Not that there’s anything easy ahead. But on the day that President Bush flew into the once out-of-control Anbar province to make his case that succeeding in Iraq is possible and is worth it, Ralph Peters continues writing from his vantage point with the Marines in Fallujah:

The Marines of 1st Platoon, Fox Company, 3rd Battal ion, 3rd Marines aren’t living large, but they’re making a huge difference. Bunking in a police precinct headquarters in Fallujah, they’re at the forward edge of our current successes in Iraq.

[...]

You’d expect complaints. I didn’t hear one. And talking to three Jersey boys, I was surprised to hear just how positive they felt about the mission.

“I’d do it again in a heartbeat,” Lance Cpl. Justin Blitzstein of West Milford told me. Self-assured and ready for anything, he added, “Anybody who doesn’t think we should be here should see the difference we’ve made in the way these people live. And everybody here’s a volunteer. We want to be here.”

Lance Cpl. Jason Hetherington of Cape May County leapt in, “The progress from us being here [in the police precinct] less than six months is unbelievable. People who don’t think we’re making a difference should just see what we do.”

A thoughtful man, Hetherington paused to choose his next words. “We were surprised that it wasn’t a combat situation in Fallujah anymore. It’s rewarding to see the kids out in the streets and the shops open.”

[...]

Even with leading questions, the closest I could get to drawing complaints from those Jersey Leathernecks came when I asked them what they missed most about home.

Hetherington: “The freedom to just get in a car and go.” Sounds like one of Bruce Springsteen’s homeboys, indeed.

Blitzstein: “Just being in America.”

Rudolph: “Waking up in my own bed.”

If you’re sleeping safely in your own bed tonight, thank those Marines from “Joisey.”

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