How to Leave a Soldier

How to Leave a Soldier
"The war on terror may be impossible to resolve. Ending my marriage was easy."
I'm not quite certain where to begin with this article, so I'll leave the commenting to everyone else.

U.S., Afghan and NATO forces have entered Marjah and have begun an offensive against the Taliban. According to Major General Nick Carter, "'the operation went without a single hitch'" (FNC).

Hajji

The Department of Veterans Affairs has published a list detailing the vocabulary of Operation Iraqi Freedom -- a list that contains such entries as "death blossom," a term originating in the 1984 science-fiction film "The Last Starfighter." It is used by servicemen to describe fire sprayed indiscriminately in all directions. The list also includes the terms "Mortaritaville" and "Bombaconda," both referring to LSA Anaconda, a base near Balad, Iraq, that is frequently the target of mortar attacks.
"Soldiers use these terms because they try to make the best they can of their situation and give things kind of a humorous angle," said Lt. Col. Charles Kohler of the Maryland National Guard.
The term "Mortaritaville," a reference to the Jimmy Buffett song "Margaritaville," is only one of many terms soldiers use to take the edge off an environment that is potentially frightening and often beyond their control, said Indiana University linguist Michael Adams.
"It's making a really terrifying experience manageable by attempting to make it familiar," Adams said. . . .
"It's language for them made by them to consolidate their social relationships," he said. "In war, people's survival depends on (these relationships)."
Military slang is versatile and can refer to anything in a soldier's environment - equipment, locations, or people.
Maj. Liam Kingdon, who works for the Reserve Officers' Training Corps at the University of Maryland in College Park, said he has heard fellow service members referred to as "fobbits." The word is a contraction of Forward Operating Base (FOB) and "hobbit," a creature from The Lord of the Rings known for its sedentary habits.
"It's basically a soldier, sailor or airman who never leaves the base," Kingdon said. "You've got people there who leave the base all the time to go on patrol, and you've got people who literally just stay on the base."
"[Slang terms are] part of my everyday language now," said Matt Robbins, who lives in College Park and is a senior at the University of Maryland.
In 2008, Robbins deployed to Tikrit, Iraq, as a communications specialist, and said his stay there has made him acutely aware of differences in cultural customs.
"In Iraq, you don't show the bottom of your foot to people; it's considered impolite," Robbins said. "I still don't do that."
He also recalls the fact that soldiers referred to Iraqis as "hajis" -- an Arabic term describing a person who has made the pilgrimage to Mecca.
But in this particular case, Robbins said, the use struck him as derogatory, so "I don't use that anymore."
The term "haji" has various derivatives, such as the designation "haji shop" for a cart or booth run by natives, where DVDs, soda and other small items are sold.
Slang terms referring to features of a base are also common. . . .
Other terms link life in the military to items or concepts familiar from other environments -- often, the environment is home, or a favorite movie. For example, improvised vehicle armor made from scrap metal is also known as "hillbilly armor" and a truck with large amounts of add-on armor may be designated a "Frankenstein." . . .
The fascination with military-speak has also led to expressions of artistic creativity. Earlier this year, alternative rock band Cracker released a song called "Yalla Yalla" -- Arabic for "let's go" -- built around military slang, including such terms as "Bombaconda" and "haji."
At least some of these terms are likely to make it into everyday language, Adams said. When that will happen is unclear because "those serving have to bring the terms home and influence the use of those who haven't served."
But maybe the day when "couch potatoes" become "fobbits" is not so far off.

My primary reason for posting this excerpt was because I found the article interesting. My secondary reason was my frustration while reading the part about the term "haji."
First of all, the term is hajji, according to both Arabic and the AP Stylebook. Omitting a "j" changes the pronunciation of the word.
Second of all, although American military personnel tend to use the term derogatively, hajji is an honorable title, used to refer to Muslims who have completed the hajj, or pilgrimage to Mecca (one of the five pillars of Islam). Although the hajj should be completed by all Muslims, not all Muslims to whom military personnel refer have done so. Therefore, the term is a misnomer.

Withdrawal in 2011?

In Obama's Foreign Policy today, we discussed the fact that Switzerland has placed a ban on the building of more minarets. Don't ask me what that has to do with Obama's foreign policy. However, did spend some time talking about the 30,000 troops Obama plans to send to Afghanistan. My professor thinks General McChrystal is one of the least qualified men Obama should take advice from regarding the war, because has no experience in the area. Experts on the region, those who speak the native languages and know the history of the area, are better suited to make a decision about the war (which, by the way, is just like Vietnam -- it's an issue of not whether we'll lose the war, but under whose administration). I know I would definitely take the advice of a desk jockey with book smarts over that of a man with his boots on the ground. That's clearly the logical choice.

