HELP FROM THE HOME FRONT

The current Chief Wiggles is an Army intelligence officer serving in Iraq who maintains a Web log, or blog, at, http://chiefwiggles.blog-city.com . His blog has described a need for toys to give Iraqi children, to help improve their lives and show them that the U.S. is not only about guns and tanks.

Overstock.com CEO Patrick Byrne said, "A few weeks ago an airman stationed in Afghanistan wrote me describing the bleak living conditions for U.S. service personnel serving there, asking if we could send anything that would improve their quality of life. We wrote back, suggesting he poll his colleagues and place a $50,000 order 'on the house.' They did: oddly, the order was for 100 portable DVD players and three copies each of every action movie I'd ever seen."

Byrne continued, "Then last weekend my cousin, Jim Byrne, let me know about Chief Wiggles, pointing out that it appeared people at home wanted to assist Wiggles but were having trouble with the logistics. I contacted Chief Wiggles and he agreed to act as an intermediary, not just for toys for Iraqi children, but for any other products that people in the U.S. eager to support our men and women in Iraq, may wish to send."

Byrne said, "We realize that many American people are eager to do something to help Iraqi children and our own troops. This is an easy way for Americans to get online, click, and let us do the work to make sure it gets to our men and women serving in Iraq and to the needy children there."

Good idea. By the way, here is the link to the overstock.com website explaining the program.