That is an interesting post: my main take-away was that we've been spending so much money in Iraq for so long that life there is nearly indistinguisable from life on a stateside base -- you're welcome, KBR -- but that we've been shorting Afghanistan for so long that they're still in need of basic or comfort goods. OK, it's confirming my biases, but am I reading it wrong?

I have a student at an FOB in Iraq--Altimar. He says they have a lot of stuff. But I'd guess that it's the comforts that they lack. Same sort of thing as Iraq.

As a follow-up, here's a list of stuff he sent me that they'd dearly like to get in Altimar:

Disposable Razors - ones that last a while (BIC, Schick, Mach 3)

Cigars (handmade or machine made) dip, chewing tobacco. Flavored stuff is popular

white running socks (sizes 8-12). The kind that go above the ankle. Nike, Reebok, or the like

action DVDs (Stallone, Szwartzenegger, Snatch type stuff)

Individually wrapped candy such as butterfingers, reeses, m&ms, snickers, or similar halloween style candy

College hats, any college will do since its football season and we have people here from EVERYWHERE.

pocket knives, specifically the multi tool type. (swiss army type knives)

running shoes, size 8-14. everyone here runs pretty often and shoes are in demand. Any brand will do.

mp3 players. Everyone has music on their computer, but not everyone has an mp3 player.

Headphones or earbuds

fitness magazines (runner's world or muscle mags), people magazine, and believe it or not, the nat'l enquirer is popular.

more magazines: smithsonian magazine, gun magazines, maxim, and anything with attractive females

rewritable CDs. We are not allowed to use thumb drives, so all data from a PC must be saved on a CDRW disk.

deodorant, shampoo, lotion, aftershave, febreeze (people go weeks without showers or laundry), and axe style body spray