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 Writing.Com Item ID: #1386264
 Title:  Red Zone Blues
 Item Type: Static Item
 Brief:  My review of the book by Pepe Escobar
 Last Modified: 02-09-2008 @ 9:38pm
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I was expecting Red Zone Blues to be something like a dry political discussion and found instead the, often conflicting, heart of the people. This book reads to me like Escobar's notes as he traveled. It has a choppy unconnected feel to it. There are some sloppy grammatical errors. I could nitpick the writing, but find any flaws are minor and outweighed by the content.

Many might find the author to be anti-American, but, whether or not he is, he nonetheless provides an accurate picture of how America is seen by Iraqis. This is the value of the book. It should be required reading for all Americans. If Americans refuse to look at how others see us and/or demand they see us as we see ourselves, we are doomed. While we should not compromise on who and what we are, knowing how others see us should help us to make sure our actions are in line with who we really are (and hopefully not point out that we aren't who we think we are).