Here is an excerpt from one of Josh's emails we received on October 5th, at the end of a week that was rough for American forces in Baghdad. Thirteen Americans died in the fighting in that city and the near environs and we did not know for sure that Josh was not one of them for a couple of days. We were really happy to get this email!


"Yeah, it's been a pretty hectic week. Fortunately, no one in my platoon has been killed or injured yet, although we're the only platoon in the company that hasn't had any casualties. Obviously, I haven't been killed, either.:) Sadr city is getting hotter and hotter, and we're seeing a lot of JAM (Je'esh al Madhi, or something like that) activity in our sector, which is just north of Sadr city, with one side actually bordering it. We're making quite a bit of progress, though. We've started meeting people in the neighborhoods, and they are almost universally very happy to see us. Of course, that's to our face, so there's no telling what their attitude is after we leave. Some, like the Iraqi general we met yesterday, I am sure turn around and call JAM the minute we leave to tell them what we talked about. Actually, I'd be willing to bet that about half the guards at the general's house were actually JAM, not Iraqi Army. "