An Iraq Going to Hell Described by the Washington Post as Making 'Slow Gains'
Iraqis' Quality of Life Marked By Slow Gains, Many Setbacks Worries Abound That Government Isn't Up to Task of Providing Services
By Amit R. Paley and Karen DeYoung Washington Post Foreign Service Friday, November 30, 2007; A01
BAGHDAD, Nov. 29 -- This war-battered city, according to U.S. statistics, now receives an average of 11.9 hours of electricity a day, far more than earlier this year. But don't tell that to Ghaida al-Banna.
For three straight days this week, the 50-year-old housewife's home in the once ritzy Mansour neighborhood received no power at all. Barely any water came out when she turned on the faucet. One thing Banna's area does have in abundance is uncollected garbage, piled into giant, malodorous heaps dotting the street.
"What kind of government allows its people to live like this?" Banna asked. "They don't know how to provide services. They don't know how to do anything. Everything is getting worse and worse."
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