Americans are inundated daily with the media’s version of what is going on in Iraq. Frequently we get the White House backlash against the media bias in reporting on the war. What we never hear is what our brave men and women in the military are saying about the war in Iraq. There is no better place to hear what our fine men and women in the military have to say than to visit the Milblogs (Military Blogs). Here are a few excerpts and links to some of my favorite Milblogs. I visit them frequently and encourage you to do the same. From each site you can find numerous links to other military blog sites which allow you to see the war from their perspective and many of the sites allow you to correspond with them as well.

Michael Yon

Combat comes unexpectedly, even in war.

On Monday, while conducting operations in west Mosul, a voice came over the radio saying troops from our brother unit, the 3-21, were fighting with the enemy in east Mosul on the opposite side of the Tigris River. Moments later, SSG Will Shockley relayed word to us that an American soldier was dead. We began searching for the shooters near one of the bridges on our side of the Tigris, but they got away. Jose L. Ruiz was killed in action. Read Michael Yon’s Gates of Fire.

Mudville Gazette

In the past year (off the top of my head without actually searching for more examples) Mudville has broken - as in discovered and first reported the key facts - stories on a letter from the Mayor of Tal Afar, a confrontation between an Iraq war vet and two rabid anti-war congressmen, and al Qaeda's plan for a media invasion of America - all of which found their way into the mainstream media - print and television.

The only "credit" given this humble site comes as oblique references to "reports circulating on the internet" or "internet sites are reporting"- even though in some of those cases I've even responded to reporters and put them in touch with key figures in the story. Mudville Gazette

Black Five

The Associated Press would love it if all those pesky bloggers would quit throwing their BS flags on their BS reporting. We'll stop when they stop stamping steaming piles of dung with an AP seal of approval and calling it news. This is the organization brazen enough to complain that one of their Pulitzer prize-winning photogs was being held by the US, Censorship they cry! The fact that this gentleman, Bilal Hussein, was captured in a raid that scarfed up two terrorist bomb-makers and the trusted AP photog had explosive residue all over him is unimportant when you are making (up) the news. Black Five

An American Soldier

We're here in Iraq now. I won't be blogging anything cool probably while we're here though. I remember really enjoying a few blogs at the beginning of the war, but they were pushing the limits a little bit on opsec and I don't plan to get anywhere near those limits. Names, places, time, movements, and tactics won't be talked about except either in very general terms or after the fact. An American Soldier

These are but a few examples of military blogs from which you can gain a soldier’s perspective on the war in Iraq and their travels elsewhere around the world. Soldiers today have the internet with which to reach back to the United States and correspond with the very people they are fighting for. Visit their sites and follow their blog rolls to other military blog sites. Write to them and let them know you appreciate what they are doing for you and their country. Politics aside, they are engaged in a battle for Democracy against radical Islam and deserve your support. Many people say that they support the troops but not the war; here is your chance to do it. If you feel generous there is an organization called Soldier’s Angels:

Soldiers' Angels currently supports thousands of American Service Members stationed wherever we raise our Country's Flag and the number is growing daily. We also work tirelessly supporting our Wounded Soldiers, with backpacks filled with needed items , personal visits, phone calls, etc. Additionally, we send our thanks via letters and email to the military of Great Britain, Poland and Australia who serve by our soldiers side in Iraq.

Soldiers' Angels are dedicated to ensuring that our military know they are loved and supported during and after their deployment into harms way. Soldier’s Angels

This organization is dedicated to supporting our brave men and women in uniform and their families. Its selfless efforts have been there for many when there was no one else. If you want to support the troops, this is a wonderful way to do it. Soldier’s Angels

By now most of you have heard about the Muslim convert who intended to set off grenades in a shopping Mall in Rockford Illinois. If you have not, here is an excerpt and a link to the story in the Chicago Sun Times:

A Muslim convert who vowed "the time for jihad is now" plotted to set off grenades at a Rockford shopping center in the middle of the holiday season, when he could do the most damage, federal officials charged Friday.

Derrick Shareef, 22, was so serious about blowing up trash cans at the Cherry Vale shopping mall, he visited it twice to perfect his plan, officials said. Story

This should be a wake up call to all Americans regardless of where they live. This target was not New York, Chicago, or Los Angeles. It was not even a suburb of a major city. The target was a mall in small town America; in the Mid-West, the heartland. The idea that only major urban centers and tourist attractions are targets of the radical Islam is naïve. All Americans in towns of any size across the country are possible targets of radical Islam; simply because they are considered infidels.

