"From what I understand it's a hoax and there is no Ray Reynolds in the 234th Signal Battalion."

Dangit Reg! Why do you always have to sound so pessimistic about Iraq? Yeah,  I'll admit, after reading that letter I too was somewhat skeptical of how a lowly sarg could be privy to all those "facts" about Iraq's new infrastructure.  But if he does exist, I'd fully expect him to know a helluva lot more truth than me.  

And damn son, you got the internet!  You can do your very own debunking with a tool like that!

Sure enough, a simple little pvt Ryan style search (wasn't he from Iowa too?) turns up some blog that talked last December about a SFC Ray Reynolds of Des Moine and how he and a buddy (both serving in Iraq) got some sweet corn seed ordered up from back home and were planting a patch of it over there (remind them of home? impress Iraqi's? who knows).   The blog never mentions anything about that email.  But I don't know, sounds like the guy really does exist to me.

Coincidence? maybe, but it seems unlikely.

http://act.hagale.net/archives/2003/12/09/corn_from_iowa_growing_in_iraq.php