Arnon Grunberg

Hot Line

Miracle

The New York Times: 'The author of a Baghdad Web log, who calls himself Zappy Corleone, described in an entry last month how he saw gunmen in more than 10 cars seal off a street in the Rusafa neighborhood, kidnap a man from his house and stuff him in a car’s trunk. The writer said he called the tips line six times but was unable to connect. In an e-mail response to questions, he said, “The cruel impact of it is that it raises real hopes that somebody would save you, but actually it’s a slap on the face, like everything else in Baghdad.”' This is a lesson for all of us. Before you call emergency, ask yourself the question: do you want to wait for the miracle to come?