I do tend to good-naturedly rag on our cousins up north, but it’s all in fun.  Having met several Canadians here in Korea I can honestly say that in many ways they are just like normal folks.  Ok, I’m ragging again.

But on a serious note, this article on some Canadian troops doing important work in Afghanistan reminded me that we are brothers-in-arms and I do appreciate and respect their service and sacrafice.

Some excerpts:

Dusk was closing fast on a patrol of Canadian soldiers as they cleared a sector of this bombed-out, abandoned village. Suddenly, the puttering of a motorbike was heard in the distance.

The sound came as a surprise. The motorcycle was the first non-military vehicle they had heard since they moved in three days earlier to set up a new outpost here, about six miles southwest of the provincial capital of Kandahar.

“Take cover, boys,” the patrol leader shouted, as he and two other soldiers ducked behind a high metal gate into the compound on the right.

With the near-constant shelling of artillery in the area over the previous days, it was a safe bet that the rider was not just passing through. Chinese-made Honda motorcycles are the Taliban’s favorite method of transporting fighters and supplies around the Afghan battlefield.

With the sound of the motorcycle now just outside, the patrol leader and two soldiers sprang from their hiding place and blocked the road.

Two men were on a red Honda less than 50 meters away. A third followed on a second motorcycle just behind them. The soldiers yelled for the men to stop. The men jumped from the motorcycles and began to run.

The Canadian soldiers opened fire. Two of the men dashed through a gate in a mud wall to the left and into a field before they were cut down by other troops. The third man died in a hail of fire before he even made it off the road. He fell face down in the dirt and did not move again. The fusillade had lasted less than 30 seconds.

As darkness fell, a team of combat engineers moved forward to check the motorcycles and the bodies of the three men for booby traps. There were none. The other soldiers cheered and bumped fists when the engineers announced had found a 60 mm mortar tube, a base plate and four high-explosive rounds. The three men had definitely been Taliban.

“It’s been a good day, huh?” a sergeant said. His name, like the others, is withheld because of task force ban on identifying troops who kill or injure insurgents or civilians.

“Yeah, they were probably going to fire those mortars on us,” said another soldier. “We assured ourselves of a good sleep tonight.”

 

The USFK commander visited the DMZ yesterday to mark the anniversary of the armistice.

So, it turned into a photo-op battle, with the Norks posing for snapshots directly behind General Sharp.  Pretty funny and typical of the oneupsmanship that is pretty much the norm on the DMZ.

So they say.  Still, hearing the ROKs think along these lines is encouraging.

So everyone seems to be speculating these days on what’s next from crazy ol’ Kim Jong Il.  Well, your guess is as good as mine.  The commonly held view seems to be that we can expect some type of provacative act, likely in or near the Northern Limit Line (the extension of the DMZ into the Yellow Sea).  Could be a naval engagement or perhaps even an invasion of one of the coastal islands.  Unlike his predecessor, President Lee will probably be disinclined to let such an act go answered.  Whether it stops at a tit for tat remains to be seen.

I’m thinking Kim will wait and see if the UN Security Council does anything more than issue “a strongly worded letter”.  If so, that may trigger him to lash out in some form or fashion.  At least, that has been his modus operandi in the past.  Rumor has it that sanctions, if they are coming, would be announced this week.  So I suppose it’s wait and see time around here.

You know, people from home seem a lot more concerned about the current state of affairs here on the peninsula than those of us living here.  Again, this is pretty much old hat and it is only the uninformed who believe that the Norks ever respected any international agreements to which they are a party.  Make no mistake, military planning and preparations are ongoing, but that is as it should be regardless.  Just some new possible contingencies to take into account is my observation.  Certainly, it is business a usual for the Korean people who have been living under north Korean threats for generations. 

I’m not worried or overly concerned.  I guess the fact that I’m even thinking and writing about this issue now is about the only thing different from my perspective.  While the Norks could rain some fire and destruction down on our heads, it would be suicide to do so.  And my take on it is that everything the DPRK does is calculated to ensure perpetuation of the regime.  There is always the chance that they will miscalculate and overplay thier hand I suppose, but I also expect China will not sit back indefinitely and let things get too far out of hand.

