Little house in the war zone - Essay Example

Little House in the War Zone Summary In her op-ed in the New York Times article d Little House in the War Zone, Zainab Salbi traces the journey through which her family house in Baghdad has undergone. First, she describes her family’s house as one full of happiness and warmth from the loving family during her childhood. However, numerous visits by Saddam Hussein turned the house cold with the family failing to enjoy the peace they had experienced before the appointment of their father to the position of Saddam’s personal pilot.

While Saddam showered the family with gifts, each conversation that took place in the house was monitored and Salbi indicates that they lost a number of family friends due to the audio surveillance. Even after the fall of Saddam, the house did not regain its status as it was in a dilapidated condition. In fact, Salbi indicates that the once warm and happy house that carried the hopes and dreams of a family became an execution center, a brothel, and even the Iraqi army used the house for its operations.

Reaction It seems that the once warm house filled with happiness started having problems after the family welcomed and entertained politicians, no less than the late dictator Saddam Hussein. In my opinion, the family had it coming from the onset after they opened the door for Saddam. Indeed, the welcoming of Saddam and the consequent appointment of Salbi’s father to a position in the government led to the family’s subjection to a public life full of scrutiny from security agents. In effect, this denied the family a private life that they had been accustomed to before welcoming Saddam.

Nonetheless, I think the family did not deserve this treatment since they were non-politico. However, a quiet and simple life full of happiness was wrecked with the hopes and dreams of the family wrecked.It is unfortunate to see a house filled with warmth and happiness, which the family extended to their visiting friends change and used in ways that the family could not comprehend. In this case, I think the family stood for all that is virtuous although their house was later used for reasons that were different from the family’s beliefs and principles.

Salbi indicates that she could not come to terms with the fact that the house that housed her family’s dreams and hopes once became a brothel. Indeed, the family believed that respect for all human beings was paramount. In addition, I think the family could never imagine that their house would at any one time be a place where men took advantage of women forced into prostitution by prevailing conditions. Out of the same reason, I think it was devastating to the family to find out that the house also became an execution center at one time, which is contrary to the peaceful place she experienced as a child.

Finally, I believe that the family still has hope in returning the house back to its glorious days. Although they might be unsure of the future Iraq, I think the family appreciates the family’s hopes and dreams carried by the house. In my opinion, this underscores the old saying that east or west, home is best.Work CitedSalbi, Zainab. “Little House in the War Zone.” The New York Times 4 Sep. 2009: New York Edition. Web. 9 Oct. 2012. .