I watched Ollie North (war stories) tonight, a great report on the Marines.
Nice to hear some of the positive things occuring in that place.

My son's friend, in the USMC returned from Iraq. Brain damaged from sharpnel. Can't talk yet after third surgery.

Problem with this, it could have been avoided. Our troops are given a false sense of security over there, when in fact there is none. They saw this guy down the road and shrugged him off, but he was the type they were looking for. Ya, he was the guy with the trigger to set off the claymore or something like it. Josh got the worst of it. Thank God they all surrived.
If they were properly instructed, the first thing they would have done was to shoot that creep, and they all could have been just fine.

Personnally, I would have shot first, and checked it out later.
No, that's not hind sight, that's real world. I never followed bad orders that would endanger my people.

riergarde, sorry to hear about your son's friend, will add him to my prayers tonight, can you share his name?

kenh, it is nice to hear some of the good that is going on. While my son was there he wrote a series of articles from the front, so to speak, and thank god he came home safe. Wounded twice, neither serious. It really made him mad that the negatives are front page and the positives seem to go in the garbage can.

http://icasualties.org/oif/

Above is a thread to a site for the most current casualty[s] update. You can click on just about everything going all the way back to the beginning. Some are US and Coalition Forces DoD releases, and some are from home-town press releases.

- I was a Team-Leader in an Infantry-Battalion from the beginning of the invasion, and throughout the liberation process of OIF. I have friends there now, and I'm awaiting word on my return to Iraq and/or Afghanistan, with another Infantry Battalion. Since my return from Iraq, I have trained and prepared Coalition Forces in numerous mission preparedness operations associated with live-fire manuevers, convoy operations and PSD-[Personnel-Security-Det.] missions....the men I have been associatted with are constantly training.

- Me and my men saw alot of terrible-things over there that had been going on longer than most of us had been in the service. We did alot of ugly things, in alot of bad places...to alot of evil-people. I lost pretty much all of the hearing capabilities in my left ear, and what I do hear on the left side is still mostly a ring-tone that comes and goes still after 18-months.

HOWEVER - Though I will never forget the ugly-images that I experienced that year...and though I will never hear or sleep the same again...I will NEVER forget the GOOD that we did for those that wanted it, OR needed it. NOR will I ever stop thinking about the HUNDREDS-of-THOUSANDS of men that went to far worse places, for a much longer-time, and gave a whole lot more than I...So that I could grow-up in a country called The United States of America...and appreciatte the meaning of the word FREEDOM.

I have been a Marine in one form or another for the last 15-years...and I will be a Marine for the rest of this life, and into the next. Regardless of how you feel about the current sitrep in that part of the world and/or our involvement in it...TRUST-ME when I tell you that if we did-not do something then, and now...then our children would be forced to deal with it on different terms LATER. There are men-[AND women]-in the US Military Service that have VOLUNTARILY stepped up at one time in their life, for one reason or another...to serve their country in one of the four military branches that defend the INTERESTS of OUR COUNTRY, HERE AND ABROAD...now or have been in harms way for our way of life.

...SUPPORT-THE-TROOPS.

S/Fi...Merc-

I am hearing what you are saying. You and others have sacrificed much for our country, and your eyes have seen more than a man's eyes should in a lifetime. You all are in my prayers. God bless you, and your brothers and sisters in arms.

Thank you for being on guard for me and mine.

Merc- OOh-Ra, well put. JP

Merc - Thanks for your service and others like you who have been in the "fray". You share a part of our proud history and traditions of service like those that have gone before you in other conflicts. Our prayers, best wishes, and admiration go to you from a majority of us grateful countrymen regardless of what you may read or hear in the "main stream" media. We will "stay the course" and win the fight. Semper fi

Roger-that, mates...thx for the props - merc.

Roger-that, mates...thx for the props - merc.


Thank you.

jonas

riergard,

my deepest sympathies to your friend, his family and especially his son. former marine, been twice to iraq. love the corps, hate the mindset. couldn't believe 25 years after i was in, they were still flying ch-46 sea knights, hueys, and still, still still did not buy uparmored humvees. dang corps spent billions on the osprey and were handing out those silly fiberglass bolt-on armor kits. yeah, it'll stop a 5.56 round and maybe a 7.62 round but you are toast if you get an ied. i was frustrated beyond belief. Bless the Marines who are still "making do" when we spend $2billion yep $2 billion per month on this war. couldn't believe a reserve rifle battalion from ohio was donig the heavy lift when we have 30k+ troops in camp victory. i hate to see what our tooth to tail ratio is in this war. positively a bummer. cream of of the corps doing so much with so little. worked with 3/7 and the fine soldiers of 3rd armored cav - solid outfit as well as several a teams and others.

