A ride on the Baghdad 99

Okay, so this was by far one of the best features I have seen, even though it was disgusting in some scenes, I still thought it was superbly written. The descriptions of the bus, like spider-web cracks, or the verbs that described the motion of the bus: slows, shakes, grunts, and wobbles, I thought were fantastic to describe the scene I was seeing.

Other descriptions like the area of Iraq - like broken city, or heat and flies climate, or the guy who sells light bulbs but doesn't have any electricity - great examples to outline and imagine Iraq. I felt like I was on that bus as he was describing the scene to us. So, 100 % given to the descriptions - I loved them!

I also loved how the story was formatted or told. The style of moving from the bus to the outside area of Iraq, and of course all the problems in it was very powerful and moving. I blatantly saw the hostility toward Saddam and the United States, and the problems existing with the local folk as well. The meat scene where the guy has stopped swatting at the flies was a great anecdote or example of a personal problem the people face. Though I found it sad, it was still powerful to see the depth of which these people live in.

The last two things that I loved about this piece was the lesson or metaphor from the poet Rusafi, who says "I told you so," to the people. It was a lesson they should have learned but they didn't bother. Then, the very ending, the kicker: "there is no schedule," I interpreted its meaning as symbolic to the situation in Iraq. There's no schedule as to when the bad events and situations happening in Iraq are going to end. I also thought it could mean, "no plan, or no organization" is present within Iraq at the moment.

What do you guys think?