Thanks, Kim.
What a sweetheart Steven is for adding that support site to his blog.

Steven posted photos! This is only one of many. Did a bit of sightseeing, too.




http://viewmorepics.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewAlbums2&friendID=390227044&view=true

this from Steven's facebook:

Steven Daigle had a bad day, had to take cover in a bunker because the base was fired on, luckily I didn't see or hear anything

How scary for him!

Very scary

Yes that is scary.

That is scary.

Scary, but he chose to be a mercenary. He knew what he was getting into. It's not like he was drafted or had to do it. He went for the big bucks. Let's not make him out to be heroic.

Didn't he say he was going to Iraq to make maps for Google? Just wondering....

Here it is, it was on page one, Lala.

Moody wrote:

Iraq, My next big adventure Today at 9:55am Hello everyone... Sorry I have been MIA from myspace and facebook for a while, Holidays and recent workload have just had me swamped! So I wanted to give everyone an update on what has been going on with me lately. I have had a lot of great opportunites open up for me at work lately which are going to make for some exciting new adventures. My big news is that I am going to be traveling to Kuwait and then Iraq for work. Unfortuneatly, due to security reasons I can't reveal exactly when I am travling or where, but I can say I am leaving pretty soon. I am going over with the company I work for which is a contracter for the military and I will be working on military installations. Again, I can't say exactly what I am doing, but I will say that my work is all part of a larger effort to begin bringing our troops home and letting the Iraq peole run their own country! I am going to be in country for about a month as well as in Kuwait before and after my Iraq visit. HERE IS THE GOOD NEWS, I am planning on bringing a digital camera and doing weekly picture posts as well as a video blog of my experience over there. I am going to blog about and video as much of my experiences as possible so that everyone can see a little bit into the daily life of a contractor working in Iraq. I also am hoping to get some time with the men and women of our armed forces that are stationed in Iraq, ask them some questions and have them send some messages back to the USA. I am going to be very busy between now and my deployment so I won't have much time to be online, however I hope that everyone will check back on my site and look out for my pictures and video blogs. I will do my best to check mail but please keep in mind that my interenet access is going to be very limited as well as my time. As most know I am not a very political person, however I am filled with pride and joy to know that I am playing a very small role in helping to GET OUR TROOPS HOME! http://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=45887038860

_________________
To handle yourself, use your head; to handle others, use your heart.

Sunday, March 01, 2009

A Sunday Morning In Iraq Well, I had some time and wanted to send out an update on how my week was. This past week in Iraq has shown me the widest range of emotions possible. I started my week flying on an Iraqi C130 wearing body armor and completely unkaware of what to expect. If you don't know a C130 is large military cargo plane that has fold down seats in the back, there is no beverage service and hearing protection is required! Upon arriving at our new destination we were assigned a tent and settled in for a week of long hours and dusty windy days. The accomidations were much nicer then my last tent, I had a desk, a chair and even a locker for my clothes, I felt like I had checked into the Marriott again. After a few days we began get into a groove the week was going great. Our first time off of work we were able to travel to the Great Ziggurat of Ur which is one of the oldest structures in the world and has some amazing history behind it, if you get time you should google it, the place is fascinating (Photos posted on myspace.) This was definately a high part of my week, it was such a surreal experience to walk up the steps of a temple that people had walked up more then 4000 years ago. Heading back to base I began to really reflect on my life and think about how small and insignificant I am in the grand scheme of things. The next exciting event for the week was a low point for me and brought to the surface some feelings and emotions that I didn't expect. Being a bullrider I always felt that I am pretty brave and could stare death in the face and not think twice about it, boy was I wrong! I was walking down the street to drop off my clothes at the local laundary facility when I began hearing a very loud siren, I wasn't sure exactly what the siren meant or what course of action I needed to take. After a few seconds I began to see military personal heading to an area called a bunker (basicaly a concrete cube surrounded by sandbags, these bunkers are all over the base and I had walked by them many times.) I decided the best idea for me was to follow and take shelter with everyone else. As I entered the shelter the siren began again only this time it was followed by a very loud voice that kept repeating "We are under attack, We are under attack." Hearing this is when I really began to feel uncomfortable. I squated down on the cold concrete and felt that my hands and knees had begun to shake, this was an unusual sensation that I don't often feel. As the siren and voice stopped I just sat there waiting and wondering if the next sound I heard was going to be an explostion or gun fire, this was such a difficult and awkward feeling, something I hope I never have to endure again. Luckily and fortuneatly there was never an explostion or any sounds at all, in fact it was a deafining silence that I don't think I will ever forget only broken up by a voice stating "all clear, all clear." Some of the best words I think I have ever heard being shouted from a speaker. All of the soldiers casually strolled from the bunker and returned to buisness as usual, this is a common occurance for them, I don't know how they deal with this on a day to day basis, but I was not the same for several hours. I had to return to my tent and just sit for a long time, I had lost all ability to focus or concentrate on anything, my hands were still shaking and I felt my stomach turning. After all is said and done I was informed by several personal that it happens all the time and the chances of actually getting hit are very low, I guess in hind sight that makes me feel better, but at the time I was definately moved by the event. That is all for now, it is time to get back to work. I will get more written down when I have the time. Right now I am going to finish some work and enjoy the beautiful sunday morning we are having today. God Bless all the military personal serving everywhere in the world to everyone else that reads this be thankfull for everything you have in your life. Steven

Happy to read all is well. He is a very fine story teller. I was right there next to him!

