If asked, I bet everyone out there thinks that all the Air Force does is fly stuff around and send Stealth Aircraft in to take out a radio tower or two. Maybe some of you have bumped into some AFSOS folks - yeah, they actually carry weapons and get to shoot stuff. I know that, while shipping in and out or rotating from your duty station, you've seen the SPs (Security Police) on the Flightline, securing the entry points, or maybe on the perimeter in the tree line (and some you don't see).
How many of you have bumped into a convoy, and as the convoy team jumps out, see some "upside down chevrons" on the sleeve?
]]>...The new law provides a variety of benefits designed to better compensate servicemembers, improve their quality of life, bring reserve-component benefits more on par with those for the active force and promote recruiting and retention, Chuck Witschonke, DOD's deputy director for compensation, said.
"Not only does it contain the routine annual pay raise, which is one-half percent higher than the raise measured in the private sector, but it also includes a number of increases in ceilings on some very important pays," he said.
]]>...Now, I don't want this to sound like a diatribe against military medicine. The military has taken care of my health for the past twenty-nine years, and I know, once you get through the system and are finally seen by one of the physicians, they are wonderfully helpful people. The problem lies in the bureaucracy. It seems to me that military medicine is caught in a vicious cycle. On one hand, they want to keep costs down. On the other hand, they are plagued with a transient workforce and patients (with medical records) who move every three years. And on yet another hand (if there can be three), they are controlled by the government.
But it also seems to me that some of the most common complaints from military families could be solved quite easily if (1) the military offered a urgent care facility separate from the ER, (2) PCM's kept time in their schedule for same-day appointments, and (3) there was always a number to call for help no matter the day or time. Perhaps these things exist at some military facilities, but they should be standard system wide.
]]>...This is the conversation that ensued:
Me: Hello
Person: May I speak to a parent or guardian of Devon M~ (he mispronounced Devon's name)
Me: This is her mother. How can I help you?
Person: This is So-n-So from Cabrillo College (our local 2 yr college) and we're having a fundraiser to try to raise money by asking teachers and parents of students if they could donate....
Me: Well, My daughter isn't a student. She's in the Army.
Person: OH NO!!! (extreme angst)
...The key, of course, isn't more ceramic plates in today's armor. The key is better armor that's lighter, or at least not heavier. Think back, if you will, to the initial days of the body armor shortage in Iraq. Remember all the (true, in most cases) horror stories of Reserve, Guard, and support troops with "Vietnam-era flak jackets"? That gear was considered to be nearly worthless and the Interceptor Body Vest was what every deployed US service member deserved. Now, that isn't good enough. It's the extra plates that are needed, we're told. And in some cases, that's exactly right. But probably not in all cases, and magically distributing all those plates to everyone would have side effects not foreseen by some.
Recall the rush to up-armor Humvees. Now the problem is that the Humvees are falling apart under the strain of the additional armor. It's not inconceivable that every life saved by side plates (for instance) could be offset by a loss due to fatigue or the inability to move quickly enough when it counts. Or to get up quickly enough. Or to twist around a corner just right.
(via John Noonan)
]]>...I'll reiterate, for the first time in the Ninewah Province, the provincial capital of which is the city of Mosul, the Iraqi Army assumed military control of a battle-space.
Progress is measured in steps, not in leaps, and this is a step forward.
]]>Including:
DoD Restricts Cell Phone Use on Installations]]>
DeCA Streamlines Returned Check Process
VA Provides Free Health Care to Combat Vets
DoD Recognizes National Blood Donor Month
Need Help Setting Up a Personal Budget?
Military Spouses Get Help for Training as Financial Counselors
Childcare Help for Military Families
Help for Military Spouses Going Back to School
TurboTax Available on January 16, 2006
Free Tax Assistance for Servicemembers
VFW National Home for Children
Free Theme Park Admission
(An update to this post)
Many can say they don't like the war. I can understand that. Although "I am an American fighting for my country and our way of life." (the Code of Conduct....read it!!) When at war lives are lost and the only way we (selfish Americans....yes WE are selfish as a whole) can sit on our couches drinking a Latte and deal with it is to find a fault. Why us? Who do we think we are? What are we to gain from this? How many of us need to die?
