Tea with Iraqi Army

Not something you hear everyday...
Today I had a very interesting experience.
Not only did I hear something out of the ordinary, I also was hearing it from a Colonel in the Iraqi Army! We had tea with this Iraqi Army Colonel and some of his Iraqi friends and he was telling us about his years in the Army. I was just amazed at what he went through. He was explaining to what extent Saddam Hussein killed the spirits and wore down the people of Iraq. He said Iraq was hopeless and dead when Saddam ruled. His face shriveled up just at his bringing up the subject of Saddam. When Saddam was in charge he only got paid 8 dinar per day...as an officer. He said he had to work side jobs, on TOP of being active Army! He did anything from selling fresh vegetables to menial jobs for people to earn enough just to live on. But he pushed through the hard times.
...then the interesting part...
This Colonel, and his Iraqi friends in the room at the time, said something we don't hear very often in America. They said that President George W Bush was their savior. They said that they could never forget what he did for them in stopping Saddam dead in his tracks. The Colonel told me that since Saddam has been gone, his pay has increased by 40x. These guys, Iraqi's, had nothing but awesome things to say about how great of a president George Bush was...and I have to admit...it made me proud, and I smiled like a little school girl. They could not stop beaming at how happy they were for what America has done for them.
They were explaining that when someone dies in Iraq, it is custom to have a big feast in memory of them and to honor them. They were saying that there was a huge feast held when President George Bush's grandma passed away. His grandma! What great people these are.
Another thing I heard that took me off guard was their opinion on President Obama. Apparently most of the Iraqi population was not happy with the outcome of the election. This in not what I had heard on the American news. Funny, huh? Ya know, it's really interesting to see what another country's take is on America. It's funny to me that all we hear is negative, but the people that we're helping could not be more grateful or more proud of our Country for what we have done (and continue to do) for them. Sometimes I think the Iraqi's have more patriotism for America than a lot of American citizens.
What an amazing experience. To hear the story from the other side of the world.