Air Force Capt. William Hope volunteered for an Army assignment in Iraq. The 29-year-old satellite specialist from a small town south of Seattle is protecting Iraqi officials and infrastructure in Baghdad.

He's single, and his parents and two sisters back in Washington are proud of him, he recently told Tribune editorial writer Jim Beamguard in a telephone call from Iraq. Here are some of his comments:

On his assignment:

I've been in Iraq a little over three months. I'm with an Army civil affairs unit. I've got three more months [to go]. Several thousand airmen are going to be filling Army roles here pretty soon, on the ground ... in Iraq and Afghanistan.

I actually volunteered for this mission. Honestly, I wanted to lose a lot of weight. And I've actually lost about 40 pounds. It's been good for me. I've gotten in a lot better shape.

I started a second degree out here, in computer science. Nothing really bad has happened. I haven't gotten shot at. I had some problems with my computer science homework. It's a killer sometimes.

On Iraq's future:

In general, things are moving in a positive direction. The [Iraqis] I have talked to, they accept the fact there's going to be a struggle. But they're fully prepared to accept that.

It depends on the will of the Iraqi people. They're sitting on a gold mine here with all the natural resources. If they can somehow connect the will of the people with a functioning government and the natural resources here, this could be a very wealthy country in the next 10 years. Personally, I think that's where it's going.

On being patient:

The American news media, they like sensationalism. A couple of soldiers killed - let's publicize that. Let's not publicize the positive things happening out here.

There's got to be more journalistic responsibility to report the positive things going on. We have TVs on around us all the time where I work. A lot of guys share the feeling I have - there's not enough focus on the positive happening out here.

We're seeing a decrease in infrastructure attacks. Seeing more Iraqis take matters into their own hands against the insurgents, and repelling them in certain villages.

The thing that people need to understand, the average insurgency lasts around nine years. It's not going to be an overnight success. It's going to be a struggle, and you just have to accept that.

The biggest thing I can say to Americans to support us is just to remain patient. A solution to this isn't going to happen overnight.

The highlight so far:

I haven't been involved in too much excitement. I guess getting to personally meet one of the ministers in the interim government was very exciting to me. Meeting someone so dedicated to their cause, so intelligent. A female minister. Dedicated, intelligent.

On living conditions:

The food's great out here. You gotta have a lot of discipline not to eat too much of it. I've been pretty strict about my diet and it's paid off.

It's certainly safe out here; anywhere in the green zone is fairly safe.

Living standards are very good. I've got a trailer. I share a room with another guy. Four guys to a bathroom - sanitary, clean living conditions.

I've started playing rugby with the British and Australians. I'm the lone American out there.

I've got quite a few DVDs. I've gotten care packages, and I feel kind of bad. I've got all the food I need, and I get more in these care packages. I'll get socks. But the government has equipped me fairly well.

Keyword: Commentary, to read other recent Voices From The Front stories and more on the media coverage of Iraq. The Tribune arranges these interviews with service members through U.S. Central Command.