Even today, Baghdad's Abu Gharayb Palace is magnificent, largely undamaged by the fearsome airstrikes by American jets and missiles. But it was not in one of the marble salons that Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld addressed the Iraqi people last week. From a small, nondescript chamber, Rumsfeld taped a few brief remarks. "Back home in America," he said, "I have three children and six grandchildren. The youngest is just 1 year old. I want the same thing for them that each of you wants for your children and grandchildren: safety, security, and a just society
where they have freedom to pursue their dreams."
It will take time to achieve those goals. But as the men and women of
America's armed forces prepare to come home from Iraq, they return to a
life with which most of their compatriots are wholly unfamiliar. To document that life, more than 125 of the world's finest photographers fanned out across the globe over a single 24-hour period late last year. The result is A Day in the Life of the United States
Armed Forces, published by HarperCollins. Several of the photographs from the book are excerpted here. – Brian Duffy
For more information on A Day in the Life of the United States Armed Forces, please go to www.daymilitary.com.
