Earlier this month I had the opportunity to have a chat with an Army Sergeant who had returned to the States from a one year tour of duty in Iraq. It was my first opportunity to really sit down and talk face to face with someone from one of the combat zones, and I had a thousand questions for him. I did my best to just listen to what he had to say without comment, so often it wasn't so much a discussion as a debriefing. I did check with him several times as to whether or not he was comfortable talking about things, but he said it was fine, and actually somewhat therapeutic.

I'd like to share some of the things that he said. I agreed with some of it, and disagreed with some, but I'm going to do my best to present the information here, as he said it...

I offer this here in my memestream not to make any particular kind of point (as I said, I agree with some stuff he said, and disagree with other stuff), but just to share my notes from the chat. Overall, it was a fascinating conversation, and I was very grateful for the opportunity to see Iraq through this soldier's eyes.

- Elonka

Conversation with a Soldier Back from Iraq