It was April when my brigade crossed the border into Iraq. For an American, the temperatures were already like summer. Little did we know at that time what hot weather in the Middle East was like. The trip up north took us through the Shia south and some of the most pitiful-looking people I had ever seen. In an effort to punish them, Saddam had cut off the water to the south. He left them without water in the feared desert sun. Some 9 months later, our mission took us back down south.

In Iraq, the seasons are different. In August, “the gates to hell open.” In October, it begins to cool down. In November and December, the winter begins. It is never cold in Iraq. But, the 60 degree drop in temperature (from highs of 130 in the summer to 70 in the winter) feels like winter. But most importan

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