On another note of the same level of happiness, the semester ends in sixteen days and I have a rather large amount of work and studying to do between now and the start of finals on the 15th. Therefore, I will once again be intermittently posting, at least until the 18th, when finals end and I return home for six weeks.

MIL101

I meant to post this in January. I was reorganizing the post tags when I noticed that this was still in draft form.

Military 101: What It's Like In Iraq

Trust in Obama and War Waning

Despite President Obama's attempts to prepare the American people for rising casualties in Afghanistan, a new poll shows most Americans see the war as a wasted effort.

Congressional lawmakers say this is a sign the president needs to make the war in Afghanistan a front-burner issue in his public addresses and do a better job explaining the stakes to the American public.

Though the war in Afghanistan is a clear priority for the president, the push for health care reform has dominated his public appeals. And when he does address Afghanistan, some lawmakers say, Obama is telling more than explaining.

"You can't just say it's the good war and trust me, because actually his trust factor is dropping. He's going to have to build a case for it," said Rep. Buck McKeon, R-Calif., ranking Republican on the House Armed Services Committee.

The Washington Post-ABC News poll showed 51 percent of people say the war is not worth fighting. That sentiment was particularly high among members of the president's own party, with seven in 10 Democrats saying the war is not worth its costs.

Imagine that -- the American people aren't willing to trust a man with no military experience with a war, a war in which many of our brave men and women are sacrificing their lives (July saw the most casualties since the war began), a war that the Democrats, of all people, don't support. I would like to know how many Democrats have loved ones fighting this war.
I believe that healthcare, privatized healthcare, is an important issue. But I also feel that our current system is working, and we might want to turn our attention to something more pressing. Like a war. I would also like to see that poll conducted on Fox News or something other than WaPo and ABC.

Combat Paper

The young vets mixed the jigsaw pieces with water and beat them into pulp to make sheets of paper — blank canvasses on which they could write, paint or screen images to tell their personal war stories. . . .

The Combat Paper Project, a Vermont-based collective of combat vets who became artists after leaving the military, has spent the past year holding coast-to-coast workshops aimed at teaching former service members to help themselves by recycling fatigues into artwork.

Drew Cameron, who became opposed to the Iraq war after serving in an Army artillery unit during the 2003 invasion, started the group after moving to Burlington, Vt., where he learned paper making from a local artist while also becoming active with Iraq Veterans Against the War.

Cameron, 27, saw it as a way reach out to other Iraq veterans haunted by memories of friends slain in battle and men they had killed, wounded physically and psychologically by bomb and mortar explosions, and struggling to direct their own lives after years of being told what to do by the military.

Military Times . . .

. . . I'm ashamed of you.

Security Contractors

U.S. military authorities in Afghanistan may hire a private contractor to provide around-the-clock security at dozens of bases and protect vehicle convoys moving throughout the country.

The possibility of awarding a security contract comes as the Obama administration is sending thousands of more troops into Afghanistan to quell rising violence fueled by a resurgent Taliban. As the number of American forces grow over the next several months, so too does the demand to guard their outposts.

Defense Secretary Robert Gates has said he wants to cut back on the use of contractors that now provide a wide range services to American troops in war zones, including transportation, communications, food service, construction, and maintenance. As recently as February, however, Gates called the use of private security contractors in certain parts of Afghanistan "vital" to supporting U.S. bases. A contract for the work also creates job opportunities for Afghans, he said.

Wars create jobs!

What Really Goes On Over There

OIF/OEF: The Hashish Army

The Hashish Army - Afghanistan

This depressed me a great deal. The lack of discipline and will power is appalling. How can they not want to better their country?

SFC Jared Monti

Thirty-year-old SFC Jared Monti of Raynham, MA was killed June 21, 2006 in Afghanistan. Monti had been a fire support specialist assigned to 3rd Squardron, 71st Calvary, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Div. of Fort Drum, NY. For his actions in combat, Monti will posthumously receive a Medal of Honor.

What factors led you to support or not support the war?

Following September 11, I was caught up in the patriotic fervor that embodied the nation, though I didn't really understand it. The French? I hated them. Iraq? We should bomb it. Later, though, I became more educated on matters and as I matured, I was able to make my own decisions regarding the war.
I will always support our troops. Supporting our troops also means supporting their cause, in my opinion.
I believe that this war was declared under completely legitimate circumstances. Based on what my deployed friends tell me, the American military is doing great things for the Iraqi and Afghan peoples. I support what they do, the sacrifices they make.
Many of the men in my family have served in the armed forces. My paternal grandfather was at Pearl Harbor. My maternal grandfather is a Korean War veteran. My dad and uncle both served during the Vietnam War. Burning flags and thanking God for IEDs simply doesn't register in my brain.
Having close friends in a war zone truly changes one's perspective on things. Regardless, I am very proud of all of our men and women serving in the armed forces.

