Those going to and coming from the combat zone appear to be doing well; aside from missing their friends and families, there doesn't seem to be a real morale problem at this point. Of course, most of my information comes from those hanging out in the place where the most conversation goes on - the smokers' pit. Though I only smoke the occasional cigar myself, the information is good in the pit, and the tobacco smoke keeps those malarious mosquitoes away - a win-win situation.
For those who haven't been here before, it's very brown - the ground, the sky, the buildings, the tents, the people - and quite humid. The temperature isn't bad at all - mid 80s - because there are rainshowers in the area. Should be a little rain in Baghdad later today, as well, but it won't last long.
It's not the first time he's been. Emanuel's a decorated combat veteran.
For more from the ground in Iraq, check out Capt. Joseph Lizarraga's assessment of the successes in Fallujah. There are some, even if Harry Reid will refuse to hear about them.
And, there's Cpl. Tyler Rock in Ramadi, reading Reid the riot act:
"Yeah, and I got a quote for that [expletive] Harry Reid. These families need us here," Rock vented in an e-mail to Pat Dollard, a Hollywood agent-turned-war reporter who posted the comment on his Web site, www.patdollard.com.
"Obviously [Reid] has never been in Iraq. Or at least the area worth seeing . . . the parts where insurgency is rampant and the buildings are blown to pieces," Rock wrote.
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