoods.
We have also been instrumental in (VERB)ing a new police force. Kirkuk now has 1,700 police officers. The police are now, (ADVERB), a fair representation of the (NOUN) as a whole. So far, we have spent more than $500,000 from the former Iraqi (NOUN) to repair the stations' (NOUN) and (NOUN), to paint each station, and to make them functional places for the police to (VERB).
The battalion has also assisted in (VERB)ing Kirkuk's fire department, which is now even more (ADJECTIVE) than before the war. New (NOUN) treatment and sewage plants are being constructed, and the distribution of (NOUN) and (NOUN) are steadily improving. All of these functions were started by our soldiers here in the northern city, and are now slowly being turned over to the newly elected city (NOUN).
Laws are being rewritten to reflect (ADJECTIVE) principles and a functioning judicial system was recently established to bridge the gap between law enforcement and the rule of (NOUN). The quality of life and (NOUN) for the citizens has been largely (VERB)ed, and we are a large part of why that has happened.
The fruits of all our soldiers' (PLURAL NOUN) are clearly visible in the streets of Kirkuk today. There is very little (NOUN) in the streets, many more (PLURAL NOUN) in the markets and shops, and children have returned to (PLURAL NOUN). This is all evidence that the work American soldiers are doing is (VERB)ing the lives of Kirkuk's citizens.
Sincerely,
(MILITARY RANK) (NAME)
***
|
 |