Saddam Hussein hanged:

This morning, December 30, 2006, Saddam Hussein was hanged to death for the mass murder of his own people. I requested to be able to attend, and even volunteered to take an active role. The truth is that we didn't know what happened until everyone back home who happened. I personally suspected that they might do it on New Year's Day. Oh well, maybe I will get to hang the next ruthless dictator that we pull out of a spider hole, stay tuned.

Christmas Thanx

I just wanted to say Merry Christmas to everyone (on the planet.) This week has been a good one for morale. I got a bunch of packages! I want to send out a big Christmas THANK YOU to everyone who has sent me a package since I have been here. I want to send out a special thanks to those whose packages that I received this week: Andy and Kelly Nichols, Jared and Kim Spencer, Michelle Donovan, Khalia Williams, Tuppers Plains Christian Church of Christ, and Eastern Elementary School via Sam Thompson. I literally got so much stuff from Eastern that we will be working on it into the new year. Thanks again.

USO Tour:

Tonight, I have two things to report. First, my father just purchased a new house. Good job Dad. He emailed me to let me know that a man was killed and left dead in clear view of his window. Way to pick that new neighborhood. Second, I just got back from a USO concert. It was the a Sergeant Major of the Army Hope and Freedom Tour 2006 featuring The Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders, Al Franken, The Washington Projects, Keni Thomas, Leeann Tweeden, Mark Wills, Shevy Smith, and Darryl Worley. It was a great time. I am really glad that I took the time to go.

Birthday and such:
Well, since my last post, I've had a birthday. I am now 32 years old, and don't feel a year over 31. It was really a pretty good birthday, in that I had a bunch of people either send cards, send emails, or post via Myspace. Oh, and I can't forget those who posted messages on the Frogtails forum. Speaking of them, I would like to send a special thanks to Diane for the care package that she sent me. The peanut butter Softbatch cookies went over especially well. I would also like to thank Kathy Stone. She has sent a few packages now, and each has been very nice. The last one had some small blankets which will be handy as it is now about 37 degrees out (F). Thanks again to all for the birthday greetings. Oh, I also got a timely birthday present/care package from Andy and Kelly Nichols, thank you very much. The jerky is a Godsend.

Letters from "home":
I got a package of letters from the Martin Luther King Elementary School in Utica, NY today. They were very nice U.S. flags that had been colored by the children. On the back of each page was a short letter. Utica, NY is (was) the hometown of the 414th Civil Affairs Battalion, my current unit. It is nice that someone from there has shared my information with one of the local elementary schools.

Pictures of Iraq:
I know that I said in an email to many of you that I would post pictures of my Iraqi adventures here. That was a failure. This is not a picture friendly blog. Anyway, if you would like to see some pictures of my playtime in the desert, they are posted at my Picasa (service by Google) site at http://picasaweb.google.com/hrunting74/IraqiAdventure .

October ended with great weather, and November has been nice. I think that the rest of the year is not worth vacationing in Baghdad. Today was cool in the pre-dawn morning and many of the soldiers I saw were wearing jackets. The rainy season will start soon. I'm not looking forward to a 30 minute walk to work in the rain and mud every day.

Election Changes:
Well, there it is folks. The Democrats have taken the House, the Senate is up for grabs, and the Sec Def has resigned. There are definitely some changes on the horizon.

Six Months in Baghdad:
I've now been in Baghdad for over six months. I think that if it were six years, I would still not fully understand more than a small portion of the complexities that make up the political and cultural landscape here. With that said, we have seen the Iraqi government take its first steps as a democratically elected entity, we have seen Al Zarqawi fall and Hussein convicted by the international community. If these things are seen as accomplishments, they must be weighed against their costs.

The better mosquito:
Nature should have developed a better mosquito by now. Natural selection should certainly have caused a mosquito that has a painless bite and leaves no itchy welt. This would be a simple mutation when compared with something like...the eight-eye visual system of spiders or the Wolf's sense of smell. A mosquito with a painless bite would definitely live longer, feed more, and have a greater chance to reproduce.

Civil Affairs Officer:

I am working as a civil affairs officer. The basic concept of my job is assisting the democratic government of Iraq to function independently by aiding them in the development of their infrastructure and local governance.