Well to answer that let me start with a little history. Now I only have a PHD (Plain High school Diploma), but I will do my best and here it goes.
]]>BAGHDAD -- Soldiers from 3rd Brigade, 6th Iraqi Army Division and Task Force Ironhorse Soldiers liberated a French hostage Jan. 7 in the Abu Ghraib area of western Baghdad.
The Iraqi Army Soldiers were searching farm houses for weapons caches while U.S. Soldiers from Task Force Ironhorse manned a checkpoint as part of an outer cordon. As the Iraqi Army closed in on their location, the kidnappers fled from a nearby farmhouse and left the French hostage.
(via Sgt Hook)
]]>This is a letter from Kenneth Stethem to President George W. Bush. Ken is a former U.S. special-forces operator and the brother of Robert Dean Stethem, the Navy diver who was brutally tortured and murdered by Hezbollah 20 years ago. Robert's murderer was just released by the German government (and fled to Lebanon) in an apparent exchange for a German hostage in Iraq.
]]>With the media providing only part of the story from the frontlines of Iraq and Afghanistan, the truly personal journals of milbloggers who share what they experience on the ground is reshaping reporting as we know it. From his operating base in Iraq, Danjel Bout aka Thunder6, author of 365 and a Wakeup a Company Commander in the Army National Guard, has helped to establish military blogs as a powerful source of information for people all over the world. Telling the story of himself and his troops during his deployment he reveals the successes that are being made everyday in Iraq. He writes a reality that no reporter could provide. What follows is a transcript of an email interview I had with Thunder6. It is in part, because of him, and fellow milbloggers like him who are willing to share what they see and what they feel, that we can read about the truth in Iraq and Afghanistan.
This is a transcript of what he said. It has NOT been edited.
Thunder6: It is difficult to describe just how much we've seen change over the last year because you have to have a frame of reference to gauge progress. I think that is the perceptual trap the MSM is falling into - if you spend 10 minutes visiting a stretch of Iraq every 6 months chances are you won't notice the subtle signs of forward progress. When we arrived Iraq had just completed its first free elections, but for the most part we were still calling the shots. Now Iraq is a free and independent country, and they are preparing to seat their first democratic government. We were too busy to notice it at the time, but over the last year we have had a front row seat to the rebirth of a nation. There is still a long road ahead, but you have to start with a foundation – and I think the Iraq people have achieved that.
JP: Your milblog is honest and personal, and a lot of supporters appreciate that instead of relying on the MSM *ahem, and I'll try to go through this interview without bashing the MSM*, but the truth of it is --- and it's becoming true of many milblogs being written from the frontlines and in the States --- there are a lot of people out there who do see your milblog as their source for news from the frontlines.
Thunder6: When I started the blog I was surprised by just how many people were turning to milblogs to get a feel for what is going on here in Iraq. I had no idea just how many people were interested in our day to day experiences. The situation really hit home when our active duty replacements arrived here in theater. In just the first week I had several dozen Soldiers and Officers approach me and admit they used my blog to prepare for their rotation here in Baghdad. That was a really humbling experience.
JP: You're helping inform people. Have you actually been able to change opinions of some people about the war? Take my Mom for example, is there any worse feeling for a parent than to see their kid go off to war. But as soon as I landed in Afghanistan and started milblogging, she became a huge supporter.
Thunder6: My intent was never to change people's opinion on the war, I just tried to give people a window into our time here in Baghdad and let them draw their own conclusions. But apparently that was enough to change quite a few people's opinion on our mission here in Iraq. I don't think a day went by where someone didn't send an email telling me that reading through the site gave them a completely different perspective on the situation in Iraq. The email that touched me most was written by a middle aged man in Paris, who went from being (in his words) "a determined opponent of the American occupation" to someone who wanted to do something to help the American soldiers deployed to Iraq.
JP: Have you ever experienced support like this other than blogging? For me, I still regularly hear from readers who supported me in Afghanistan. Some still send me care packages. And for all I know, some of them don't even know I'm back.