If your family members are overseas in the war effort, how do you cope with this?

I now view this as more of an honor of sorts than a "coping" sort of thing. Although I have no family members in a war zone, I do have a very close friend in Afghanistan. When he first told me he was deploying, in December, I cried for a very long time that night. The war was finally here for me. And then I was miserable for the next three days. Afterward, I realized that crying solves nothing and people deploy all the time.
Although I don't talk to him very often (perhaps once every week or two), I now find that the most difficult part is finding things to talk about. I have a million and one questions (which, I suppose, is a good thing since I want to be a war correspondent), but I refrain from asking any of them, partially because I don't think he can answer them anyway, and mostly because I don't want to be callous or too inquisitive. I've learned not to worry too much and not to dwell too much on "what ifs."
I also keep the Kabul time zone clock on my cell phone, so that I can compare times on occasion. It makes the world seem a bit smaller.

Military History

Horse Soldiers is about a group of Special Forces soldiers who went to Afghanistan shortly after 9/11 and literally rode to war on horseback. They worked with Generals Atta and Dostum to defeat the Taliban, and this book chronicles their journey, as well as that of their families stateside.

As You Were was incredibly helpful in enabling me to better understand what our troops go through in a war zone. As You Were follows several soldiers as they are deployed to the Middle East. I found Miranda Summers' story particularly interesting, as she was a student at a fairly close college. I cried quite a bit while reading it, but the information I gleaned from reading it is invaluable.

Victory? What Victory?

President Obama has put securing Afghanistan near the top of his foreign policy agenda, but "victory" in the war-torn country isn't necessarily the United States' goal, he said Thursday in a TV interview.

"I'm always worried about using the word 'victory,' because, you know, it invokes this notion of Emperor Hirohito coming down and signing a surrender to MacArthur," Obama told ABC News.

The enemy facing U.S. and Afghan forces isn't so clearly defined, he explained.

"We're not dealing with nation states at this point. We're concerned with Al Qaeda and the Taliban, Al Qaeda's allies," he said. "So when you have a non-state actor, a shadowy operation like Al Qaeda, our goal is to make sure they can't attack the United States."

First of all, I highly suggest reading the article in its entirety. Second of all. . . .
If they're not being sent to win, then don't send them in. When is victory not the goal? Aside from when it pertains to Afghanistan, of course. Why should we be worried about using the word "victory?" "Victory" is simply a word, some organized characters, until they're given meaning. Until we emerge from this war victorious. Regardless of what our government decides, I believe that our troops will emerge victorious. The politicians may lose this war, but our military will not.

"Sign me up for the next war!"

U.S. troops say companies that recruit military translators are sending linguists to southern Afghanistan who are unprepared to serve in combat, even as hundreds more are needed to support the growing number of troops.

Some translators are in their 60s and 70s and in poor physical condition — and some don’t even speak the right language. . . .

Troops say low-skilled and disgruntled translators are putting U.S. forces at risk.

“Intelligence can save Marines’ lives and give us the advantage on the battlefield,” said Cpl. William Woodall, 26, of Dallas, who works closely with translators. “Instead of looking for quality, the companies are just pushing bodies out here, and once they’re out the door, it’s not their problem anymore." . . .

The company that recruits most U.S. citizen translators, Columbus, Ohio-based Mission Essential Personnel, says it’s difficult to meet the increased demand for linguists to aid the 15,000 U.S. forces being sent to southern, Pashto-speaking provinces this year as part of President Barack Obama’s increased focus on Afghanistan. Only 7,700 Pashto speakers live in the U.S., according to the 2000 census.

Mission Essential’s senior vice president, Marc Peltier, told The Associated Press that the linguists the company deploys to Afghanistan, Iraq and other countries meet government standards. The military sets no age or weight requirements, he said. . . .

How translators come to believe they won’t face danger could originate with recruiters.

“They’re going to tell you whatever it is to get you hired,” Spangler said.

Khalid Nazary, an Afghan-American citizen living in Kabul, called Mission Essential about a job and let an AP reporter listen.

He asked if he would go to “dangerous places.”

“Oh, no, no, no. You’re not a soldier. You’re not a soldier. Not at all,” the recruiter, Tekelia Barnett, said. “You’re not on the battlefield." . . .

“They say you’ll get a shower once a day, have access to Internet and TV, call home six times a week,” Woodall said. “And when the guys get out, they’re completely shell-shocked. They’ve been lied to." . . .

The translators said dozens of linguists quit soon after arriving in Afghanistan in recent weeks. Spangler declined to provide numbers but said “quite a bit” resigned or were fired because they were too old, unfit or couldn’t speak Pashto. . . .

