INTERVIEW WITH RACHEL AVILA
and correspondence with Senator Diane Feinstein

Rachel Avila� son, Ryan, 21, is with the 1^st Armored Division. He is her only child.

[This interview was conducted with Rachel May 16, 2004. On May 21 Ryan was seriously injured in Baghdad. See the end of the interview for Ryan's condition.]

Rachel: Ryan� father died in 1996 when Ryan was two months shy of 13. He had several tough teenage years and after high school couldn� figure out what to do with himself. I was worried and suggested he decide what he wanted to do with his life, he couldn� simply expect something to just happen. One day he called up a military recruiter and, just like that, they processed him into the Army in January 2003.

After boot camp he came home for fourteen days then was shipped to Germany one month later. In October he was deployed to Iraq. His original six months deployment in Iraq was extended in April and now I� not quite sure when to expect him home.

What makes it all the more painful for me is that he was shopping on-line for t-shirts and things like that and shipping them here so that he� have clothes to wear when he arrived home. Now these things are arriving in my mail and I know Ryan will not be here to wear them.

Up until about April he was based in Baghdad and I was in contact with him fairly regularly. He has told me how upset and frustrated he was with �hese people��Iraqis �and that he was beginning to hate them. He� say, �ere we are trying to help them and they�e shooting us.�/p>

At the same time I think the military has been good for his growth and maturity. He writes that now he realizes how good he had it at home.

Recently his unit moved into southern Iraq where the communication equipment is less available. This means I don� hear much from him at all.

Now that my husband, Ryan� dad, is gone I� with my best friend and partner who is very supportive. I try to keep busy and immerse myself in my work but I have an irregular schedule with the airlines. I write to Ryan just about every day. I pray a lot. I talk to friends. I do yoga and pilates. I also don� sleep very well these days and often wake up with nightmares. But I pay attention to the news and try to educate myself about what is really going on. I must say that I� very frustrated and upset with how things are being handled.

I was surprised by the invasion of Iraq. After 9/11 when we went into Afghanistan it made some sense to me. But suddenly we were talking about Saddam Hussein and that didn� make any sense. We were not finished with one mission and we started another. Why?

I feel we are in Iraq for oil �as well as supporting friends of this administration.

I listen to young people who are so pro-military and pro-president and I wonder how they�l feel when the draft is reinstated and they actually find themselves, their loved ones, their siblings, or their own children in the military.

The other thing that bothers me is how little our soldier men and women are paid in comparison to the civilian contractors. I had to send Ryan supplies that the military doesn� supply: bug spray, ointment, even sunglasses and goggles for sand storms.

Rachel contacted Mother Speak in May, 2004 with this email:

My son Ryan, was scheduled to leave Iraq in 9 days and be home for 30 days. I received a call from him yesterday saying that his tour of duty is extended another 4 months. I became very upset and decided to send an email to my elected senator from California. I wanted to find out from my senator why my son and other armed forces personnel are extended. This is unacceptable especially when Secretary Rumsfeld and his generals are saying they �o not�need more troops to fight the rebels. Thought you all might be interested to read the insulting generic reply I received from my elected government official.  
Rachel

Senator Feinstein� reply:

April 9, 2004 
Dear Ms. [Avila]:

Thank you for writing me regarding the future of Iraq. I appreciate hearing from you on this important issue.

Throughout the majority of Iraq, the regime of Saddam Hussein has been defeated and removed from power.

espite our success in freeing the Iraqi people, our military continues to encounter resistance throughout the country and must maintain a presence until an interim authority can be established to restore order and begin helping the Iraqi people reconstitute their basic social services.

So, as the fighting stops and as the remnants of the regime are removed, we must take the lead in rebuilding the Iraqi nation, in stabilizing its new government, in providing interim security to prevent the emergence of tribal hostilities and to see that Iraq is no longer a producer of weapons of mass destruction.

I am hopeful that all Iraqis of every ethnic and faith group, large and small, will be engaged in the process to establish a new Iraq.

I firmly believe that the U.S. should work closely with the United Nations and our allies in the reconstruction of Iraq. It is essential to demonstrate to Muslims everywhere that the United States, while a powerful nation, is motivated by a sincere desire to one day see the entire world safe, prosperous, and free.