Thunder6: The support I have received from readers eclipses anything I've experienced in my "normal" life - I am still in awe at the generosity of the American people. My company has literally stuffed several LMTV's (which have the same basic cargo area as a U-Haul moving van) with packages readers have sent for the Iraqi people. The soldiers in the unit mail room use my name as a curse word - after the first few months they set aside part of the mail room just for my packages.
JP: Talk about that first entry on your blog back in March, right? Getting that under your belt how'd it feel?
Thunder6: When I started the blog I didn't expect it to get much farther then my friends and family, so I didn't really make a mental note of what it felt like to send out that first post. I just started typing, and when my fingers stopped punching keys I hit the post button. There really wasn't anything unique, or even exciting about it.
JP: Could you for your supporters take us through what you do in your down time? You workout? Watch movies? Hit the PX? Or do you spend it doing other things?
Thunder6: Downtime? Seriously? In the early days of the deployment I used to hit the gym in the late afternoon - nothing relieves stress like lifting pig iron. But when I assumed command of Killer Company any chance at establishing a schedule evaporated. There is always something to do - if I'm not in sector then I’m hammering out patrol schedules or company operations orders. In those rare moments where I have a chance for down time I usually try to send an email, type a post, or get some sleep... usually in that order.
JP: After everything you've endured in Iraq and given all the emotion in your milblog, does it make it easier or harder write online?
Thunder6: It's become increasingly difficult to convey the emotional experience of being here because combat is a corrosive environment - it grinds you down emotionally. After months of constant exposure I've found my emotional range stunted, like a tree that has been pruned back a little too much. It's a little disturbing to have your ability to truly experience a situation wither away, but it is a necessary evil if you are going to lead soldiers in combat.
JP: Knowing that you have a large following of readers, do you make a point of writing more often? And, do you ever get exhausted from blogging? I know when I was in Afghanistan I used it as a support outlet, and now that I'm home I still love to work on my blog.
Thunder6: I try to post as often as I can, but in the end our mission dictates when I can and can't write. It is a bit of a paradox - the situations people would really want to read about are the very ones that keep me from writing. Very few of those situations make it into the blog because they are mentally and physically exhausting to recount… plus they raise serious opsec concerns. That being said I don't ever feel exhausted by blogging, I truly enjoy writing and it serves as an outlet I wouldn’t otherwise have.
JP: Is it the fault of the Mainstream Media for not reporting enough of what is getting accomplished over in Iraq and Afghanistan? In my opinion, why the hell would anyone see the MSM as a source of reliable news from the frontlines? One of the embedded reporters I recently added to the Milblogging.com database (thanks Holly) chats about "doohickeys" and "thingamajigs". I am happy to report that when I blogged, I never reported on "doohickeys".
Thunder6: Its pretty apparent to the troops on the ground that the MSM has dropped the ball. There are a few exceptions, but for the most part the MSM seems to have a difficult time grasping the ground truth. I'm not sure if this is indicative of a downward spiral in modern journalism or whether it is grounded in some gut level revulsion of anything that can't be collapsed into a sound bite. I've met several superb journalists that wrote moving stories about our missions, but in the end the stories went unpublished. Unless it is short, sexy, or violent the MSM doesn't appear interested.
JP: Out of curiosity, where do you see milblogging fitting in American history? You've had a chance to do this for some time now and you've read other milblogs. What do you think people looking back on milblogs in the war on Iraq and Afghanistan are going to say?
Thunder6: I think milblogs will eventually replace the journals that soldiers in other wars used to record their experience. Just like those journals they will become a treasure trove of information for future historians. I can't imagine how they will be perceived years from now, to be honest I am a little to close to the subject to avoid injecting my own dreams into the appraisal.
JP: Again, thanks for answering my questions. Always a good time chatting with you.
***Read past interviews with milbloggers Blackfive and American Soldier.
]]>SATURDAY AFTERNOON, I attended an "Out of Iraq" forum at a local church, featuring a keynote address by anti-war Congressman Bob Filner. After his speech, Filner opened up the floor for questions. He fielded a few softballs from the largely friendly crowd.
