Iraq and back. . . a blip in time

By Ken Root

I'm writing this commentary while staging in Washington, D.C., and preparing to board a military aircraft to fly to Iraq with U.S. Secretary of Agriculture, Mike Johanns. All I know now is that we will be home on Wednesday. I would have written about other things but I can think of nothing except this trip and all that swirls around it.

After twenty-five years of reporting from trade missions and hotspots where agricultural delegations and officials have gone, I'm a veteran of this sort of thing. I am honored to be selected and my pride swells just a bit, but I am mostly scared that I will disappoint myself on what I deliver to listeners and readers. If I don't tell you the unvarnished truth about what I see and how it relates to you, then I've failed. If I get too caught up in "cause-oriented" reporting then I've missed the real opportunity of this trip. I have biases, hopes and fears that will be reflected in my reporting but I want them to be similar to those of my audience so you can see a glimpse of this ancient land through my eyes.

I'm traveling with a delegation led by an Iowa native and former Nebraska governor, Mike Johanns. He's as charismatic as any modern USDA Secretary and is rapidly eclipsing the travels of John Block, who was Secretary of Agriculture in the Reagan era. Johanns is clearly an advocate of the administration and is as polished a politician as I've ever encountered. I believe that his goals on this trip will be to show that Iraq is returning to normalcy and the community of trading nations will be able to work with this democratic country in the near term future.

Let me focus on Iraq as a country with the world's longest agricultural history so that fact doesn't get lost in the politics of my stories in this publication in the weeks to come. If you went to Bible school or took a basic agricultural course, reference was made to the "fertile crescent" that lies between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. Iraq is the modern version of Mesopotamia or "land between two rivers" where pre-historic man changed from nomadic life to an agrarian existence. Planting and harvesting of crops has been going on in the region for 10,000 years. Writing was created as a means to manage commercial accounts and laws were set up as the people had to co-exist in an urban environment. This land is our beginning, agriculture's foundation as much as Islam's.

As Americans, we wouldn't know much about Iraq if it weren't for the military engagements that have taken billions of dollars of our resources and the lives of over two thousand-five hundred of our countrymen and women. We fear it becoming our Vietnam of the 21st century and it is an issue that divides our nation. On this mission we will see if Iraq is ready to start feeding itself again and spending its oil revenues to buy agricultural technology and food rather than buying munitions for war.

Both Iraqi and American farmers will benefit greatly from a post-war Iraq that has a stable government. With only 12 percent arable land it can't soon be self sufficient in the food needs of 22 million people but it has always shown the willingness to try. With science and technology, the future for increased production is unlimited. Iraq will have the resources to buy tractors, seed, fertilizer and irrigation equipment as well as grains like Wheat and rice.

This country has shown incredible determination to endure war and oppression and has created societies that are the foundation of our own. What has happened since modern Iraq was formed is but a blip in time for a people who have lived for 10,000 years as farmers and merchants of the Middle East. If the Garden of Eden existed, it was here. If Abraham was a man, he lived here. What other path is there but toward autonomy and peace? Our mission, as complex as it may seem, is only to facilitate when this occurs.

Editor's note: Ken Root is now celebrating his 34th year as an agricultural professional. His career began as a vocational agriculture teacher then turned to agricultural broadcasting and writing as well as environmental consulting and association management. He was the original host of AgriTalk (1994-2001) and now is lead farm broadcaster for WHO Radio in Des Moines, Iowa. Ken also contribues to the Midwest Ag Report electronic newsletter each Friday. A free e-mail subscription is available by going to www.hpj.com and clicking on Midwest Ag Report.

Date: 8/3/06

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