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<DIV><FONT face=Arial color=#000000 size=2>To emphasize that it is a fact, not
just my opinion.</FONT></DIV>
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<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial">----- Original Message ----- </DIV>
<DIV
style="BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; FONT: 10pt arial; font-color: black"><B>From:</B>
<A title=EwingChange@aol.com href="mailto:EwingChange@aol.com">Esther
Ewing</A> </DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>To:</B> <A
title=OSLIST@LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU
href="mailto:OSLIST@LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU">OSLIST@LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU</A>
</DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Sent:</B> Friday, February 11, 2005 1:26
PM</DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Subject:</B> Re: Word from a US soldier</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV><FONT id=role_document face="Palatino Linotype" color=#400080
size=4>
<DIV>
<DIV>
<DIV>Judy:</DIV>
<DIV>Why did you put "fact" in quotes?</DIV>
<BLOCKQUOTE
style="PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: blue 2px solid"><FONT
style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent" face=Arial color=#000000
size=2>Chris,<BR>Thanks for all of your insights and great
discussions!! Good food for<BR>thought. I, too, agree that this
soldier's note is a very small piece of<BR>the whole
puzzle.......BUT......I, personally, still conclude (not based<BR>solely on
his email but on many other learned factors) that Iraq is a more<BR>"open"
society than it was. Do I think it's a great, safe place to
live?<BR>Definitely not but at least their society, as a whole, is headed in
a better<BR>direction. As HO says, the Iraqi's now have an opportunity
to take the<BR>future into their own hands. It is a "fact" that they
did not have that<BR>opportunity a few years ago.<BR>Judy<BR><BR>I don't
have any great answers for the questions you have at the end of
your<BR>message...that's what I'm learning from all of you.<BR>Thanks again
for your intriguing words.<BR><BR>----- Original Message -----<BR>From:
"Chris Corrigan" <chris.corrigan@gmail.com><BR>To:
<OSLIST@LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU><BR>Sent: Friday, February 11, 2005
1:36 AM<BR>Subject: Re: Word from a US soldier<BR><BR><BR>> Finding
myself witnessing this exchange, and using it to practice<BR>> asking
some questions:..<BR>><BR>><BR>>> I agree with you that force
was used to open the space which is obviously<BR>>> not an OST
principle (but I don't think that means that the space can't<BR>>>
be<BR>>> 're-opened'). I disagree that it started with lies but
that's a<BR>>> political<BR>>> debate and not one of open space,
so I won't go there. As for 'US style<BR>>> Democracy' being the
only choice, who's making the decisions as to how<BR>>>
Iraq<BR>>> will operate in the future?...the Iraqi's. I think
their space is open<BR>>> to<BR>>> let the majority of the Iraqi
people decide...that's why the voting<BR>>> turnout<BR>>> was so
good. I believe the U.S. will eventually "let go" of the
outcome<BR>>> so<BR>>> this doesn't just 'close the space' in my
eyes. Again, this difference<BR>>> of<BR>>> opinion can be
another political debate and I don't intend to do that in<BR>>> this
forum...but will gladly have a constructive debate one-on-one,
if<BR>>> you'd<BR>>> like.<BR>>><BR>><BR>> The
question for me always in working with a community is not "is the<BR>>
space open or not?" Space is always open, even a little. The
bigger<BR>> question is "how can we open more space here?" If you
have a<BR>> situation where there is violent conflict, you need more
space. Iraq<BR>> is not a peaceful place at the moment. That
tells me that space wants<BR>> to be cleaved open even further. If
it is your feeling that the<BR>> United States should not leave Iraq for
a while, then we might ask<BR>> "what is the most space we can open here
together?" If you think that<BR>> Iraq should be able to do fine on
its own, then, as an American you<BR>> might ask "where can we let go
some more?" But if, in this situation,<BR>> I really wanted to open
space, I might ask "what if we had peace now<BR>> and what if together we
created that? What would we have to do to<BR>> stop the violence
and sustain a peaceful civil society in Iraq? What<BR>> might our
roles be here on the ground to bring peace to life?"<BR>> Something like
that. For sure I would encourage talking rather than<BR>>
fighting. I believe that most people would choose even banal<BR>>
constitutional conferences to killing one another. So if we are
still<BR>> killing one another, what is the space that we can open to be
bigger<BR>> than the killing impulse?<BR>><BR>>> Thanks for your
kind words about this soldier. I only wanted to share<BR>>>
the<BR>>> story to those interested in seeing it from an angle that
isn't always<BR>>> easy<BR>>> to get. An even more
interesting thing is that this soldier admits that<BR>>>
he<BR>>> had doubts about the war before arriving in Iraq.