Then he called on me.
SMASH: Congressman, I'd first like to express appreciation and gratitude, as a veteran of the Iraq War, and on behalf of all veterans, for all the important work you've done on Capitol Hill in support of veterans' issues.
(applause)
SMASH: But I do have a question...
We all want the war to end, and the troops to come home safely -- especially those of us who have been there. But, putting aside for the moment your differences, and the differences of most of those here, with the current administration on the policies that got us to where we are today:
Are you committed to the success of our military in Iraq, or are you resigned to failure?
(groans)
WOMAN: What's your definition of "success?"
SMASH questions Filner -- Photo by Da Goddess
SMASH: I heard a question on the definition of "success," so: a stable, representative government that is capable of protecting itself against threats, without outside assistance.
]]> FILNER: Well, I mean, first of all, let me say I don't, I don't want to be seen as a defender of the previous regime, but that was, I think, the previous regime.(nervous laughter)
FILNER: Why did we go in? You know, that's what Saddam claimed to have, right? You've got to add some human rights to that, so...
SMASH: Sure, yeah, representative --
FILNER: No, see, you, what you have done, is what I just talked about. That, how the President has gotten away with framing the issue. You framed the issue as "success or failure." And obviously, if you're "failure," you're a -- you're a jerk, right?
...Look, we -- First of all, things can't get much worse than they are now, by the way. They are pretty bad, no matter what Cheney says, no matter what Rumsfeld says. I mean, when you have 200 people killed, you know, in a day --
SMASH: Sir, I've been there --
FILNER: And you know, your brothers and sisters killed, something is wrong. ...And, you know, if we shouldn't have been in there to begin with, then it should not be incumbent on me to try to define getting out.
But I would say, that an international police force, which could keep the peace, it would -- that if we should put that in place at least --
SMASH: Led by whom, sir?
FILNER: The United Nations.
(applause)
SMASH: But, who provides the troops, sir? ...Every international peace force that's ever been of any substantial size, has been led by the United States. There is no other --
FILNER: Well, you know, it doesn't have to be, because it was in the past. But, the British have shown that they want to put troops in, we've got all kinds of --
SMASH: They're already there, sir.
MAN: One question! C'mon, one question, sit down...
FILNER: No, I say, if they could be part of the United Nations. But, I will tell you, even if U.S. troops were part of a U.N. force, and under -- not under -- that would be a Hell of a lot better than we are now. Because we -- because our presence there, has become part of the problem, probably the major part of the problem. So, until we remove our presence, there is going to be an insurgency.
So, as long as we're there, we're failing, in my opinion.
(applause)
...Look, if you define success as "democracy," you know, why -- why would you choose Iraq to go anywhere, anyway? I mean, why are we supporting Saudi Arabia, or whatever? So, success can't be "democracy." Success can't be "lack of autocracy," because we support autocrats other places.
Success, it seems to me for these guys, is control of, not only the -- the strategic positioning, but the oil. So, success for me would say, "we don't need your lousy oil." We could start -- we could put -- we can run this whole country off renewable energy, right this minute.
(applause)
And, we -- we wouldn't even care what happened in Iraq. Like we don't care what's going on in Africa, and we don't care what's going on in Saudi Arabia, we don't care what's going on in all these other nations...
(applause)
Why do we care what happens in this little nation? One reason --
VOICES: Oil!
FILNER: And, so, let's get off oil, and let's care about human rights in their real form, everywhere.
Gracie, who was holding the audio recorder through all this, adds some color commentary:
I too was there, and sitting immediately to the right of Smash. What he did NOT include in his post is the electricity in the air, the abrupt mood swing from one of a party to one of high tension. Previously, they had spent 30 minutes or so patting themselves on the back, and spouting their extremely anti-Bush rhetoric (someone even called Pres. Bush's 'regime' as the new Taliban...I'm not kidding). There were several candidates who are running for local positions this year, and they referred to their Republican opponents by initials only, so as not to speak the filth into the room (yes, that was the reason given for the use of initials). This was a happy, ego-stroking party...until Smash was called on.There were older ladies seated all around us, and the glares that those little girls gave off were enough to freeze Cairo in the middle of August. The looks of confusion on the faces all around us told the story...kind of like "how did one of THEM get in here? It was plain that their little world of security and comfort was shot for the day, and they truly didn't know how to respond other than to shout.
