I wrote about this way back in 2005 when I was in the Middle East. I had several conversations with our troops on R/R from Iraq. One of their favorite subjects was how full of crap the mainstream media’s coverage in Iraq was at the time. Stuff like reporting from the Green Zone while embedded and never going out on patrol with the troops. This issue came up time and again. The troops were very offended as they took great pains to be sensitive to the Iraqi culture and the civilian populace. The took great pains to be careful, as directed by their leadership, to then just see themselves raked over the coals by these idiots in the press whose sole agenda was to lambast the President. Then again, my cousin, who was working for Blackwater at the time, did pride himself on peeing in Saddam Hussein’s pool. Guess we aint all perfect.

Damage to Iraqi Antiquities was Media Hype

American-led coalition forces were blamed for the destruction of Iraqi antiquities following the 2003 invasion, including inflicting serious damage to the ancient site of Babylon.

But reports of extensive damage have turned out to be largely media hype, according to Forbes magazine columnist Melik Kaylan.

Writing in Saturday's Wall Street Journal, Kaylan noted that John Curtis, head of the British Museum's Middle East Department, was "the single most persistent source" of reports on the supposed destruction.

In January 2005, the BBC reported that "coalition forces in Iraq have caused irreparable damage to the ancient city of Babylon," attributing the disclosure to the British Museum.

The BBC said "sandbags have been filled with precious archaeological fragments and 2,600-year-old paving stones have been crushed by tanks."

Curtis went on to say later that a coalition helicopter base had caused cracks in the bas-reliefs on Babylon's original walls.

A story the Boston Globe stated that "Iraq's U.S.-led invaders inflicted serious damage on Babylon, driving heavy machinery over sacred paths, bulldozing hilltops, and digging trenches through one of the world's greatest archaeological sites."

But this year Curtis began to step away from his earlier claims, acknowledging that Saddam Hussein "had already caused grievous harm to the site in various ways" before the invasion, Kaylan observed in The Journal.

And a memoir published in April by Emilio Marrero, who was chaplain of the Marine Expeditionary Force that first secured Babylon from looters in 2003, said the site was already in poor condition and U.S. forces worked to protect and preserve it.

Marrero told Kaylan that the helicopter base was "up to two football fields away" from the area of supposed damage and the cracks in the bas-reliefs were there before the invasion.

He also discounted allegations that tanks had crushed paving stones and archaeological fragments were used to fill sandbags, saying they were in fact filled with earth.

Kaylan disclosed that Curtis made a June 2008 trip to Iraq along with Elizabeth Stone from Stony Brook University in New York, and found "little or no post-Saddam damage" in southern Iraq's eight most important archaeological sites.

"They did not visit Babylon in the north," Kaylan wrote, "but the places they saw covered a full fifth of the entire landmass of Iraq — all relatively undamaged."

The National Museum in Iraq has now been reopened to the public, with most of its greatest treasures back on display, Kaylan adds, because "the museum's most valuable items were locked away in a vault, untouched by looters."

Okay, so it’s taken me a while, but here it is. Like I’ve said, Billy Joel and Ruben Blades are two of my favorite singer/songwriters. I’ve already written of the philosophy of Billy Joel (look back in my notes for that one).

Ruben Blades is a unique individual. He’s the kind of dichotomy to which I can relate. A Harvard educated lawyer, he has made his living for the past 30 some years as a Salsa musician. For those who do not listen to Salsa he has also had a fairly successful acting career. If you go to IMDB you’ll see an extensive and diverse body of film work. Originally from Panama, he even ran for the country’s presidency a few years back. He has been a groundbreaking songwriter in the latin music genre and his CD Mundo is a masterful fusion of world music into the Salsa genre. He also has one of those distinct voices that is unmistakable. You hear it once and you’ll recognize it if you hear it again.

The problem I’ve encountered in writing this is that some of my favorite lyrics of his simply do not translate well. For example I love “Buscando Guayabas”. The pure simplicity of the lyrics and the snappy melody just make it a fun song (particularly Ruben’s vocalization of a guitar solo). When I attempt to translate Una guayaba salve morena, una guayaba que este bien buena!  I get the funny looks my wife always gives me when I try to translate some Latin colloquialisms.

Another problem is that many of his songs are complete stories and it’s difficult to simply translate just the one lyric without its context within the song.

In any case, here is my small sample of the world according to Ruben Blades.

Si naciste pa’ martillo del cielo te caen los clavos.- Pedro Navaja (If you were born to be a hammer nails will fall from heaven).

God has a plan for you. You may not like it but in the end you must follow it. For those who don’t believe in God the same thing applies to fate and karma.

Cuanto control y cuanto amor, tiene que haber en una casa. Mucho control y mucho amor para enfrentar a la desgracia.- Control y amor.  (How much control, and how much love, must there be in a household. A lot of control and a lot of love to face tragedy).

Despite what family does, they are family and you must support them, failing that, you must love them. Family is family.

 Sin tu carino son de carton todas las estrellas, y no hay poesia ni hay alegria cuando no estas.- Sin tu carino. (Without your love the stars are made of cardboard, and there is no poetry nor joy when you are not here).

The entire song speaks of the emptiness of the world without the love of the object of your own affection. Who has not been there?

Como el carino que guardias despues de muerto a abuela. Patria son tantas cosas bellas.- Patria. (Like the love you still cherish, even after death, for your grandmother. Country means so many beautiful things).

In this song, Ruben attempts to define the intangible concept of patriotism by comparing it to commonly felt emotions.

 Mientras no haya justicia, jamas tendremos paz. -Buscando America.  (While there is no justice, we’ll never have peace).

Injustice is the root of unrest.

Decisiones, cada dia, alguien pierde alguien gana, Ave Maria. -Decisiones. (Decisions, every day, some lose, some win, Hail Mary).

Decisions made carry inescapable consequences, good or bad, for all. “Ave Maria” is a generic Latin expression like “my goodness”.

Toma su sueos raidos, los parcha con esperanzas. Hace del hambre una almohada, y se acuesta triste del alma. – Pablo Pueblo. (He takes his frayed dreams, whets them with hope. He makes a pillow of his hunger and goes to sleep sad to his soul.

As with many of Ruben’s songs, this one speaks of the despair of poverty.

Again, these are my interpretations. Admittedly some of the extrapolations were snippets from songs that may as a whole have a completely different meaning. For example, Pedro Navaja is Ruben’s interpretation of the old classic Mack the Knife. Both are favorites of mine. In any case, I hope you’ve enjoyed it.

The one thing about Ruben’s music that is different from Billy Joels is that ate least if you don’t understand what he’s singing you can damn sure dance to it! And after all, dancing is a universal language.

Can’t Salsa? Sucks to be you!