Flak for Iraq

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Make no mistake about it…counterinsurgency is nation-building, and it has eclipsed standard warfare, much to the delight of the Chinese and former Soviets.

The Army on Monday will unveil an unprecedented doctrine that declares nation-building missions will probably become more important than conventional warfare and defines "fragile states" that breed crime, terrorism and religious and ethnic strife as the greatest threat to U.S. national security.

Nation-building may eclipse standard warfare - Washington Post- msnbc.com

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Well, I’ve arrived at the old Republican Guard base of Taji, and will be here for the next week or so.

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There are many things here that remind me of Korea…Daewoo and Kia busses, LG air conditioners, and jury-rigged plumbing, masonry, and electrical work.  I want to post some pictures and video snippets, but usually when I bust out my camera, some OPSEC nazi is quick to say, “Sir, you really shouldn’t be doing that.”

Here I am at BIAP waiting for the Blackhawk ride.

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That doesn’t say boring, but may as well.  Here are a few thoughts on happenings so far since my arrival at Camp Buehring, the humungous theater reception/staging hub.

Heat

I have never been to such a hot place, bar none—not even Vegas, NTC at Fort Irwin, or JOTC at Fort Sherman, Panama can compare to this fiendish heat.  The warm, dry wind offers little respite and actually increases misery by carrying endless dust.

Ramadan

After fasting for the past few days, I’ve given up on Ramadan.  This is mainly due to two reasons.  First, I had not taken a crap in four days, which, although not uncomfortable, was beginning to concern me.  Second, the types of training activites we’ve been doing as well as just walking hundreds of meters from point to point around camp make food/water deprivation dangerous to one’s health.  All I have to say is that anyone willing to endure Ramadan is surely a tough, devoted ally or enemy.  I consumed some overpriced Taco Bell for lunch with 64 oz of Gatorade and have subsequently taken 3 craps of various consistency, the most recent that of Georgia clay.

Kuwait

Probably the strangest thing is that all the workers here on camp seem to be predominantly Indian or Punjabi, with a few Filipinos thrown in for flavor.  The only real Kuwaiti I’ve seen so far was a Bedoin crouched in the desert, patiently tending his herd of camels, oblivious to our range busses.  There are many British and Australian forces on this base as well.  I purchased a Nokia E90 Communicator because neither my SK Telecom Motorola MS600 nor my Sprint Palm Treo 800w work here.

Training

We’ve done some refresher training on various tasks practiced at Fort Riley, to include M4 and M9 advanced close-quarters marksmanship, battle drill 6 with simunitions, counter-IED, advanced medical trauma, and Arabic.  My biggest concern is my team’s enthusiasm for shooting friend and foe indiscriminately and then joking about it.

We exchanged our IBA for IOTV’s.  I think they both suck to wear in this heat, but I think there was more ventilation in my old IBA.  The new IOTV is very form-fitting and snug, with an elastic girdle and velcro cumberbund.

 

By the way, I’m not posting any photos or videos just yet…I’m still feeling out the OPSEC rules, and don’t want to get stung by some regs Nazi this early in the game….

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Every year, the pundits come out and talk trash of the teams who did well in preseason and begin to falter in regular season.  This season is no exception, and I'll have to say that my fantasy football league standings match the Seahawks' regular standings at 0-2 (for the first time since 2002).

There’s a reason why some teams get to be called elite and are always among the preseason contenders. As an example, look no further than the Colts' victory over the Vikings.

Week 2 was about 2-0 and 0-2. The first is a nice number — it’s not a playoff guarantee, but it’s as good a start as you can get. The second is one of the NFL's most dreaded numbers.

You don’t want to start 0-2 to start a season. Sure, the Giants won the Super Bowl after starting that way last year, and the Patriots and Cowboys equaled that feat in 2003 and 1993 respectively. But since the 2000 season, of the 74 teams that have started 0-2, only six have made the playoffs.

Week 2 lessons: Contenders find a way - NFL- nbcsports.msnbc.com

I can't believe that Mike Holmgren will stand to go out like a punk into retirement, though, so stay tuned....

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I hate to do this, but I'm breaking contact with one of the best USFK blogs out there, ROK Drop, because my comments have not been posting and the proprietor hasn't answered my personal email inquiry.