"...TRUST-ME when I tell you that if we did-not do something then, and now...then our children would be forced to deal with it on different terms LATER. "

Merc, thanks for your service and your committment to our country. I appreciate your sentiments and your patriotism. I guess my view is a bit different. In fact what you state is true that our children will have to deal with this mess. The unfortuante reality is that we have created, in Iraq, the classroom for advanced studies in terrorism. And we are the object lesson. We have created the conditions in that country that will guarantee that we will deal with problem in years to come. Zarkawi, Al-Qa'ida, QBJR, none of those groups would have had access to technology or training and, unfortunately, the type of targets had we not started this no-win war. Returning "jihadis" have already started showing up in Europe and it will only be some time before they wash up on our shores. Once committed to this war, I had hoped we would have complete committment to winning this war. Sadly, I didn't find that either especially in my last iteration there.

Iraq is a surreal place with incredible chow halls for the support troops and mre's for the warfighters. KBR chow halls serve food on a daily basis that was better than I ate in a USMC chow hall even on Christmas day. Routine menus have crab legs, scallops, shrimp, steaks, roast beef carving stations, literally a dozen different choices for lunch and dinner. baskin robbins bars all kinds of goopy desserts, 20 kinds of soft drinks the lsit goes on. Now I could stand to miss a few meals but the banquet, on a daily basis is overhwelming. I don't begrudge a grunt hot chow. But imagine what Halliburton or KBT charges Uncle Sam for these meals? It's gotta be $30/head per day at least and probably a lot more. The cooks, servers are usually Pakistani or Philipino. My point is that the chow hall bill alone sure could buy a doo-doo load of armor for the troops. Sorry, I did not mean to vent. I rarely discuss these observations. Support the troops, keep them in your prayers.

I usually try to stay clear of these discussions as it reminds me too much of my time in the Corps as a Scout Sniper in Gulf War 1 and Somalia Oct 93-Feb 94. I am allways deeply sorry to hear of any of my brothers getting hit, or living with painful memories. I know that God has prepared a special place for good Marines, and one day if I find myself on a thousand yard range with my old M40 and a no value wind with Gunny Hathcock as the range supervisor then I'll know that I've been called home. God watch over my brothers who still fight, and please be patient.

Tom444

You seem to think that Iraq is nothing more than a terrorist training ground.

However I think you are deluding yourself. These terrorists have been churning out these "jihadists" nut cases for years. from all sorts of countries. Fortunately they now have at lease fewer places to train from the likes of Afganistain.

America didn't do a freaking thing for decades even as these jihadist training grounds were churning out terrorists even when they were killing Marines and Americans in Beruit, Kobar towers, USS Cole and even the first WTC bombings. Just to mention a few.

I believe the problem is that we took way, way, way too long to start taking real action.

I for one am glad that our armed military is taking the fight to the enemy "over there" rather than have a bomb go off at my kids school down the street.

Sure these terrorists who are currently in Iraq can go abroad and into the USA. That is why we need to do something about our border and knowing who is coming in and who we DECIDE to allow in.

I pray each night thanking God for the great volunteer military we have and they they all offer me, my family and our entire country more safe by fighting over there rather than over here!

I just got done working with some very-fine soldiers from the US-Army JSOC-Command, on their way to the sand-box...I also had dinner with a guy I served a year with over there in 2003...He's on his way back as I type-this. A close personal friend of mine just left for a one-year tour with one of the "Big-3" State-Dept-approved private-contract-companies conducting PSD-Ops between Bagdad and Basara...I know there is low-moon on my horizon...where it will guide me in the upcoming new-year has not been revealed to me as of this date...but - I'm very fortunate to be associatted with great Americans, like the Marines and Soldiers I have trained and operated with over the years.

I care not regarding your political or religous choices or preferences, nor what you believe to be the "TRUTH" about what we are involved in...What I do care is that AMERICAN-CITIZENS understand and realize one thing...You live, work, and raise your family in a FREE-Country....that was started by MEN-with-RIFLES....and - Our country is where it's at today because of MEN-with-RIFLES going to FORIEGN-SHORES with the best interest of our civilian population at-hand. There are so many factors involved in what is "REALLY" going on, [-and those of you in my peer group that have gone-forward in harms-way, or served in one of our Military-Forces know exactly what I mean]-But - we still live in the greatest country in the WORLD. Since I've been to about two-dozen foriegn-countries...and around the world a few times...I know I rate to say that.

- Support your President.
- Suport your Military.

- Semper Fi.

mercmarine, I would like to add, every time we have delayed our involvement it, the following war, has lasted longer, killed more and we had to get involved anyway. Both WWI and WWII were this way. Frankly what is going on in Iraq now will make us safer in the future. God bless those who are taking care of us now.

- ROGER-THAT - Sure-Shot...History is our future.