Liberal groups constantly step up to fight against any type of racial profiling, and defend the rights of those who would kill innocents to instigate terror in the United States. How many cases of Muslims attacking Americans; gunman in Seattle, Car attack on college campus and another in California, now grenades in Rockford; before we begin to take this threat seriously?

The response of this Nation has been to elect the “cut and run” Democrats into office and blindly believe that if we leave Iraq they will leave us alone. I submit to you that we were not in Iraq during the Clinton administration when radical Islamic forces attacked:

• The World Trade Center 1993
• American Embassy in Kenya
• American Embassy in Tanzania
• USS Cole

We also were not in Iraq when Al Qaeda flew planes into the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and crashed in a field in Pennsylvania. Radical Islam has shown that they do not need Iraq as a reason to attack us here at home. If anything, many terrorists who could have attempted to make their mark here in the United States, have died in Iraq and no longer pose a threat to the American people.

Think about what almost took place this week in Rockford as you do your Christmas shopping. Ask yourself how safe we are and whether or not we should be monitoring potential radical elements here in the United States. Ask yourself if we should go through life with blinders on, singing Kumbaya and trying to hold hands with people who want us dead. The threat is not going to abate if we leave Iraq; withdrawal will be seen as weakness and inspire them to step up their attacks on the United States since they have seen that we do not have the stomach for a protracted conflict.

The man who has been called the reincarnation of Hitler continues on his anti-Semitic campaign. Why the world stands by as this man openly declares time and time again that Israel must be wiped off the face of the earth is beyond comprehension. Western leaders are burned in effigy both figuratively and literally while fighting the forces of islamo-fascist terror, yet the Iranian president calls for the destruction of Israel on a regular basis and faces no repercussions.

Iranian president Ahmadinejad held talks with Palestinian Prime Minister Haniyeh in Qatar on Friday. Together they pledged to make Israel disappear; in other words, while there has been a tenuous cease fire and Israel has been forced to capitulate to the will of the “global” community in the hopes of peace, Iran is ramping up the rhetoric and violence is sure to follow in due course.

Saying the Israeli regime was inherently a "threat," and was "on the verge of disappearing"
Haniyeh praised the support of the Iranian government and nation for the cause of the Palestinian nation. "The Iranian nation's brilliant stand in the rightful battles of the Palestinians encourages them and signifies their deep understanding of Islamic principles," Iran's official state-run news agency reported.

"The Intifada (uprising) of the Palestinian nation will continue until the cause of the Palestinians is materialized and Al-Quds Al-Sharif (Jerusalem) is liberated," added Haniyeh. Story

When will the nations of the West, and, in particular, the United Nations pull their collective heads out and realize that Islam will never rest as long as Israel exists. They could not be any more direct in stating their intentions and in showing that they will not be negotiated with. Yet, time after time well meaning and naïve politicians from around the world put together well meaning plans for peace. Radical Islamic forces agree to a cease fire on the pretext of discussing peace proposals but, invariably, spend their time rebuilding their arsenal for their next strike at Israel.

Many question the reasons why the United States when into Iraq. Many more question how the war has been handled thus far. What should be noted is that Iran one of the forces working behind the scenes to support the insurgency and will benefit the most should the United States turn tail and withdraw. Iranian Shiites would probably take control of Iraq and be in an even greater position from which to strike at Israel. Perhaps the strategy should not be to withdraw, but rather to let our well trained military do what it is trained to do. The time has come to stop walking on eggshells and to take the insurgents down with maximum force. Only then will Iran see that the United States is not a paper tiger and that it does have teeth. Otherwise, the reincarnation of Hitler will continue on his campaign to rid the world of the Jews and begin his global forced conversion to Islam in his never ending quest to establish the world wide caliphate he believes will precede the return of the 12^th Imam.

We have reached a watershed point in human history. This is a religious war and the battle lines are clearly drawn. Christianity and Judaism are on one side and radical Islam is on the other. The Christians and the Jews want to live in a moral and peaceful world with love and goodwill toward their fellow man. Radical Islam wants to kill all infidels and Jews most of all. I would like to remind these people to read their history; they will see that every force that has tried to wipe out God’s chosen people has suffered the ultimate fate and the Jews continue to live and prosper. Those are powerful odds against radical Islam and odds that bode well for those who stand with Israel.