I enjoyed reading that Buxom and Steven is indeed a good story teller.

Thanks for sharing that.

Kudos for Steven.

Interesting Story or Potential for Disaster?
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Yesterday at 4:44pm
So you probably know from my status updates that I am currently in Iraq for work. Tonight I had a very sobering reality check that I thought I would share.

Tonight my coworkers and I had a dinner with some high ranking Iraqi Air Force military. The Iraqi airmen are guys that we work with on a regular basis here and I have gotten to know on a personal level, they are incredible men that have faced many hardships and tragedies over the years but are incredibly friendly, hospitable and have some amazing stories that they like to share. During our traditional Iraqi dinner the topic of American TV shows came up and it turns out that they love many of our programs specifically Reality TV. One of my team members thought it would be fun to tell them that I had been on the show Big Brother and began to tell the story when our Team Lead quickly changed the subject and basically stoped the story from being told. I understood why, if the Iraqi men did any research they might find out that I am gay which is completely not acceptable in the culture here. Again, I completely understood this and was a bit relieved that the whole subject wasn't discussed. What had not crossed my mind was the potential for disaster if the facts of my personal life were revealed in this environment. Here is why: There is a new agreement that has just gone into affect here in this country that deals with civilian contractors working for the US military. Basically under the agreement any civilian here is completely subject to Iraqi law while in the country, even while residing on a US military installation. Although I don't know the exact wording of the law, basically it is illegal to be a homosexual in this country and any accused can be jailed and from what I understand even executed for this "crime". Had it gotten out to the Iraqi gentlemen that we work with, if they choose to, they could have the Iraqi police come into the US military installation and arrest me. I would like to believe that these men have become my friend and would never do this to me, but I still have to sit back and wonder what if. Suppose they have strong feelings against homosexuality and decided it was best to report me, I could potentially be locked up here and prosecuted for simply being who I am, even if I was never actually caught in a homosexual act (not that I am getting any here).

This makes me so thankful that I live in a country where I am free to be exactly who I wanna be. We are such a lucky people and we should never take for granite the freedoms that we have. Even though we are still fighting for some equal rights, such as marriage, we have to all realize that we could have it so much worse. I would ask that everyone reading this please take a few minutes and find a way to express your gratitude to our politicians that continue to pursue equality for everyone in our country regardless of race, gender or sexual orientation. In addition, find a way to thank the military personal that put their life on the line to uphold our freedoms and way of life. As Americans we are truley a blessed people and need to remember this everyday of our lives.

Thanks for taking the time to read this..

Steven

UPDATE....

So just out of curiousity this morning I looked up Homosexuality in Iraq on Wikipedia, below is an exact quote from the page, I litterally got sick to my stomach!

2009
In April 2009, it was reported that Iraqi militants were gluing shut the anuses of men suspected of being gay. The glue being used is an Iranian-manufactured glue that if applied to the skin, sticks to it and can only be removed by surgery. After the anus is glued shut, the person is given a drink that causes diarrhea. Since the anus is closed, the diarrhea causes death. Videos of this torture have been circulating throughout the country via cellphones.[11]

Also in April 2009, it was reported that a new gang calling itself the "righteous people” began attacking young men who it says are violating Islamic law by "behaving like women". The "righteous people" distributed three lists in Baghdad’s Sadr City containing the names of ten people they considered homosexual. The lists declared, "Sinner: we will doom you." Other slogans written in red on the city’s walls threatened the men with death and torture. Security officials found three torture-ridden corpses of gay men in Sadr, Dawra and Karadah areas of Baghdad. Their killers were not identified. Al-Baghdadiya, a satellite television channel based in Cairo and one of the few media outlets to have reported the attacks, broadcast a report on 7 April saying that twenty young men accused of homosexuality were taken to Ibn al-Nafis hospital in Baghdad with mutilated genitals. A number of citizens who have witnessed attacks on young men say that officials and the media did nothing to stop or report the incidents despite the fact that the attacks represent a flagrant violation of personal rights and individual freedoms guaranteed by the country’s constitution. Some of these attacks are even said to be carried out by the security forces themselves. One eye-witness said that "a police patrol in Shaab district, north east of Baghdad, stopped two young men "behaving like women" in mid March and forced them to take-off their clothes in front of other passers-by and made fun of them and their naked bodies."[12]

Barbarians..

WOW Just WOW. That's terrible.

Steven, come home!

Geezus, this just made me feel sick to my stomach.
Steven needs to come home NOW...he can't trust that someone didn't talk!

It's weird, I don't read the Steven in Iraq thread. I see lots of photos of him on facebook and I just can't get into it. Can anyone tell me what he is doing there "in an nut shell?"