Blogging soldier silenced

A U.S. Soldier who wrote a highly publicized blog from Iraq has been told to stand down.

Army Sgt. Levi Lohnes, stationed in Iraq since March 2004, has chronicled his experiences--almost daily--since he learned of his assignment. Lohnes primarily wrote about the general goings-on of his platoon: their subdued July 4th celebration, graffiti on a bathroom wall and a spontaneous trip to the local Burger King.

He avoided political commentary and showed great compassion for the Iraqi people. The strongest opinion he ever put forth was his hope that the lives of Iraqis would soon improve. But something apparently caught the attention of someone higher up the chain of command.

On July 8, Lohnes took down all archived entries and posted a message stating that he had "been advised to stop blogging for the time being." He gave no explanation as to where the order came from or the reasoning behind it--simply stating that this was "just the way things have to be for right now."

Lohnes' blog had been getting significant attention since it was featured in the June 12th issue of People magazine. Still, one can only speculate as to what aspect of his journal prompted the military to put a halt to it. If not a security breach, was it simply a matter of politics--or rather a lack thereof?

While there are still plenty of soldier blogs around, few display such a strong desire to help the people in that violence-wracked country.