Words from the front-lines

“I’ve got my own ‘Most Wanted’ list. The aces in my deck are Paul Bremer, Donald Rumsfeld, George Bush, and Paul Wolfowitz.” – Anonymous Sgt., 2nd Battle Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Brigade, stationed at BCT’s HQ.

"The way we have been treated and the continuous lies told to our families back home has devastated us all." – Anonymous soldier in a letter to Congress.

“I just want to get out of this country, which, by the way, the Iraqis can have.” – Sgt. Michael Baroni, 3rd Infantry Division, Fallujah, Iraq.

"I've been in the army eight years and I can't do it any more, not after this. We're sitting here like targets and the Iraqis are getting bolder. They're taking a pop in broad daylight. … When I heard we might get another six months I wanted to cry." – Anonymous reservist from Houston, Texas.

“We are the only division still in Iraq. … ‘The quickest way home is through Baghdad’ they told us. So we took the city, and here we are still.” – Staff Sgt. Anthony Joseph, 2nd Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division.

“Our motto is ‘Send Me’. We are adding the word ‘Home.’ Hinesville is the armpit of the world. Right now, I’ll take the armpit.” – Staff Sgt. Anthony Joseph again.

“As soon as we can get the hell out of here.” – Staff Sgt. Charles Pollard, 307th Military Police Company, on leaving Iraq.

“There is no real reason for us to be out here!!! We’re protecting oil is all, and as far as the supposed war ending, it hasn’t.” – Private First Class Mary Yahne, 4th Infantry Division.

“If one of my sons was dead, I’d want somebody to pay for it.” – Sgt. Colin Frederick, 23-year-old armored scout, on Saddam’s sons’ deaths while on patrol in the “Sunni Triangle”.

“They have frozen all redeployments, so no one is going anywhere anytime soon, and our Congress goes on vacation July 25 so nothing is going to happen until mid fall. Not what we all want to hear out here. We are under siege out here, without supplies, without a mission and we can only roll the dice so many times and not get our asses shot. More and more body bags and amputees will be coming home.” – Brett Hunt, 2nd Lieutenant, 11th Signal Brigade (Army), north of Baghdad.

"Most soldiers would empty their bank accounts just for a plane ticket home." – Anonymous Army soldier in a letter to Congress.

"U.S. officials need to get our asses out of here…I say that seriously. We have no business being here. We will not change the culture they have in Iraq, in Baghdad. Baghdad is so corrupted. All we are here is potential people to be killed and sitting ducks." – 43-year-old reservist from Pittsburgh 307th Military Police Company.

"What are we getting into here? The war is supposed to be over, but every day we hear of another soldier getting killed. Is it worth it? Saddam isn't in power anymore. The locals want us to leave. Why are we still here?" – Anonymous Sgt., 4th Infantry Division.

“If he [Donald Rumsfeld] was here, I would ask him why we’re still here, why we’ve been told so many times [that they’d go home] and it’s changed.” – Pfc. Jason Punyahotra, 2nd Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division.

"If Donald Rumsfeld was here, I’d ask him for his resignation." – Spc. Clinton Deitz, 2nd Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division.