Of course, not everyone has such a sanguine view of things.  Commenter Dennis from Florida left the following comment on an earlier post:

As heard on Coast to Coast AM. (www.coasttocoastam.com), probably a month or so ago, an interview of the somewhat famed ‘remote viewer’ Major Ed Dames, USA, (Ret). Ed predicts, via multiple remote viewing the future ‘hits’ from amongst his Matrix Intelligence Agency staff and many students of his program, too many to count, that a major event is going to occur on the Korean Peninsula within six months of the programs airing, which would make it more like within maybe four months or maybe even less from this point in time. Specifics of the situation are not revealed other than to say that many, many lives will be lost among South Koreans to include many 8th Army assigned personnel/forces. Speculation seems to center on the probability of a ‘fairly small yield’ nuke, maybe, from NK into probably the Seoul area. This strike, it was predicted, will result in prompt and complete retaliation against the North (probably by combined US/ROK forces) resulting in pretty much cessation of NK as it is formally constituted currently.

So, there you have it. When these predictions were made it is worth noting, K J IL was still recovering from a probable stroke and none of his spin-up in missile firings, nuke testing’s, suspension of the ‘Armistice’, etc, had yet occurred, nor had,obviously, the more recent capture (kid-napping) of the two Asian journalists, their trials and subsequent sentencing’s or other incidents of intrigue. So, these things noted, events would seem to be moving in the direction of, certainly, some form of confrontation, surely evidenced, as well, by the recently announced leadership changes and the greatly ramped-up saber-rattling that is going on currently. You can check it further by going to www.learnrv.com, which is Ed Dames’ web-site or can do a general search on it and will surely find more details than I have cited here.

As a final note, Ed Dames is indeed a former USArmy, now retired, Intelligence Officer and now CEO of the somewhat successful organization named the Matrix Intelligence Agency – the MIA employs these remote viewing techniques and skills under contract, to learn and predict all sorts of things for it’s clients – apparently has a great track record and has made a ton of money too. Back in the 80’s Ed was an original member of a cadre of Army personnel who took part in a highly classified USA pilot program which was then called ‘Stargate’ – true story. The program was held at DIA and was very successful but was subsequently disbanded apparently due to political pressures, which would not surprise me in the least – it was subsequently declassified, as well, obviously. At the time I was a USAF Intelligence officer and visited the DIA regularly for many, many conferences and meetings, but I never heard of this program till about three years ago and after the emergence of ‘remote viewing’ as a ‘taught discipline’. Remote viewing is a technique whereby the future is discerned through a strictly controlled protocol of psychic-type concentration – it apparently taps into the universal consciousness we are all a part of, yeah, really, and by every measure I’ve been able to discern, it indeed truly seems to work.

Yeah, even vocalizing, these things seems probably a bit over the top and probably hard to believe. And of course, I’m not trying to convince anyone, simply reporting what I have listened to and looked in to, and the potential linkage to the ‘time for change’ blog entry of John’s.

So, as we used to say back in the day, I guess we can all ‘hide and watch’. Since I listened to the original program back a couple months ago, I’ve had one eye sort of trained on the subject, waiting and watching the drift…….. given the unfolding events, nearly daily almost now, seems to be something there, something to it, I would have to observe. There were numerous other quite interesting and some would say even profound ‘predictions’ made during the program, as well……..which I won’t go in to here, but the mention of the Korea thing seemed worth a comment. Hey, stranger things have happened.

Time will tell I suppose.  But I’m sleeping just fine.

UPDATE:  Upon re-reading, my poor sentence construction may have left the impression that I thought anyone taking the situation here more serious than me was “uninformed”. My intent was people who only read the MSM and see “Kim renounces Armistice” might think things are worse than they are. Kim has never kept true to the terms of the Armistice, so that statement is not particular cause for alarm.

The Second Infantry Division posed for a cool photo this week:

That’s about 5,000 soldiers from throughout Korea.  Nicely done.

As mentioned in an earlier post, the NY Times has taken its anti-war bias to a new extreme with an anti-soldier story disparaging our brave troops as murderers.