Here's a blurb from<BR>>> another message from him:<BR>>>
"When I was first coming over here I had my own inner personal
doubts<BR>>> about the war, but after being over here and seeing,
hearing,<BR>>> experiencing<BR>>> what I have,
it's changed. They never tell you on the media
about<BR>>> the<BR>>> nearly 400,000 up-to-date immunizations
that children now have, or a<BR>>> continually improving
and<BR>>> much needed sewage system, or the fact
that school books don't<BR>>> portray<BR>>> Saddam as a God
anymore and that girls are now allowed in schools.
They<BR>>> don't tell you that the US Army is
paying for any damages to civil<BR>>> areas<BR>>> we cause AND
the ones the insurgents cause. They only show US soldiers<BR>>>
geting<BR>>> killed and beating up
prisoners."<BR>> > Sounds more open to me than it was when Saddam was
in power....it's no<BR>>> longer a country that has "no
choices"...<BR>>> Judy<BR>><BR>> He's one voice. That's
his story. It's great but it's hardly enough<BR>> to give us a
picture of life in Iraq. I find that in North America,<BR>> we are
often guilty of judging an entire complex situation with a<BR>> sound
bite. This type of debate is very common, and supported by our<BR>>
culture of punditry, where the goal is to talk and listen to debate<BR>>
and win a point rather than to incur deeper understanding of one<BR>>
another's positions and interests. And so pundits invoke sound
bites<BR>> like this and draw wild conclusions about a situation based on
a small<BR>> fact.<BR>><BR>> Whether that sound bite comes through
TV or through a forwarded email<BR>> of a soldier, it's just a small
small small piece of story. I can't<BR>> judge the health of civil
society in Iraq based on what he said. This<BR>> report tells me
that there are 400,000 immunized children, new sewers,<BR>> new text
books AND much damage to civil areas and death and beaten up<BR>>
prisoners. That sounds complex, messy, full of guesses,
rounding<BR>> errors and assmuptions. I can't possibly read that
and draw<BR>> conclusions about how open Iraqi society is now compared to
three<BR>> years ago. And, I assume, as this soldier showed up in
Iraq only<BR>> after the war started, I'd be surprised if he could make
an accurate<BR>> comparison either. He can share his story though,
and that's fine,<BR>> for what it's worth.<BR>><BR>> I think it's
not easy to say whether THIS Iraq has more or less<BR>> choices than THAT
Iraq. Perhaps you have gained the right to vote,<BR>> but you have
lost a constant power supply. Perhaps you have immunized<BR>> kids
but no husband any more. Maybe you no longer live in fear of
the<BR>> secret police, but you are now afraid of being accidentally shot
or<BR>> bombed to death. I don't know. I don't believe one
man, even if he<BR>> is in the middle of this, can really know how Iraqis
feel. I would<BR>> bet that it's not as simple as "it's more
open."<BR>><BR>> Given this report and this curious email exchange on
the OSLIST how<BR>> can we practice holding open judgement and suspending
conslusions?<BR>> As Open Space facilitators what is our responsibility
with respect to<BR>> witnessing this situation?<BR>><BR>> It's a
complex world and these are complex questions.<BR>><BR>>
Chris<BR>><BR>> -------------------------<BR>> CHRIS
CORRIGAN<BR>> Consultation - Facilitation<BR>> Open Space
Technology<BR>><BR>> Weblog:
http://www.chriscorrigan.com/parkinglot<BR>> Site:
http://www.chriscorrigan.com<BR>><BR>> *<BR>> *<BR>>
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<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT lang=0 face="Palatino Linotype" color=#400080 size=4 PTSIZE="14"
FAMILY="SERIF"><B>Esther Ewing<BR>The Change Alliance<BR>330 East 38th St.,
Suite 53K<BR>New York, NY 10016, USA<BR>Telephone: 212-661-6024, Fax:
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