Peter Palma invited a special guest speaker for this event. Aparisim “Bobby” Ghosh is a journalist and TIME Magazine’s World Editor. He was previously TIME’s Baghdad bureau chief, and one of the longest-serving correspondents in Iraq. Bobby gave us an inside view of what it was like living in Iraq under constant threat of attack. He explained the mixed feelings of the average Iraqi man regarding America’s involvement there. What was remarkable about Bobby’s presentation is that it was completely devoid of armchair theory or political posturing. Bobby just told it like it is in such a direct and realistic way that it transcended political divides. He helped us understand the nature of the 1,400 year old conflict between the Shiites, Sunis and Kurds, which is so difficult for Americans to relate to. Bobby made an interesting distinction between the well executed war and the completly botched peacekeeping process that followed. We discussed the future of Iraq and Afganistan and Americas role there. Many good questions were asked and the answers were fascinating.
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