Lo and behold, the little newspaper from Fayetteville (home of Fort Bragg) did a little fact checking of their own and guess what? The NY Times really ISfull of sh*t:

In Fayetteville, North Carolina, the local paper was intrigued by the Times’ claims and decided to check its own archives for evidence. Fayetteville, located near Fort Bragg, home to the 82nd Airborne and special operations units, is an excellent place to conduct the experiment; few localities, if any, have been home to as many soldiers returning from Afghanistan and Iraq.

The Fayetteville Observer checked its own archives, with predictable results:

Twelve Fort Bragg soldiers have been accused of killing 13 people in the six-plus years since Sept. 11, 2001, according to Observer records. In the six years before the terrorist attacks, 16 Fort Bragg soldiers were accused of killing 18 people.

There you have it: wartime and peacetime yield the same low homicide rates for soldiers. In reporting these findings, the Observer referred to the claim made by the New York Times that reported instances of alleged homicide involving a veteran increased by 89% in the period 2001-2007 compared with the six-year period preceding the war in Afghanistan. That claim, insofar as it related to Fort Bragg personnel, was refuted by the Observer’s research.

Big hat tip to the gents at PowerLine for shining another light on the roaches who reside at the NY Times…

A few days ago, the NY Times did a hit piece on our troops who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The New York Times found 121 cases in which veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan committed a killing in this country, or were charged with one, after their return from war. In many of those cases, combat trauma and the stress of deployment — along with alcohol abuse, family discord and other attendant problems — appear to have set the stage for a tragedy that was part destruction, part self-destruction.

Oh, by the way, 20% of these 121 cases involved manslaughter associated with drunk driving and at least one example occurred before the soldier deployed. Hey, no need to let the facts get in the way of your narrative, right?

GI Korea (among many others) has been all over this story. He has another post up that shows the worldwide negative impact the Times disparaging article has had on the reputation of our military men and women.

The sad thing about this anti-American propaganda is that the whole premise is demonstratively false. Wrong on the facts, and most assuredly wrong on the conclusion that our GWOT vets are walking time bombs who are a danger to society. As I said in a comment left at GI Korea:

This is just more of the same old, same old from the biased left wing MSM. I remember last year it was about the “increase” in suicides amongst returning troops. Well, they didn’t find it newsworthy that the suicide rate of Iraq vets is LESS than the national suicide rate for all Americans of that age group. So, I guess serving in Iraq makes one LESS likely to commit suicide, right?

Anyway, Armed Liberal has a good post on this topic at Winds of Change. Even taking the NYT’s skewed numbers, it turns out that the “murder” rate of returning vets is significantly lower than the national rate for 18-25 year olds. Geez, why wasn’t that the headline?

So, what is it that makes the Times and its defenders despise and fear our war veterans? I think Ralph Peters has the answer in a New York Post column entitled “The New Lepers”:

The purpose of Sunday’s instantly notorious feature “alerting” the American people that our Iraq and Afghanistan vets are all potential murderers when they move in next door was to mark those defenders of freedom as “unclean” – as the new lepers who can’t be trusted amid uninfected Americans.

In the more than six years since 9/11, the Times has never run a feature story half as long on any of the hundreds of heroes who’ve served our country – those who’ve won medals of honor, distinguished service crosses, Navy crosses, silver stars or bronze stars with a V device (for valor)….

Well, a quick statistics check let the air out of the Times’ bid to make us dread the veteran down the block – who the Times implies has a machine gun under his bathrobe when he steps out front to fetch the morning paper. In fact, the capital-crimes rate ballyhooed by the Gray Lady demonstrates that our returning troops are far less likely to commit such an offense.

Again, the Times’ smear certainly wasn’t an accident. The paper’s staff is highly paid and highly experienced. Its editors know that a serious news story has to put numbers into context. But their sole attempt at context was to note that offenses by former soldiers have ticked up since we went to war.

The Times is trying to make you fear our veterans (Good Lord, if your daughter marries one, she’s bound to be beaten to death!). And to convince you that our military would be a dreadful place for your sons and daughters, a death-machine that would turn them into incurable psychopaths.

To a darkly humorous degree, all this reflects the Freudian terrors leftists feel when confronted with men who don’t have concave chests. But it goes far beyond that.

Pretending to pity tormented veterans (vets don’t want our pity – they want our respect), the Times’ feature was an artful example of hate-speech disguised as a public service…

The hard left’s hatred of our military has deteriorated from a political stance into a pathology: The only good soldier is a dead soldier who can be wielded as a statistic (out of context again). Or a deserter who complains bitterly that he didn’t join the Army to fight . . .