What Smash ALSO didn't mention was the physical reaction of the good Congressman. He went from confident -- bordering on arrogant -- to literally wiping sweat from his brow, lowered shoulders and laughing nervously. His color went a bit pale, and it was obvious from the pacing that he was NOT comfortable. The video is priceless ;-) They didn't expect us to come to their public hall meeting. Apparently the comment "we're here to have an intelligent and compassionate discussion about this. Even if you disagree with us, we're glad you're here" was a bit less than honest.
Regardless, it was a little intimidating being there at first, but the more they spoke, the angrier I got. Smash asked his question, then several others people attending the meeting throughout the audience asked equally pointed questions that made the good Congressman squirm. I raised my own hand to ask my follow-up question to Smash's, but shucky darn, for some reason they didn't see my hand raised. Can't imagine why, given that I was sitting right next to Smash, dressed in a bright color. I'm sure it was just an oversight. It happens to all of us right? ;-)
People...this is serious business. If we don't step up to the plate and be the voice of those who are fighting for our freedom and protection, WHO WILL? Find out where your congressperson is speaking...get involved. Filner freely admitted yesterday that constituents getting involved, making calls to their offices, writing letters and showing up at rallies DO matter. They are complacent (also admitted to by Filner), because they know that people don't care enough to put the time in to get them ousted. NOW is the time to take a stand. This is OUR warzone...and we owe it to the heroes serving overseas to fight just as hard as they are. Our weapons are our phones, our pens and our voices.
I missed much of the audience reaction that Gracie describes, as my eyes were locked on the Congressman. But I did sense the mood of the crowd change, hear some hostile mutterings, and feel the glare of many angry eyes on me.
Good thing this was held in a "peace church."
As Gracie notes, my question changed the tone of the entire event, by putting Filner on the defensive. The next question came from a man wearing a T-shirt, who appeared to be in his early thirties.
MAN: Congressman, I was just wondering -- do we care about Israel, and the president -- prime minister, whatever of Iran -- wanting to annihlate it? Is that something we care about?
FILNER: You know... that's a tough -- that's a good question. Let me just say... my opinion on this, which is not as well grounded as my opinions on these other issues, I would think. But... Iran, I think, is a -- if we don't deal with Iran, we can't deal with Iraq, anyway, even in the terms the President has set up... You've got a talabanic kind of regime, that has no human rights...
I think that... there's a solution to that, in a way that we did not take in Iraq, which I think we should have. And that is... We are passively supporting these autocratic mullahs in Iran. We are discouraging internal resistance. Let's change that around.
(applause)
FILNER: We don't have to invade. I think the Iranian people... can take control of their own destiny, without American forces.
(applause)
FILNER: I think we -- that's what we should do there. I think that if a different kind -- if a truly democratic regime in Iran was established... we would have a different Middle East, anyway. So... but again, the first thing we think about is bombing and invasion. Iran is a very educated, and complex, and sophisticated nation. And there's lots of people there who want a more democratic society. And I think they can do it. But we're supporting the other guys. And we're going after -- I mean, not officially, but tacitly.
(nervous laughter)
FILNER: That's -- I mean, I'm afraid that we're gonna start -- you know, we couldn't satisfy Afghanistan, so we invaded Iraq. Now we can't do Iraq, we'll invade Iran. You just, kind of, do it in a different way...
Filner's response to this question baffled me, frankly. Last time I checked, we don't even have an official relationship with the theocratic government in Teheran. It had something to do with them overrunning our embassy and taking a bunch of hostages, if memory serves.
I think we'd all be very happy if the Iranian people rose up, and tossed the mullahs out on their ears. But to hear Bob tell it, the Bush Administration is all buddy-buddy with these bad boys. News to me.