This leaves me to assume the worst--that I've been banned as a pithy, bitter troll.  Then again, since my email address naturally has the appearance of spam, perhaps I've been ROK-blocked.

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So I just tried to get on to Yongsan to run some errands and visit some people.

First, the gate guard wouldn't let me in because my safety decal is expired. He sends me to the MP shack to get a temporary pass.

Then, the KATUSA on duty tells me that not only can I not get a pass, but that I can only come on post as a guest of someone in BIDS.

All I wanted to do was come on post and visit a couple of friends from my old office, check my wife's APO mailbox, eat some Taco Bell, and pick up some milk and juice at the shopette since neither my wife nor myself have commissary privileges.

I returned to Uijeongbu fuming mad, ready to ram the first black marketer I saw.

I'm glad I'm never coming back to this corrupt, bureaucratic hellhole again.

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Sorry for the lack of posts this month.  Not only have I been extremely busy training at Camp Funston/Fort Riley, Kansas, but I've also been fairly depressed due to a combination of financial hardship as well as the prospect of becoming a human barbecue.

Anyways, one more week of check-the-block training, and it's off to the Sandbox for me.  After all, someone's got to end this madness. 

Whenever I start to believe the mainstream media, politicians, field grades' and generals' hype about how peaceful Iraq is nowadays and how we've won, I just check out YouTube to regain my focus against religion.  Somewhere in this world, my mortal enemy is preparing.  He doesn't know yet that he's going to try and kill me; he just thinks his mission in life is to kill as many Americans as possible before he dies himself.  I hope he does his homework and doesn't slip up, because this game of cat-and-mouse will be costly.  An Iraqi interpreter told me a few weeks ago that I should probably remove my rank from my helmet or else the snipers would target me.  But this is what I want...to meet Juba.  We'll have a nice cup of chai with his eyeballs bobbing in it, or at least his one remaining eyeball.

By the way, here comes Ramadan!  And guess what?  Muslims engaged in battle are exempt from observing Ramadan, kinda like Christians and Jews are allowed to own slaves and kill innocents if the situation dictates.  Religion...what a crock of sh'ite.

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Happy Birthday, Michael Jackson; don't stop moving.

Michael Jackson turns 50 on Friday. What do you get for the man who has everything, including a killer discography, a couple of sexual assault accusations, at least one white glove, a sprawling ranch teetering on foreclosure, a family that can only be described as indescribable, and a button nose that often looks unbuttoned?

Reaching The Big Five-Oh is a profound event in every life. But for Michael, it represents a fork in his moonwalking path. One direction will take him to his own personal neverland, as in never be seen or heard from again. The other will lead him back to stardom and his rightful place atop the pop throne.

Which way will he go? Now that he’s 50, will he make it to 60? And what will he be like if he does?

At 50, what’s left for Michael Jackson? - Music- msnbc.com

 

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Trust me, there are at least three groups of people in this world whom you should not take at face value.  One is the Koreans.  Another is the Nigerians.  What would the third be?

GORI, Georgia - Russia said Monday it had begun withdrawing from the conflict zone in Georgia, but it held fast to key positions and sent some of its troops in the opposite direction — closer to the Georgian capital.
Russian troops and vehicles roamed freely around the strategically located central city of Gori, Russian forces appeared to blow up the runway at a military base in the western town of Senaki.
There were few signs Russia was following the terms of a cease-fire to end the short war, which has driven tensions between Russia and the West to some of their highest levels since the breakup of the Soviet Union.

Few signs that Russia following cease-fire - Russia- msnbc.com 

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Here's a great article on the current level of progress made in the effort to transfer more missions over to the Iraqis.

"Everywhere in Iraq now, our war is against bombs," said Muhammed, whose wife is expecting their fifth daughter. "This is a war of cowards."

At 8:30 a.m., Gen. Ali Ghaidan, the top Iraqi military commander in this mixed Sunni-Shiite province 35 miles north of Baghdad, arrived. He appealed to the Americans for more helicopter support and bulldozers.

Capt. Daniel Lammers, a U.S. military transition team adviser to the 3rd Battalion, said he would get more support there as quickly as possible. The bulldozer then ran over the bomb.

Sunni stronghold tests Iraqi army - Washington Post- msnbc.com

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Now I'm ready to jump into Gori if not Moscow.  Who's with me?

