Contractors help celebrate holiday in Iraq

Contractors help celebrate holiday in Iraq
By Lauren Frayer - The Associated Press
Posted : Friday Nov 23, 2007 8:50:36 EST

CAMP SPEICHER, Iraq — Five years ago, Vincent Lobo was working as a tobacco salesman in his native India, and had no idea what Thanksgiving was.

Now Lobo is spending a fifth year serving turkey, stuffing and candied yams to U.S. soldiers stationed in Iraq, courtesy of one of the American military’s biggest practices here — outsourcing.

“It was a job opportunity for me to come here. I make twice as much money as I did in India, and here I can save all of my earnings,” Lobo said Thursday, looking out over a sea of U.S. military uniforms lining up for turkey at this U.S. base in Saddam Hussein’s hometown of Tikrit.

The U.S. military puts on a traditional Thanksgiving celebration for about 165,000 military personnel stationed across Iraq. The cost is in the “hundreds of thousands of dollars” at this dining hall alone — one of three facilities at this base north of Baghdad, said Chief Warrant Officer William Duff, who oversees contractors here.

That pays for turkey and all the trimmings for about 20,000 customers who include U.S. military members, contractors and an occasional visiting journalist.

The gymnasium-sized facility was decorated with red, orange and brown paper streamers. Each long table was topped with a watermelon carved in the shape of a basket, filled with grapes and squash.


Rest of article at: http://www.armytimes.com/news/2007/11/ap_whatsthanksgiving_071122/

People eating like gluttons, while others are starving.