It has been more than five years since shakomakoNET launched itself onto the virtual world. Behind the doors of the kitchen in a Doha home, four to five Iraqi youth would regularly meet and discuss Iraqi identities, diasporic experiences, memories of home, and fear of what the future might hold. All were interested in the emergence of the Internet as a space more widely accessible than traditional forms of media, but also at how Iraqis worldwide would be able to create a community online, where all attempts to create them offline have usually failed miserably. So the idea became to mill around in the coffee cups and estakanat of chai that dotted the wooden table, and it was decided that some of us would dedicate time to launching a website about Iraq. None of us had any experience in web or graphic design, but were willing to learn for the sake of creating something unique in the Iraqi community, and for Iraq. The need now arose for a name, that would give us an identity. Immediately we started to think of various sexy combinations with words like Iraq and Baghdad, but it all seemed so cliche and didn't capture the essence of the youth that we wanted so desperately to mobilize, in any way. And then there it was, someone, who to this day is a critical part of this project, walks into that same kitchen, and declares the name should be "shakomako." Nobody disagreed, in fact, everybody loved it.

The next thing we needed was webspace and hosting. But what we found instead was much much more. An individual, through the magic of coincidence and fate, who not only generously allowed us to venture on the net through servers which he owned somewhere in the Nevada desert; but was also a pillar of support and belief in the idea and the individuals working on it. And within days, the idea was born. The design was simple, the content was simple, but the idea was new, and the response was amazing. For several reasons, however, the team split up with members being scattered around the Gulf and some thrown as far across the Atlantic, in Toronto, where the magazine took on a new life, but not without an absence of some time due to the breakup of the team.

In Toronto, a new team emerged with more determination to take the magazine to the next level. A new design, bolder content, and more writers than before, shakomakoNET began to reach its potential. Hundreds of thousands of readers from around the world were accessing the site each month, and hundreds of emails would come into our makeshift offices in Toronto. But once again, aspirations that went beyond the essence of the magazine diverted attention from maintaining the magazine, and it crashed again. Not without lessons learned, and not without taking the time out to strengthen ourselves through other means.

The need to create or contribute to an independent and progressive discourse for Iraqis to use as a tool to fight against occupation, sectarianism, exploitation, and isolation is needed. For that purpose, we are emerging, again, and this time with more determination, focus, and greater goals in sight. However, just like any of the successes that we experienced in the past, despite the shortcomings, none of it would have been possible without you. So, we dedicate this third attempt to you, with the hopes that the third time is the charm.