The next question was another softball about Democratic party strategy. A relieved Filner hit it out of the park with ease.
Then he called on my friend Mikey (who is also a Navy veteran).
MIKEY: The main contention with the war in Iraq has been over control of oil -- of Iraqi oil. Congressman, since you have access to more information than the general public, could you tell us exactly how much money has been made, from Iraqi oil, into U.S. coffers?
FILNER: I don't have an exact answer, but... we saw -- There's five major oil companies in the world today. Who control the price of gas, by the way. And... they just announced their profits --
MIKEY: No, sir, I'm talking about the U.S. government. How much has been put into the U.S. Treasury?
FILNER: I don't know that. In the U.S. Treasury?
MIKEY: Well, how much is the U.S. gaining from this?
FILNER: We're not... When I said, "it's for oil," it's not for us to have oil, it's for the private oil companies to have oil... so they'll sell it to us at whatever price they want... they think we'll pay... So, we see what's going on to their coffers.
But the point is -- it's not even that -- the point is... it's whoever controls the oil, controls the essential part of the American economy, the Chinese economy, the Russian economy, and we don't have to have that, as a -- we don't need that, right... as a weapon against what the people want. We don't need to run this economy in oil... That's the real source of the problem.
So let's get on with it, and I don't care who does make the money, or doesn't make the money from it. The point is, the people who are making the money, are running this government... I mean, it's as simple as that.
(applause)
FILNER: I mean, you can -- if you look at any vote about energy, it's the oil companies. I call them GOP: Gas, Oil, and Petroleum.
(laughter)
FILNER: We passed the energy bill... Billions and billions, tens of billions, subsidies to the oil companies. As if they didn't need more. We passed a health care bill. Billions and billions of subsidies to the pharmaceutical companies. We passed another bill, billions of dollars to the HMOs, and those insurance companies. On and on. I mean, we are right now -- we know what a democracy is not, and that is control by these multi-national corporations...
MAN: It's fascism.
FILNER: ...who are forcing us, whether you have to buy prescription drugs, gasoline, insurance policies, your car... I mean, they have set the rules, and the framework for all of us. And they are bleeding us dry. And until America turns on that, into... you know, a real democratic, kind of... system, where these special interests don't prevail on every single vote, we're stuck where we are.
So... I just wanna remove that as an item... in the arsenal of Mr. Bush that says we have to be there. Besides, we have set up a terrorist situation in perfect form. All you gotta do is stop the oil from being pumped, or refined into gasoline, and you've won. I mean, that's why they're winning, right now. We can't even turn on the electricity in Baghdad. We can't give people the gasoline to run their cars, because we're dependent on this... oil. And, it's not hard if you're a terrorist to figure out what your -- where your points of vulnerability are.
So, let's just get off oil, and we won't even have to talk about it. Thank you very much.
And with those parting remarks, Congressman Bob Filner ducked away from the microphone, and made a beeline towards his campaign staffers in the far corner of the room.
]]>...I politely point out to the guy that he's upset a Marine's fiancee, and advise him to do the decent and honorable thing and apologize. Not only does he refuse, but he uses my comment as the jumping off point for another political rant.
]]>Mosul is Iraq's second- or third-largest city, depending on who's counting. It is populated predominantly by Kurds and Sunni Arabs, with the west side almost entirely Sunni. A little more than a year ago, the police force in Mosul collapsed in the face of an insurgent uprising. Dozens of police officers were killed. The rest of the force quit. In the months that followed, the American battalions then overseeing the city struggled to regain control, drive off the insurgents, bring in stronger Iraqi Army units, and build an entirely new police force. More recently, since the latest American battalions arrived four months ago, the violence has begun to subside.
]]>KANDAHAR, Afghanistan -- The engineers from Task Force Pacemaker recently completed the construction of a 66-kilometer major logistical road linking the towns of Shinkay and Qalat in eastern Afghanistan.
...
The road has already made a significant impact on the local population, allowing for easier travel in the region and promoting economic progress. The new road will allow once isolated villagers to travel to nearby market towns, while also encouraging international commerce with nearby Pakistan.