But Gamez said soldiers need translators now, and that some feign sickness to avoid work.

This is insane. Someone teach me Pashto and ship me over there. I'm nineteen years old, so there's no worry about me keeling over from a heart attack (though heat exhaustion might be a problem). I might not be able to keep up with Marines, but I'm stubborn enough to keep trying. And for $210,000 a year and the opportunity to serve my country, you wouldn't have to worry about me quitting (just surviving). I also won't require Internet service (just give me a journal) or phone calls home six times a week -- which seems a bit excessive in a war zone. But as for showers . . . well. I suppose we all have to make sacrifices.

Bring Bowe Back

23-year-old [PFC Bowe] Bergdahl was serving with a unit based in Fort Richardson, Alaska, earlier this month when he vanished, just five months after arriving in Afghanistan, officials said. He was serving at a base near the border with Pakistan in an area known to be a Taliban stronghold (FNC).

On July 2, two U.S. officials conceded a soldier had "just walked off" his base near the border with Pakistan with three Afghans after his shift, but wouldn't release details. Four days later, the Taliban claimed "a drunken American soldier had come out of his garrison" and was captured by mujahedeen (FNC).

He said the date was July 14 and that he was captured when he lagged behind on a patrol. It's clear the video was made no earlier than July 14 because Bergdahl repeated an exaggerated Taliban claim about a Ukrainian helicopter that was shot down that day (AP).

So, there are three different accounts of how Bergdahl was captured. The first, that he simply "walked off . . . with three Afghans," would suggest that he was deserting. Who were the Afghans? The second would explain why he was captured, as I doubt a drunk would be much of an opponent, especially were he to forget his weapon. How did he obtain alcohol in a war zone? Why was he careless enough to imbibe in a war zone? The third, a claim made by Bergdahl, states that he "lagged behind on a patrol." That statement doesn't say much for the US Army, if soldiers are letting their comrades lag behind in a war zone and be captured (which I highly doubt they are). However, as I have no combat experience, I have no idea how patrols function, or how one would obtain alcohol, or what Bergdahl was thinking if he strode off the base with the Afghans. Perhaps he was going for a late-night walk.

Honorary War Vet

IAVA to Name Colbert Honorary War Vet
Political pundit Stephen Colbert could be named, if his petition on IAVA receives 25,000 signatures (there are currently almost 15,000), an Honorary War Vet.
Quite frankly, regardless of how entertaining the man is, he's still an entertainer. He hasn't earned a uniform or taken an oath, and he's not a warrior. To bequeath upon him such a title is to mock the true warriors who fight and bleed and die for us. Colbert is already famous and well-recognized. Despite his tour to Iraq to entertain the troops, I still feel that he isn't worthy of the title.

And We Won't Be Back 'Til It's Over Over There!

The Pentagon's chief said Thursday he could send more U.S. troops to Afghanistan this year than he'd initially expected and is considering increasing the number of soldiers in the Army.

Both issues reflect demands on increasingly stressed American forces tasked with fighting two wars.

Defense Secretary Robert Gates' comments came during a short visit to Fort Drum in upstate New York -- an Army post that that he said has deployed more soldiers to battle zones over the last 20 years than any other unit. Two Fort Drum brigades are headed to Iraq later this year, and a third is currently in Afghanistan.

Asked about Afghanistan by one soldier, Gates said: "I think there will not be a significant increase in troop levels in Afghanistan beyond the 68,000, at least probably through the end of the year. Maybe some increase, but not a lot."

So far, the Obama administration has approved sending 68,000 troops to Afghanistan by the end of 2009, including 21,000 that were added this spring.

I would first like to ask how Sec'y Gates intends to increase the Army's size. Though I've not spoken with any recruiters lately or researched any numbers, I'm sure that the Army's size will increase as long as volunteers are willing. Maybe they'll send roving recruitment vans to kidnap young men off of the streets. Secondly, I would like everyone to note the fact that "the Obama administration has approved sending 68,000 troops to Afghanistan by the end of 2009, including 21,000 that were added this spring" (FNC). That's 99,000 troops. Ninety-nine thousand men and women. The end to the War on Terror Overseas Contingency Plan definitely seems to be in sight.

Military Smoking Ban

Defense Sec'y Robert Gates is being prompted to ban tobacco sale and use in the military stateside and overseas, due to "rising tobacco use and higher costs" (FNC). However, a study shows that "troops worn out by repeated deployments often rely on cigarettes as a 'stress reliever' [and] . . . that tobacco use in the military rose after the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan began" (FNC).
Although I personally do not condone tobacco use, I find it a low blow to add more stress on our deployed military by implementing a smoking ban. Then again, smoking kills.