Ruby’s Blog

This weeks blog is in correspondence to pages 70-79 in the book Baghdad Burning. We have been asked to describe two important things about Iraqi culture.I found date palms to be an important factor in Iraq. The date palm has many uses for a farmer, some Iraqi farmers use them to supply shade for citrus trees in the summer such as lemons and oranges. They can also be used for basket weaving and can also be consumed. The Iraqi’s take pride in the palm’s, and it is terrible to find that they are now being cut down.

Hi this is a pod cast by Jennifer Lillis and Rob Musto. We are broadcasting from Keene State College for the class Blog of One’s own. This is part of a group project for our thinking and writing course.

“Challenges at a Girls School in Baghdad”  (Alive in Baghdad) 5/21/07 http://aliveinbaghdad.org/2007/05/21/challenges-at-a-girls-school-in-baghdad

 This video podcast delivers a great documentary on what some girls go through in search of an education and ultimately a better lifestyle. It discusses the violence that these girls are a witness to, and how they and their families deal with the struggles they face everyday. The podcast interviews a few of the students, a teacher, as well as the school director. The school director goes by the name of Jinan Jamal Mahmoud. She is a very strongly opinionated person, who believes that education must take place despite the war going on in their backyard. She says that her teachers will continue to teach, even if that means walking to school by foot to avoid traffic. The scenery of the video consists of the streets of baghdad and the school yard. You get a sense of what these girls are risking their lives for everyday.

I thought it was very upsetting to find that the girls have become accustomed to the bombs and shootings that take place on their way to school. It really made me realize that I take my educational advantages for granted everyday. I am so fortuante to live in a place that is not experiencing a war in my own backyard.

Annotated biliography of Baghdad Burning - Riverbend. Baghdad Burning. New York: The feminist press (2005).

We are currently reading Baghdad Burning in our blog class. It is about a young woman named Riverbend who blogs about her experiences during the war between Iraq and the United States in 2003. She lives in the the middle class with her mother, father and brother. Her and her family are in the middle of the war that takes place in baghdad and are witnesses to a war filled with turmoil and hate. Baghdad Burning contains a lot of information of both the war in 2003 and the gulf war. The book is all about blogging which immediately relates to our class titled A Blog of One’s Own. I really like the book because you get an inside look at a persons perspective from the other side of the war. All we hear about in the United States are the opinions of our leaders. This book really intrigues me.

Hi Riverbend, my name is Robert Musto and currently a freshmen at Keene State College. I am reading your book and extremely fascinated by your experience. I have a few questions in which I have constructed as I read your book. I was wondering what your views are of Americans, both civilians and the armed forces. I also cannot imagine what it must have been like to go from a computer programmer, living on your own, to unemployed living within the walls of your families home. You must have faced many struggles living in a mixed religious home with both sunni and Shiite’s in your household. You disprove the disillusion that Iraqui’s cannot write well and create such sophisticated opinions. I am impressed by your intelligence and writing style. You help remind everyone that we must face life’s difficulties together and not go it alone.

An intrigued reader,

Robert Musto

Homework 32 asks you to respond to the introduction and the foreword of the book, Baghdad Burning. James Ridgeway is the author of the introduction. He describes Riverbend as being a middle class status living with her mother, brother, and father. He says she is a young girl in her mid twenties. Riverbend did not necessarily respond to her blog everyday. She wrote weeks or even months apart at times. In doing so, her followers were not sure if she had been taken by the war itself. In summary, Ridgeway gives a background on the happenings in Iraq through the Author of the blogs, Riverbend’s, eyes. 

 The book begins with a foreword by Ahdaf Soueif as well as an introduction by James Ridgeway. The foreword starts out by giving you a description of Riverbend, who is a young Iraqi girl that begins to write a blog in 2003. She describes her experiences of the war as a civilian in Baghdad. Ahdaf goes on to explain how accurate Riverbend’s writings are.

After reading both of the interviews from the readings, I found that one of the articles would have a definite impact on my vote in the upcoming election. The Daily Kos had the biggest influence on my decision. The website contained more factual information that I would trust more than the joking spirit of the Wonkette. Following the passages from Kline and Burstien, I concluded that Markos’ interview seemed more mature as he has had real life experiences in both war and politics, whereas Ana Marie Cox seemed more informal in her interview. It comes as no surprise that she is an honest and well-known blogger, as she has a great sense of humor, which is ideal for the type of writing that she does. Despite the one-sided approach of the Daily Kos, I would trust relying on that for accurate information in accordance with the political race. I found both websites to be entertaining but in different ways. 

Upon reading both of the assigned interviews, I chose to dissect the Joi Ito interview. In the interview he discusses his blogging experiences and some of the troubles faced with bloggers. He explains on page 144 that it no longer takes a large investment to become a creator or publisher. “It used to require a significant investment to become a creator or publisher: you had to learn an instrument. You had to go to school, you had to buy a video camera.” All it takes now, is an internet connection to express your feelings and have them heard about a given topic. Ito makes a good point when asked on page 148 about his feelings on not being paid for his blogs. He says that there is a certain level of legitimacy when writing his blogs without being paid. It allows him to write what he wants, when he wants and he can be as personal as he wants. I agree with Ito one hundred percent.

This homework assignment asked us to consider whether businesses are currently being affected by the recent uproar of blogging or not. After reading the assigned passages, I have come to the conclusion that businesses cannot afford to not consider blogging as a means of creating profit.

As stated on page 222 by Steven Barker and Heather Green, “It doesn’t matter whether you’re shipping paper clips, pork bellies, or videos of Britney in a bikini, blogs are a phenomenon that you cannot ignore, postpone, or delegate. Given the changes barreling down upon us, blogs are not a business elective. They’re a prerequisite.”

The moment some of the more well known businesses begin to catch on to this growing fad, it will catch like a wildfire in California. With 40,000 new blogs created everyday it is hard to believe that businesses wouldn’t begin to advertise and post new blogs.

 After reading the interviews of Waldman and Huffington Iopted to respond to the statements of Ayelet Waldman. Waldman responds toquestions referring to her discontinuance of her blogs. Waldman speaks of theambivalence of motherhood, the struggles of everyday life as woman, and herpersonal life in great detail during the interview from Burstein. I agree withher decision she made to end her blogging career after she came to reality withher issues. I agree that Waldman made the right decision in retiring fromblogging, a point that needs emphasizing since so many people believeotherwise. The well known “mommy blogger”had thousands of fans that were disappoint when she decided to stop blogging.As a new blogger myself, I hope to get comfortable enough with this form ofexpression where I can express personal opinions and feelings as Waldman oncedid. I’ve learned that blogging is a great tool for learning about others, butmore importantly your self. Ayelet Waldman taught me to never indulge in yourpassions, but always stay grounded and never forget the important things inlife.