Riverbend is back!!!

[jdj]

This is her first post since the 18th of June

more at http://www.riverbendblog.blogspot.com

Baghdad Burning
Saturday, July 31, 2004
 

"...The family issues include the death of an older aunt. She had a stroke shortly after the war and has been deteriorating ever since. A combination of bad security, lack of the necessary health facilities and general stress and tension finally took its toll. We’ve been quite busy with the funeral process which can be extensive and drawn-out in Iraq. The deceased is buried after the proper preparation rituals, which shouldn’t take longer than a day. The first problems we faced occurred in the graveyard. Upon visiting the graveyard, my uncles discovered that the family plot which had been purchased years ago had very recently been occupied by some strangers who could find very little room elsewhere in the overcrowded cemetery. The grounds keeper apologized profusely but said that they were bringing in an average of almost 100 bodies a month this year to his graveyard alone- where was he supposed to bury the bodies?"

[NMDemDist2]

1. thank heavens! i was worried about them

thanks a bunch for the post, I'm off to read it now and see what's up

here's a telling line...

The first problems we faced occurred in the graveyard. Upon visiting the graveyard, my uncles discovered that the family plot which had been purchased years ago had very recently been occupied by some strangers who could find very little room elsewhere in the overcrowded cemetery. The grounds keeper apologized profusely but said that they were bringing in an average of almost 100 bodies a month this year to his graveyard alone- where was he supposed to bury the bodies?

[jdj]

2. one cemetery in Iraq, 700 bodies this year.

wonder how many cemeteries there are there. This doesn't include the mass graves in the soccer stadium in Fallujah, which incidently is back under fire today, according to this al jazeera article (which won't let me cut and paste for some reason).

Fallujah comes under intense US fire.
http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/B202A127-EF19-4B79-B1D6-DDE22EF8B7A6.htm

[NMDemDist2]

3. some way to bring democracy to the most secular country in the ME

what a horrible sad unspeakable

:argh:

[jdj]

4. She said she keeps gettin e-mails decrying the hostage

taking. What is she supposed to do about it? She has commented several times on the ignorant e-mails she gets, that would be enough to make me want to throw in the towel, so I am so glad she is posting again, I have checked her site every day for a month and a half. I guess the heat there is all one can deal with, or with war AND then intense heat blogging becomes less of a priority. I hope she'll be posting frequently.

[milkyway]

5. Thanks! It's great to hear from her again.