A longstanding goal of the left, recently invigorated, has been to drive a wedge between our military and our society. The real vet is the neighbor who fixes your kid’s bike (or your computer). But the left’s archetypal vet is the Marine colonel in “American Beauty” who, frustrated in his suppressed gay passions, murders poor Kevin Spacey…

So let me suggest the best-possible revenge on the veteran-trashing jerks at The New York Times: Instead of fleeing in terror the next time you see a veteran you know, just thank him or her for their service.

I was shaking my head in disgust when I read the commenters defending the Times at GI Korea. No right thinking person could fail to see through the obvious agenda of disparaging the brave troops who defend this nation. I just couldn’t grasp what it was about our soldiers that inspired such contempt. But I can only conclude as did Mr. Peters that: all this reflects the Freudian terrors leftists feel when confronted with men who don’t have concave chests.

Sometimes I really fear for my country.

You know, I never cease to be amazed at the things I find on blogs. I’ve been sitting on this link since New Year’s Day, but I still can’t get this amazing story about one of the greatest Americans you’ve probably never heard of, Colonel John Boyd, out of my head. He was a freakin’ modern day Sun Tzu and our nation owes him a debt of gratitude for his steadfastness in refusing to succumb to the Pentagon bureaucracy.

This is not a blog post, it is an extremely well-written essay and if you have any interest in history or military doctrine I promise you will find it well worth your time. Hell, I’ve given you two links already, what are you doing here?

Excerpting won’t do it justice, so go give it a read.

Ok, here’s a teaser to get you started:

This is a story about success and failure. It is a story about Iraq, and of something much bigger than Iraq. It is, perhaps, a small look into what makes victory, and defeat. It is a tale of infantrymen, of brave soldiers in dusty alleys a world away. It is a story of generals and strategies, too.

But to understand our newfound success there, to know a little of how we achieved it and most importantly, how to keep it, we need to move away from that Mesopotamian desert and those boots on the ground, and back to a different desert on the other side of the world a half century ago. For there, a vision was vouchsafed to a most unlikely warrior priest… the kind of insight that comes once or twice in all of human history.

Go ahead, I’ll be here when you get back and we can talk about it in the comments section.

Thanks to Proteus at Eject! Eject! Eject!

But all the tears in the world aren’t going to bring me back, so I would prefer that people remember the good things about me rather than mourning my loss. (If it turns out a specific number of tears will, in fact, bring me back to life, then by all means, break out the onions.) I had a pretty good life, as I noted above. Sure, all things being equal I would have preferred to have more time, but I have no business complaining with all the good fortune I’ve enjoyed in my life. So if you’re up for that, put on a little 80s music (preferably vintage 1980-1984), grab a Coke and have a drink with me. If you have it, throw ‘Freedom Isn’t Free’ from the Team America soundtrack in; if you can’t laugh at that song, I think you need to lighten up a little. I’m dead, but if you’re reading this, you’re not, so take a moment to enjoy that happy fact.

Andrew Olmsted, Soldier, husband, blogger, American. Killed this week in Iraq. The words he left us with are incredibly moving and thought provoking. Please honor him by reading his final post.

Andy, congratulations on a life well-lived.

“Only the dead have seen the end of war.”

–attributed to Plato

The Democrats in Congress who are so terrified of victory in Iraq, have put strings on the supplemental appropriation to fund the Global War on Terror. In essence, they say the will only provide funding for our troops if the President agrees to surrender no later than December 2008. The President has rightly rejected this unacceptable defeatist proposal.

So, as things stand now the Army will run out of money in late February. As it is wont to do, the Army in now engaged in making plans for that contingency. My part in that is working up the scenarios involved in furloughing the civilian employees in the Korea theater of operations. It won’t be pretty, in fact it would have disastrous consequences on our ability to meet mission requirements and of course on the individuals have grown accustomed to being paid every two weeks. Similar impacts would occur in Army commands world wide.

As part of the planning process it was my “joy” to participate in a VTC with the Pentagon at 0400 this morning. I will also be involved with a briefing to the CG next week. Serious stuff.

