Iraq War journalist speaks on campus
Danny Warren
Issue date: 11/4/08 Section: Campus News
Dahr Jamail, a previously unembedded journalist in Iraq, spoke in the Humanities auditorium on Wednesday ,Oct. 29.
Jamail's speech addressed the way the American public views the war in Iraq and some of the things he did and saw while in Iraq, including having conversations with the people and first-hand looks at the events unfolding during the first parts of the war.
Jamail said that when he and his interpreter first arrived in Iraq they traveled the country and spoke with its residents asking questions about their treatment and the real events taking place during the war.
Most reporters from America were placed with the troops to get footage for the mainstream media outlets in America, but Jamail had the opportunity to see what was really happening and document these events.
He started small, posting his reports on the Internet, before he was eventually hired as a journalist for a few different publications. His writing focused on what was happening in Iraq during the war.
"Compared to a couple of years ago, there are less people being killed in Iraq," said Jamail. "Right now there are many Iraqis leaving the country with no plan to return."
"In Iraq the average home has only two hours of energy per day at the most and people are struggling to survive," he added.
According to Jamail, 1.2- 1.3 million Iraqis have died in Iraq since the war began and one half of the countries medical doctors have fled the country.
There are 3 specific strategic military documents that outline the U.S. strategy in the war.
Jamail said the National Security Strategy in the U.S.A., Joint Vision 2020 and The Quadrennial Defense Review Report are all documents that should be viewed by Americans in order for them to know America's strategy on the War in Iraq.
"One third of the U.S. troops that have come home have suffered from Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome" said Jamail. "The waiting list to get Veterans Assistance (VA) can sometimes be up to 6 months. In one month nearly 1000 soldiers attempt suicide. One quarter of America's homeless is veterans of a major war.
Jamail's book "Beyond the Green Zone: Dispatches from an Unembedded Journalist in Iraq" is currently available and includes many of his experiences and events he witnessed while in Iraq.
Jamail's speech addressed the way the American public views the war in Iraq and some of the things he did and saw while in Iraq, including having conversations with the people and first-hand looks at the events unfolding during the first parts of the war.
Jamail said that when he and his interpreter first arrived in Iraq they traveled the country and spoke with its residents asking questions about their treatment and the real events taking place during the war.
Most reporters from America were placed with the troops to get footage for the mainstream media outlets in America, but Jamail had the opportunity to see what was really happening and document these events.
He started small, posting his reports on the Internet, before he was eventually hired as a journalist for a few different publications. His writing focused on what was happening in Iraq during the war.
"Compared to a couple of years ago, there are less people being killed in Iraq," said Jamail. "Right now there are many Iraqis leaving the country with no plan to return."
"In Iraq the average home has only two hours of energy per day at the most and people are struggling to survive," he added.
According to Jamail, 1.2- 1.3 million Iraqis have died in Iraq since the war began and one half of the countries medical doctors have fled the country.
There are 3 specific strategic military documents that outline the U.S. strategy in the war.
Jamail said the National Security Strategy in the U.S.A., Joint Vision 2020 and The Quadrennial Defense Review Report are all documents that should be viewed by Americans in order for them to know America's strategy on the War in Iraq.
"One third of the U.S. troops that have come home have suffered from Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome" said Jamail. "The waiting list to get Veterans Assistance (VA) can sometimes be up to 6 months. In one month nearly 1000 soldiers attempt suicide. One quarter of America's homeless is veterans of a major war.
Jamail's book "Beyond the Green Zone: Dispatches from an Unembedded Journalist in Iraq" is currently available and includes many of his experiences and events he witnessed while in Iraq.
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