What Goes Around – Comes Around – Update

Last Saturday morning I was going through the press releases I receive daily from Baghdad when I came across a story I knew I had to get out to America. I immediately set out to write a short post while my wife was preparing breakfast. She finished before I did and was calling me to the breakfast table, warning – “It’s getting cold!”

I made a few quick proofreads and a couple of changes and posted the story of Iraqi soldiers donating $1000 to the victims of the fires in San Diego: http://op-for.com/2007/10/what_goes_around_comes_around.html. I made it to the breakfast table before my eggs were cold. I thought nothing more of my post for the rest of the day. When I checked later, I noticed that the story was beginning to propagate over the web.

If you would like to personally thank the Iraqis who contributed to the San Diego fire victims – Read More

Richard S. Lowry is the author of Marines in the Garden of Eden and The Gulf War Chronicles.

By Monday morning, it was apparent that many Americans appreciated the Iraqi soldiers’ gesture. So, I decided to do a follow-up posting. I made some inquiries and found Colonel Darel Maxfield. Now! I would like to collect ‘thank you’ comments and forward them to Colonel Maxfield and Abbas so that they know how much this act of compassion has touched America.

Colonel Maxfield has told me that Colonel Abbas was “the first Iraqi to enlist in the new Iraqi Army and he has the ID card with the date and number to prove it.” He is gregarious, friendly and staunchly pro-American. He views his American compatriots as “brothers” which, in the Iraqi culture, is a high position of honor. Colonel Maxfield went on to say, “the bad guys send people to try to hurt him.” Abbas’ daughter was killed by a Mahdi Army RPG launched into her bedroom and his father died of a heart attack in another attack on their home. Maxfield said, “He’s the real deal and he’s one of the locals that has a chance to make a difference in a positive way here.”

Colonel Abbas also works hard to help his own countrymen. He and his men recently completed a joint medical operation with his American counterparts. LTC Mark Werner, the Senior Advisor at the Besmaya Combat Training Center, just wrote me about this mission. “We just did a joint medical operation with a Coalition unit providing medical support and items for kids in a local village. By joint I mean Iraqi medical and Docs and ours working together. Our force protection and theirs.”

Locals waiting in line at medical clinic

This was not the first time that Colonel Abbas has reached out to help fellow Iraqis or has passed the hat among his men to help Americans in need. On September 5, 2005, Colonel Abbas presented 1,000,000 Iraqi dinars to his American counterparts at Taji for the victims of Hurricane Katrina. In that presentation he said, “We are all brothers. When one suffers tragedy, we all suffer their pain.”

Some have already commented on the Iraqi soldiers’ generosity. The enlisted soldiers make around $300 per month. The most senior officers, like Abbas, make only $1000 per month. They are targeted when they travel home to bring their pay to their families and yet they continue to work to bring peace to their country. And, they reach out to help the families of the Americans they work with daily.

Don’t forget our own service men and women who are far from home. Colonel Maxfield concluded his email with, “Please let anyone who will listen know that our services-the Army, Navy, Marines and Air Force have the best young men and women in the world. Our NCO’s form the backbone of the most effective military in the world. Those young men and women are doing a great job and their leadership and performance in VERY difficult situations should make every American proud. Those men and women are real heroes.”

In closing, please help me in thanking all the Iraqi young men who are stepping up to the plate and working under difficult conditions to bring stability to their homes, families and country. It is these brave Iraqis who will eventually take the reins and allow our sons and daughters to come home.

I will collect your comments of gratitude and forward them through Colonel Maxfield to Colonel Abbas and his men. Let’s show them our thankfulness. Please leave a comment below:

Richard S. Lowry is the author of Marines in the Garden of Eden and The Gulf War Chronicles.