We are just planning. Nothing is imminent. My sense is that once the liberal members of Congress see the devastating impact of their political pandering they will step back from the brink of disaster. In the meantime I and many others will be engaged in a lot of pointless (but necessary) work brought about by our cowardly and incompetent political “leaders” in Congress.

Another sad reminder that while our military cannot be beaten on the battlefield, wars can be and are lost on the homefront. I am sickened by the chickenshit bastards who put short-term political considerations above the needs of the men and women who sacrifice so much in defense of our freedom.

Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi and their minions represent the last best hope for our terrorist enemies. Here’s hoping their schemes for the defeat of the United States are unsuccessful.

Today I went up to Camp Casey to watch the Second Infantry Division change of command ceremony. I’ve been to a few of these, but this one was quite impressive. Seeing the famous 2ID warriors in formation and marching in review was pretty awe inspiring. Major General John Morgan accepted the unit’s colors from LTG Valcourt and I’m thinking he’s going to be a great leader. Met him a couple of times (well, been in the same meetings anyway) and he always impressed me. So congratulations and I’m sure he will carry on the 2ID tradition of being “Second to None”!

Damn, it was cold up there this morning. I wore my long underwear but couldn’t find my gloves this morning. I did alright, except for my feet which lost feeling during a ceremony that lasted almost two hours (plus one hour waiting for it to start). So, I told myself not to be a pussy and remembered the stories of the Soldiers at Chipyong-ni during the Korean war, and it wasn’t so bad. Except for my feet. Did I mention it was cold?

So, what are you going to do after a cold day in the field? You are going to come home and bake! Oatmeal raisin cookies to be precise. And while they are baking why not fix yourself a couple of hearty bbq pork sandwiches? Wanna see?

I may not have any money, but tonight I had some dough…

Hot out of the oven and they taste better than the look. Here, let me upload the smell. Oh, we don’t have the technology for that do we? Sorry.

What did you think I meant when I said bbq pork? That I actually barbecued it? Duh. This is the 21st century! I DEFROSTED it all by myself though!

Ok, time to digest. Later all!

Today I had the honor of attending a very solemn and moving repatriation ceremony for the remains of six soldiers returned from North Korea this week. General B.B. Bell, Commander, United Nations Command/Combined Forces Command/United States Forces Korea, made the following remarks:

Fifty-seven years ago, in response to an unprovoked attack by North
Korea, twenty-one contributing nations sent tens of thousands of Servicemembers to the aid of the Republic of Korea.

In the three years of bitter fighting that followed, millions of civilians and military personnel lost their lives and the Republic of Korea was left with fractured families and destroyed infrastructure — but also with its freedom.

In the five decades since, this great nation has become a technologically advanced, world economic power with a modern democracy. The Republic of Korea is the envy of much of the world.

This is the reason we honor these heroes who lie before us today. It was their selfless service and ultimate sacrifice that saved this nation, giving the people of the Republic of Korea an opportunity to forge their destiny and achieve their dreams.

However forensics determines their nation of origin — the United States, Korea or other United Nations contributing nations — these Servicemembers were great patriots, rising to the call to defend liberty and justice in the face of aggression.

Today, we are honored and humbled to receive their remains. The word “repatriate” – to return to one’s own country – has a very special meaning for American Servicemembers, who today often spend many years overseas separated from their families. They have been promised that should they lose their lives in a foreign land, we will honor their sacrifice, keep faith with their fellow warriors and families, and bring them home. This morning for these warriors, we are keeping that promise.

It is also fitting that we give our deepest appreciation to our United Nations Command Servicemembers who continue to serve on the Korean peninsula in defense of the noble principles of liberty and democracy. Your presence is an enduring legacy to those who fought and those who lost their lives in securing this nation’s sovereignty. Your duty is testimony that freedom is not free and demonstrates your willingness to sacrifice to preserve our freedoms. Your selfless service is honorable and laudable and we all owe you a debt of gratitude.

Finally, to our gallant fallen warriors before us – we mourn your loss; we salute your sacrifice. Your heroic fight freed a nation and its people. It was just and proper. The Republic of Korea has honored your deaths by becoming a shining beacon of hope for all nations struggling for freedom and democracy. May your spirits now be comforted as you begin your final journey home. Our thoughts and prayers follow your journey.