Again, thank you for writing. I hope you will continue to keep me informed of your views and concerns. If you should have any further questions or comments, please do not hesitate to contact my Washington, D.C. staff at (202) 224-3841.

Sincerely yours, 
Dianne Feinstein 
United States Senator
http://feinstein.senate.gov

Rachel's response to Senator Feinstein:

Senator Feinstein,
In response to your reply to my email, and pardon me for sounding disrespectful, but... 

First, I feel a "GENERIC" letter of response on the issue of Iraq was not necessary since I hear and read the same answer from the President of the USA everyday. 

Second, if Iraq is or was a producer of WMD...WHERE ARE THEY AND WHY HAVEN� THEY BEEN FOUND? After all, WMD was the main reason we invaded Iraq. 

Third, President Bush calls the Iraqi rebels �HUGS,�but it seems to me that WE are looking more like �hugs�than are the Iraqi people. Why are we forcing our form of democracy on a country that already has a strong philosophy and religion? 

Last, I believe we are there for the wrong reasons. If Iraq were not rich in oil, USA would not be there. It's obvious to me that GREED based on Iraq's rich oil supply is the main reason we are in Iraq. Corporations such as Halliburton and its newly created subsidiaries and the policies of President Bush and his puppets are resulting in the deaths of our troops and allies, along with innocent Iraqi people. 

We�e spending billions of dollars over there while citizens at home are unemployed, have no healthcare, are hungry, and are getting substandard educations because schools lack money and must close.

What has happened to our elected officials? Is it because this is a major election year that our citizens are getting lip-service and nothing more?
Sincerely,
Rachel Avila  

Ryan was seriously injured in Baghdad May 21 when a suicide bomber rammed his Bradley fighting vehicle. Two other young soldiers were injured and the tank commander killed. Ryan's injuries include burns and multiple injuries to his neck, face, and arms, torn cheek muscles, severed artery in this wrist, metal and shrapnel lodged in his skull and brain, and unknown injuries to his eyes. Ryan has undergone surgeries including a craniotomy to release pressure from swelling on his brain. Ryan will be evac'd to Brooks Army Medical Center's burn unit in San Antonio, Texas. He should be back in the US by Monday, May 23. 

Update: May 30

Ryan is breathing with the help of a respirator and is still unconscious. He's had skin grafts for his burns but, so far, there's still no prognosis on his eyes and vision. He still has shrapnel lodged in his eyes, his face, his head, and his brain. But, the good news is that he's responding to the voices of his girl friend and his mother.
While sitting at his bedside in ICU it occurred to Rachel that there are many families in this country who may not be able to pay the costs of flying to the bedsides of their wounded soldiers. Rachel thought people with excess frequent flyer miles might donate them to assist these families. Turns out, there is such a program and you can participate by donating to Hero Miles. 

Update: June 7

Ryan is breathing on his own, is no longer heavily sedated, and, with help, has taken his first few steps. Today, doctors will conduct tests to determine if his tracheotomy is still required and whether he can swallow well enough to begin eating solid food. Rachel reports that the silver-dollar-sized hole in his cheek is healing from the inside but the long-term prognosis on this wound is unknown. Last week eye surgeons removed shrapnel from Ryan's right eye; on Wednesday (6/9) they'll work on his more severely injured left eye. While Ryan cannot speak yet he has made one request clear: I want to go home.

Update: June 12

Ryan is out of ICU and is taking his first steps on his own. He's not eating solid food yet nor is he able to speak clearly because of various tubes in his nose and throat. The eye surgeon removed shrapnel from his left eye but there is still an unknown blockage in this eye that will require further surgery. Ryan can distinguish some detail with his right eye. Shrapnel was removed from behind his ear and next week he'll undergo more surgery to remove shrapnel from his tongue. The shrapnel remaining in his brain may stay there. The wound on his cheek is healing well.

Rachel extends thanks to all who have contacted her via the email below. She was pleasantly surprised to receive email from France after an article appeared in Le Monde magazine about Mother Speak (week of May 24).

Please keep Rachel and Ryan in your hearts. Contact Rachel.