Infinite MonkeysSeveral people have mentioned the recent death of (Lt. Col.) Bob Zangas who was blogging his service as a civilian with the Coalition Provisional Authority working in the Public Affairs Department doing his best to rebuild Iraq. I must admit that I hadn't read his blog before hearing of his passing. But tonight I can't stop reading it.
There are many instances where I think, "Wow, that's worth excerpting if I write this up." Sometimes it's because of the irony that surfaces with hindsight. Sometimes it's just because of the unparalleled insight into the Iraqi culture, and the challenges that face the nation as it struggles to find its legs and come to grips with an entirely new paradigm: freedom from despotism and deprivation. I just kept thinking that this or that should be excerpted for a post like the one I'm writing now.
But, of course, no excerpt could do justice to the experience that is reading his site. I found it particularly captivating to read the comments about his photographs that were usually written the same week or day the pics were snapped. But the site is so much more than a collection of captions. Zangas oftentimes thinks out loud in his journal entries, being honest and human about his experiences, feelings, hopes, and challenges.
Truly Bob Zangas proved the second half of the Marine's most recent motto; to the Iraqis there was "no better friend."
[UPDATE: The site's message board is now collecting submissions of condolence.]
Posted by Brad at March 20, 2004 08:48 PM | TrackBack