Godspeed brave ones. May god continue to bless your souls. Thank you.

Also in attendance was Governor Bill Richardson of New Mexico who was part of the delegation who retrieved the bodies.

Each of the countries who make up the United Nations Command was represented at the ceremony. It was interesting to see the dress uniforms of the Aussies, Canadians, French, Swedes and others all in one place. I didn’t realize before today that even Colombia had a contingent in Korea.

After General Bell’s remarks, the soldiers were honored with a 21-gun salute, the playing of taps, and pall bearers from several nations carrying the caskets from the auditorium.

I have been to several Honor Guard ceremonies in my time here, but this was a very different experience. It really brought home the fact that so many made the ultimate sacrafice in defense of freedom. It is easy to forget as we make our way about this vibrant and fascinating country the price that was paid so that the people of the Republic of Korea might live in peace. This gift is the legacy of all who fought here and all that have followed to preserve what we all too frequently take for granted.

I was proud and honored to bear witness to these brave soldiers that their deaths were not in vain.

They shall not grow old, as we that are left grow old…at the going down of the sun and in the morning, we will remember them.

–Lawrence Binyon

Korean War Memorial, Washington, DC

My buddy Rob left a great comment to an earlier post, but I think it deserves stand alone attention:

Holy cow! Gabby Johnson is right, that’s an awful lot of Won for some Pyong…or is Pyong something totally different from what I’m thinking? Just kidding. You guys are suckers though. The Army sent me to Baghdad and they picked up the cost for the flight! They gave me some new gear for free! I was given half of a small trailer to live in that can’t be any less than 2 Pyong..you talk about a palace! Then these fools pay me extra money for being over here. The only thing they asked for in return was that I work 13 hour days, take one day off a month, and take my chances with incoming rockets, mortars, and gunfire…and any possible IEDs I may encounter on any patrols I go out on! Now that is a sweet deal. I can’t believe more people don’t leave their families behind for a crack at this fun. Well I’m off to buy a fan in preparation for the inevitible summer heat. They say it is just like the Bahamas here during the summer. Then I’ve got to get some of their awesome cuisine that is almost as good as chicken on a stick from Itaewon…delicious! Take care John…Rob!

Damn, and I thought things were tough in the sandbox. You know, Rob was one of the first friends I made in Korea and it really makes me happy to know he is keeping his sense of humor in difficult circumstances. I’ve almost forgiven him for buying me my first soju kettle. Almost. Anway, Rob is good soldier doing an important job and I am thankful for his service to our nation. Hang in there, man.

Pictures from our Independence Day party in 2005:

Rob cutting the cheese.

Me and my “little brother”.

Rob is also known as “Lucky”…

Anyway, you are missed and we’ll all be glad to see you home again safe and sound.

Don’t know how I happened to miss this story at the time, but today I read about the most recent Medal of Honor awarded to a veteran of the Korean War. More than 50 years later President Bush recognized Tibor Rubin for his bravery above and beyond the call of duty. Lots of interesting wrinkles, like the fact that Mr. Rubin was a citizen of Hungary, a Jewish concentration camp survivor, and that serving in the US Army was the fulfillment of a vow he made in 1945. Read this amazing story here.

I’ve occasionally shared emails from the former 8th Army Chief of Staff, Ranger Bill. He’s just completed 14 months in Iraq and I think his insights on the experience add some perspective to the daily dose of gloom and doom we get spoon fed from the MSM. He doesn’t sugarcoat things (as anybody who worked for him can attest), but he makes it clear which side is winning:

Hi Gang.

Left Iraq on Saturday, 29 JUL 06, and thought I would share some final observations as I look back on the past 14 months. I’m currently processing through Ft Bliss, and should be home on Thursday.

Al Qaida is wounded and is lashing out. Although not defeated, our operations have significantly degraded their leadership capability. They are having success in killing Shia civilians, which gives the Shia militias an excuse to murder Sunnis in retaliation. This sectarian militia violence poses the largest threat to the stability of Iraq, and therefore we are focusing much of our effort against the various militias.