To the west, Abkahzian separatist forces backed by Russian military might pushed out Georgian troops and even moved into Georgian territory itself, defiantly planting a flag and laughing that retreating Georgians had received "American training in running away."

Russian tanks head deeper into Georgia - Russia- msnbc.com

What our allies need isn't infantry close combat or counterinsurgency training...they need air defense, artillery, and anti-armor training.

 

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Here's an article you might think a chaplain recently wrote about Iraq or Afghanistan.

"In load after load of returning soldiers ... we find 80% of them listen to the gospel with more scepticism than . . . ever ... stay away from religious services . . . with less scruples . . . curse more and with a finesse unbelievable . . . gamble with more avidity and defend it with more vigor . . and find it difficult to hold an extended conversation without defaming womankind, even though unintentionally."

Atheists & Foxholes - TIME

Surprise!  It's from friggin' World War II!

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If you read this article, it pretty much sounds like the war is won in Iraq.  However, if you read the last paragraph, it hints that our grip on peace is tenuous at best.

"I feel 100 percent victorious," he said. "These (Iraqi) soldiers you see on Sadr City streets will beat a fast retreat if al-Sadr orders us to fight them," he boasted. "They will desert if they miss a single paycheck. Their victory is fragile."

Iraqi militant returns to religion - Conflict in Iraq- msnbc.com

I guess we'll just have to keep pumping money into Iraq and funding crooked contracts...kinda like Korea, which is another very expensive and fragile victory.

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I hope the Georgians kick some serious Russian ass, because in all my years, I can count the number of decent Russian people I've met on one hand.

TSKHINVALI, Georgia - Russia dispatched an armored column into the breakaway enclave of South Ossetia on Friday after Georgia, a staunch U.S. ally, launched a surprise offensive to crush separatists. Witnesses said hundreds of civilians were killed.

Fighting reportedly raged well into the night with Georgia’s interior ministry saying early Saturday that warplanes attacked three Georgian military bases and key facilities for shipping oil to the West.

“I saw bodies lying on the streets, around ruined buildings, in cars,” said Lyudmila Ostayeva, 50, who had fled with her family to Dzhava, a village near the border with Russia. “It’s impossible to count them now. There is hardly a single building left undamaged.”

Russia, Georgia troops battle on border - Russia- msnbc.com

The world needs to stop these Soviet bastards before they erase Georgia from the earth.  

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We don't need no stinkin' Redcoats, anyways!

Colonel Imad, who heads the 2nd Battalion, 1st Brigade, 1st Iraqi Army Division, the most experienced division, commanded one of the quick-reaction battalions summoned to assist British-trained local forces, who faltered from the outset because of inexperience and lack of support.

He said: “Without the support of the Americans we would not have accomplished the mission because the British Forces had done nothing there."

Secret deal kept British Army out of battle for Basra - Times Online

HT: Mudville Gazette

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I'm very surprised that Karadzic has finally been captured.

BELGRADE - Former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic, accused architect of massacres making him one of the world’s top war crimes fugitives, was arrested Monday evening in a sweep by Serbian security forces, the country’s president and the U.N. tribunal said.

Karadzic is suspected of masterminding mass killings that the U.N. war crimes tribunal described as “scenes from hell, written on the darkest pages of human history.” The killings include the 1995 massacre of 8,000 Muslims in Srebrenica, Europe’s worst slaughter since World War II.

Bosnian Serb wartime president arrested - Balkans- msnbc.com

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Now that the surge is over, can Iraq hold on?

The soldiers moved into the two-story house in the Washash neighborhood in August. The Joint Security Station, as the outpost was formally known, had no running water or air conditioning. Exhausted from long shifts filling sandbags and manning guard posts, the Americans collapsed at night on cots and slept in sweltering rooms.

"It was misery," Wilhite said. "In one word, it was absolute misery."

They didn't trust their Iraqi colleagues. One of the company's first missions was to detain Wilhite's Iraqi counterpart, an army officer, because U.S. soldiers discovered he was working with his cousin, the area's top militia leader.

Many of the Iraqi soldiers were undisciplined and unmotivated, Wilhite said. They frequently fell asleep at checkpoints and sometimes stole the American soldiers' food.

For 'surge' troops, pride and doubt - Washington Post- msnbc.com