Answers:
1. The military's job.
2. The people who join the military (like this soldier) decide to accept those
hazards, dangers and costs when they sign up. Joining our armed forces if
'voluntary', remember??? It's not like we have a draft.
3. Sometimes, yes.
4. You don't think the Iraqi citizens appreciate what we're doing for them?
5. What needs justified?...people being hurt and dying?........that's what war
is, my friend. Call it what it is.....
----- Original Message -----
From: Funda Oral
To: osl...@listserv.boisestate.edu
Sent: Monday, February 07, 2005 3:58 AM
Subject: Re: Word from a US soldier
" Yeah, that's not to say people are getting hurt and dying, but that's part
of the job. It does just like the cop on the beat who's shot by a crack
dealer-we just see more of it over here. You do the job, and you accept the
hazards, dangers and costs. You just do your best to make what your doing
worth the cause. BELEIVE me, these Iraqi citizens appreciate it."
questions:
that's part of the job... : whose job?
You do the job, and you accept the hazards, dangers and costs ....: who
decides about that? who accepts?
You just do your best to make what your doing worth the cause..: is it really
the best that can be done???
these Iraqi citizens appreciate it.........: ?????????????
people are getting hurt and dying.....: !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! who
can justify this????
----- Original Message -----
From: Spady's
To: osl...@listserv.boisestate.edu
Sent: Friday, February 04, 2005 7:26 PM
Subject: Word from a US soldier
We recently received this message from a friend, fighting in Iraq. I
thought that it might be of interest for everyone to hear things from a young
soldier's perspective.
If you think about it, we truly are "opening the space" for the Iraqi
people to live in peace.
Judy Spady
-------Original Message-------
From: Daniel Dunn
Subject: Moving again
Hey All:
Alrighty, You all can un-pucker your fourth points of contact (I'll
give a lesson on that when I get home if you don't understand). Let's recap
all that has happened. I flew on the 20th and landed evening of the 22nd in
Kuwait, then went to Camp Buehring, which is a pushing base, not receiving
(going north, not coming south). At that point I was supposed to go to the
506th infantry, the same unit in "Band of Brothers." Then, about a week later,
we left and flew into Iraq, landing at a small airbase in our Brigade sector.
Upon landing, I learned I would be going to 1st Battalion, 503rd Infantry
instead, and almost four days later, right after Election Day here, we arrived
at Camp Correigador, home of the 503rd. The history of THAT unit is that it
was the only Parachute Infantry Regiment to go to the Pacific theatre in WWII,
and earned its nickname of "The Rock," by landing on The Island of Correigador
outside the Philippines. The island was famous for being impenetrable.
Now, after being assigned, Brigade has asked for personnel to stand
up a special unit. They're calling it a MAT or Military Assistance Team
(similar to MAG in Vietnam). The purpose is to train local Iraqi Security
Forces to begin taking control of the nation. Ladies and Gentleman, if you
want this war to end, then wish me the BEST of frickin luck. This is the KEY
to the US leaving. And God knows I want that as much as any mother, father,
wife, etc. I do so because I was Mortared Last night. Not hit by mortars
(take a breath mom) but in the Dining Facility and heard them coming in.WALKING
in. They came closer and closer, four of them. We waited for the fifth that
never came. It was just a little taste of war, but it was sourer than
fifteen-year-old grapes soaked in lemon juice found at the bottom of a latrine.
Makes you heart beat quickly. Luckily, no casualties and we got back at them
with some new high tech stuff we got.
Anyways, this is a good job. I'll be at Brigade Headquaters (which
is why this doesn't have an APO address yet), out of the way most of the time,
and when I'm on the streets, it'll be with other guys watching over Iraqi
Troops, and, for those of you who know that my hope is to one day join the
Special Forces, this is a GREAT start. That's what SF does all the time!
Spent Election Day at a small Marine Airbase called Al Taqueddum (or
TQ for short). The information about the events around us was been sketchy.
We heard most of the action is in Baghdad, with some small pockets around us.
Sitting in the tent, we heard four large explosions off in the distance, and
ran out to see. We watched as two Marine Corps Cobra gunships attacked targets
on the ground near the town of Falleujah. We could see the tracers and
everything, including smoke on the horizon. Occasionally you'd hear .50 cal's
shoot up at the choppers and they'd climb high out of range. Then the shooting
would stop and the helicopters would go back down and engage again. We thought
an AC-130 was going to clean up, but it just circled over the area once and
landed.
Predator drones fly over constantly. It sounds like a lawnmower in
the sky! It's kind of an odd sight, but damn, cool thing to see. Not sure on
the policy for photos, so I hold off on that. Plus the light was waning, so it
might not have turned out very good.
We stayed in a tent about a football field away from the airstrip so
we see and hear all this air traffic. It made sleeping at night tough, and I
usually had to use ear plugs or my iPod to drown out the noise of the aircraft,
especially the -130's and the Cobra's on night missions (we're on a Marine
controlled Airbase right now).
There're these small local vendor store (we call a "Hadji-shop") that
you can get things you'd never see in America. They have bootleg DVD's (most
of which are still in theatre's in the US, but low quality in video), and VERY
inexpensive electronics (but questionable about legality on those), as well as
Cuban Cigars for very cheap (2 for $10, in comparison to a good Montecristo No.
2 in the US (non-Cuban) for $16.don't ask how I know).
Something I want you all to know (in case the Media f**ks THIS one
up) there WAS a 72% turn out at the Iraqi polls. There were over 5,000 voters
in Falleujah alone, which is good considering that ended not two months ago.
It ALMOST makes it all worth it. I won't tell what the cost was, because it
isn't my place. It's not THAT high in comparison to most of what we've done,
but.You also need to remember that every voter that DID go out risked their
life. The insurgents ran video ads on TV that said they'd kill any voters in
the street. These people live in absolute TERROR of these people. Insurgents
regularly chop heads of in public squares, kill whole families for US support,
and often indiscriminate against US and civilians. Meanwhile, the US builds
schools, immunizes children, pays for our damages AND the insurgents damages.I
don't tell you this as propaganda or to gross you out, I say it out of shit I
have REALLY seen first hand. This war truly isn't about oil or WMD's, at least
not to us ground pounders. It's about ridding these people of a scared
lifestyle.
Yesterday I talked to one of the Iraqi Commando force that is
attached to the 503rd. When I say talked, I mean tried to break the language
barrier, and for the most part, did fairly well. We talked about families, and
fighting, and stuff like that. We traded dollar for Dinar and signed them for
each other. It was cool talking with someone from another world (which again,
goes to reinforce that I might be the right guy for this new job).
Anyways, I won't scare you all anymore. I just want all of you to
know that WHATEVER the media says, it's not all that bad over here. IEDs don't
go off every day, and when they do, someone doesn't always die, mortars arne't
shot into Us compounds everyday, and when they do, we're not usually hit or
killed, and someone doesn't die everyday over here. Yeah, that's not to say
people are getting hurt and dying, but that's part of the job. It does just
like the cop on the beat who's shot by a crack dealer-we just see more of it
over here. You do the job, and you accept the hazards, dangers and costs. You
just do your best to make what your doing worth the cause. BELEIVE me, these
Iraqi citizens appreciate it.
Take care all.
Daniel "Soldier Boy" Dunn
2LT, IN
2BCT/2ID
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