Despite the impression given by much of the press, we don’t ride and walk around all day waiting to be blown up by an IED. Our intelligence enables us to conduct raids every day and every night to kill or capture specific targets, which in turn leads to more intelligence. Concurrently we are training the Iraqi Army, which is becoming quite good at accepting battlespace from us and taking the lead in the fight. We still have a number of challenges training the police. We turned over the security of the first province to the Iraqi security forces, and will steadily add provinces this fall.

Caught up in the day to day operations, casualties, and events of this fight, it is easy to become mired in the belief that we are not making progress. One has to occasionally step back from the current fight and assess how far we have come. Since my arrival in May 05, the Iraqis have written and ratified a Constitution, elected a government in a free, democratic process, and made significant progress in developing a capable Army. We have inflicted significant damage on Al Qaida and its leadership, and have prevented them from gaining the initiative. Much work has been done to rebuild the infrastructure that received no attention during Saddam’s regime.

However, we still have a tough fight ahead of us. We are focusing on disarming or destroying the militias and securing Baghdad, while concurrently continuing to pound Al Qaida. The Government leaders have said the right things, but now need to follow through with action. They must take concrete steps to unify Iraq and eliminate sectarian violence. They have about six months to get it right and show some progress. Our DOD, DOS, and DOJ advisors are working hard to make it happen.

I think it is important to remember that Al Qaida chose to fight us in Iraq, not the other way around. We are their main effort, and their senior leadership understands what is at stake in Iraq. It’s about defeating the United States and establishing a base of operations in the Middle East from which to continue their terrorist quest to establish a caliphate that reaches across North Africa and into Europe, increasing their chances for successful strikes against the U.S. homeland. America needs to wake up and understand that we have more at stake as a country in this fight than we did in WW II. Losing Iraq will provide Al Qaida a significant base of operations and the psychological edge to continue to attack America and enlist allies in their cause. Conversely, defeating Al Qaida in Iraq and establishing a democracy with an economy embracing capitalism will start to unravel the repressive regimes of the Middle East that provide the support base Al Qaida so desperately needs.

As I close out this tour, I would be remiss if I did not mention one of the great Americans carrying this fight to the enemy, GEN George Casey. In June he began his third year as the overall commander in Iraq. The continuity he provides in both defeating the enemy and building a democratic Iraq cannot be underestimated. He is shouldering a heavy burden for our country, and America owes him a heavy debt of gratitude. It was my honor to serve with him on both ends of my career. With him the entire tour has been another outstanding Soldier, CSM Jeff Mellinger, an NCO who truly exemplifies the NCO and Ranger Creeds as he moves around Iraq checking on the Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, and Marines who are doing the heavy lifting.

As I depart, I will miss the great young Americans who do our country’s tough work every day and every night. Their selfless service, dedication, teamwork, camaraderie, and humor in the face of adversity are beacons for all Americans to follow. I will miss the smile on an Iraqi child’s face when we open her new school, and the satisfaction our engineers have when they provide potable water to a village. I will miss the determination of the Iraqi people to risk death in order to exercise their right to vote. I will miss the NCO Corps, truly the backbone of our Army and the single characteristic that distinguishes our Army from every other army in the world. The NCOs guarantee us victory in every endeavor. I won’t miss the rear echelon military bureaucracy we have created to support this operation, despite the valiant efforts of outstanding staff officers and NCOs to fight through it and accomplish the mission. I won’t miss performing or attending memorial services. I thought I had attended my last one on Sunday, but we had another Soldier killed by an IED four days before I left. Losing these great young Americans has become progressively harder each of my 31 years in this business. I guess it has a cumulative effect.

We have made an astounding amount of progress in the past 14 months, and are on the edge of winning this fight. The next six months will be decisive. We will destroy the militias and continue to decimate Al Qaida. Our biggest challenge is to get this new Government to step up to the plate, begin cleaning out the corruption, and take decisive steps in securing its people. Concurrently we must help them fight the growing Iranian influence. It is a tough fight, but the Iraqis can do it as long as America does not lose its resolve. With what is at stake for us, we cannot afford to.

Thanks for the support and the prayers this past 14 months; they work. Please keep the kids I left behind in your prayers until we can finish this job and bring them home.

Stay safe.

Bill

Thank you for your service, sir.

My awe and respect for these men and women is boundless.

Loved the sign in the truck window that said “one weekend a month, my ass!”.