I know this probably belongs in "The Fox Hole" catagory but I thought it would be seen here better and I think it's important to know.

The story the media neglects to tell Americans
>
>
The Rest of the Story - Iraq
>
>This is a letter from Ray Reynolds, a medic in the Iowa Army National
>Guard, serving in Iraq:
>
> As I head off to Baghdad for the final weeks of my stay in Iraq,
> I wanted to say thanks to all of you who did not believe the media. They
> have done a very poor job of covering everything that has happened. I am
> sorry that I have not been able to visit all of you during my two week
> leave back home. And just so you can rest at night knowing something is
> happening in Iraq that is noteworthy, I thought I would pass this on to
> you. This is the list of things that has happened in Iraq recently:
> (Please share it with your friends and compare it to the version that
> your paper is producing.)
>
>* Over 400,000 kids have up-to-date immunizations.
>* School attendance is up 80% from levels before the war.
>* Over 1,500 schools have been renovated and rid of the weapons stored
>there so education can occur.
>* The port of Uhm Qasar was renovated so grain can be off-loaded from
>ships faster.
>* The country had its first 2 billion barrel export of oil in August.
>* Over 4.5 million people have clean drinking water for the first time
>ever in Iraq.
>* The country now receives 2 times the electrical power it did before the
>war.
>* 100% of the hospitals are open and fully staffed, compared to 35% before
>the war.
>* Elections are taking place in every major city, and city councils are in
>place.
>* Sewer and water lines are installed in every major city.
>* Over 60,000 police are patrolling the streets.
>* Over 100,000 Iraqi civil defense police are securing the country.
>* Over 80,000 Iraqi soldiers are patrolling the streets side by side with
>US soldiers.
>* Over 400,000 people have telephones for the first time ever.
>* Students are taught field sanitation and hand washing techniques to
>prevent the spread of germs.
>* An interim constitution has been signed.
>* Girls are allowed to attend school.
>* Textbooks that don't mention Saddam are in the schools for the first
>time in 30 years.
>
> Don't believe for one second that these people do not want us
> there. I have met many, many people from Iraq that want us there, and in
> a bad way. They say they will never see the freedoms we talk about but
> they hope their children will. We are doing a good job in Iraq and I
> challenge anyone, anywhere to dispute me on these facts. So If you
> happen to run into John Kerry, be sure to give him my email address and
> send him to Denison, Iowa. This soldier will set him straight. If you are
> like me and very disgusted with how this period of rebuilding has been
> portrayed, email this to a friend and let them know there are good things
> happening.
>
>Ray Reynolds, SFC
>Iowa Army National Guard
>234th Signal Battalion

By Amecmom on Monday, May 17, 2004 - 08:51 pm:

Thanks. Where did you get this?
Ame

By Trina~moderator on Monday, May 17, 2004 - 09:30 pm:

More info about this here:

http://www.snopes.com/politics/war/reynolds.asp

By Amecmom on Monday, May 17, 2004 - 09:44 pm:

Thanks Trina,
I thought it was too good to be true. The link to the Orwellian Times rebuttal is very good.
Ame

By Bobbie~moderatr on Monday, May 17, 2004 - 11:40 pm:

Beth, this is what is called an Urban legend. Someone with too much time on his/her hands made up a story to sway the feelings of others and sent it out as fact. We all get fooled by them. But this isn't an actually email...

Go check out

Urban Legends Reference Pages

and

Don't Believe Everything You Read

Urban Legends & Modern Myths

And the link Trina posted... You will be surprised by the things people choose to lie about.

By Eight_Kids on Tuesday, May 18, 2004 - 08:02 am:

Well......it originally came from my father, in MY e-mail. I just sent him something with the web address to orwellian times. It's hard to know what to believe anymore. I think that's sad. I, personnaly, think we need to pull out of Iraq but that's just my humble opinion based on probably not enough facts!
Have a great day ladies, and thanks for the info.

By Ladypeacek on Tuesday, May 18, 2004 - 08:16 am:

I have a question....what is this orwellian times???

By Colette on Tuesday, May 18, 2004 - 08:42 am:

Well, they have a big thing about giving Bush a pink slip, so I'd say they are a little biased on the liberal side.

By Ladypeacek on Tuesday, May 18, 2004 - 09:24 am:

i see that, lol but what exactly is it? Is it an actual newspaper or just some little magazine...just curious as to why we would believe what it says and where it gets the info?