Earlier in the day, I had asked my boss if I could go home and just work half a day. "Yes but only if it's to do something constructive," was her conditional response. Knowing that I would likely just go back to bed, I simply wasn't ready for Monday especially since I worked on Sunday, I opted to stay and earn my keep. Plus, I had an event at the Overseas Press Club that I knew I'd skip if I didn't stay at work. Three Iraqi Journalists were speaking about their respective experiences covering the war that was ravaging their native country.
Yesterday's local news experience coupled with the lack of any exciting projects on the horizon had put me in a professional lethargy I was loathe to endure. These guys really put things in perspective. This blog pales in comparison to the harrowing accounts of what's happening in Iraq as shown in this blog. The author, a former dentist turned war correspondent and now a prolific blogger pulls no punches in his reporting of the atrocities he's privy to. A warning to the faint of heart. There are very disturbing images and videos on this blog. It's a bit like "Faces of Death" if you're old enough to remember those morbid videos from the 80's.
All three journalists had turned their experiences into a quest to expose the ground realities. And all of them did so at their own peril. A second journalist, a freelancer after my own heart, was once a physician who says he learned early on after the American invasion that he could be of more use to his country illuminating the injustices and inconsistencies of the "liberators" than he ever was attempting to practice medicine without the tools or drugs he required. They spoke of journalism as a noble calling and one that had tangible results. It was the first time in a long time that I actually felt good about the career path I've chosen. Perhaps I'm currently sidetracked but there are stories out there worth telling and, for better or for worse, I'm destined to help tell them.
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