Musings on Fallujah

"Originally appeared in the New York Times on March 17th, 2006 - link.

I can now say I have seen the much-touted city of Fallujah. From the Euphrates in the west to the rolling farmland just outside the eastern “Cloverleaf” overpass, it is a city with as many personalities as it has citizens. The history I know says that Fallujah has always been a haven for criminals. Saddam decided to ignore it and let it fester into a boil on the buttocks of an already not-so-humanitarian Iraq. One of our native linguists tells me it was a last stop for truckers coming out of Jordan to get some tasty shiskabob before they entered the crowded Baghdad metropolitan area. I cannot speak for its history, but I can tell you that today Fallujah, like almost any city, runs the gamut from gorgeous to ghastly."
Midnight in Iraq