The word from a soldier just back from Iraq (Awesome Letter to the Editor - San Diego Union Tribune)

San Diego Union Tribune ^ | 12/18/04 | DALE MELVILLE

[bkwells]

The word from a soldier just back from Iraq

I have been in the Army for the last seven years. I have gone through the good and bad times in the military. It is a lifestyle that if you do not live every day, you cannot even come close to understanding.

I have been to Bosnia, Kosovo, and have just returned from Iraq. I can tell you that no one feels the loss of soldiers more than we do.

Even the families do not deal with the emotional pain and stress that we do when we have to pick up the remains of our friends – the same friends that we joked with, lived with, even shared our deepest fears and worries of life with, and in many cases the same friend who saved your life the week before.

I am always concerned with how the Army can be more effective at saving the lives of my fellow soldiers. Armor is not always the answer. In fact, armor can prevent us from being able to do our job. Every pound of armor makes us less effective fighters.

I patrolled the streets of Baghdad in a Humvee that had no doors, let alone armor. This was a decision that I made so that I was a more effective soldier. With better fields of vision, I could respond more effectively to the hazards of a combat zone.

I am an explosive ordnance disposal technician tasked with the removal of the roadside bombs, or IEDs, and unexploded ordnance in Iraq. The IEDs in Iraq often have enough explosives in them that the armor on most trucks proves to be ineffective at close range. Armor is a great asset and improves morale in some cases, but it is not the answer to our problems in Iraq.

There has never been an IED campaign in the history of the world like the one we are living through in Iraq. There is no way the leadership that sent us to war could possibly have known to expect these extreme attacks on its fighting force and the effects on the morale that the Army has suffered during these attacks. What the Army needs is to hunt out and destroy these insurgents, and that, of course, is not an easy task.

Then comes the true kick in the gut. The news media do not report the great things that we have accomplished in this country – the lives we have saved, and freedom that we are providing to a people who do, in fact, want this freedom. Freedom is not won overnight; there are pitfalls that must be overcome, and that takes time.

Instead, the media have decided to attack our morale by attacking our top leadership. There are a lot of things a soldier must deal with in combat; how are we supposed to perform when we have to deal with irrelevant controversy in Washington, D.C., as well?

The truth is that we have excellent leadership that supports us in every mission and provides us top-of-the-line equipment to accomplish our missions. We are at war, and war is not perfect.

I joined the Army because I love my country, a deeper and different love than I think most Americans can understand. I find this same patriotism in the soldiers I work with, even though there are prevalent risks to their lives. They do this because they and I believe in our country. We are soldiers: We adapt and over come all situations. We have been doing it since the birth of our country.

Leave our leadership alone, and we can and will win this war; and frankly, we do not need your selective reporting of how we are doing. We know our mission and objectives; our leadership has and continues to inform us wisely.

DALE MELVILLE Pine Bluff Arsenal, Ark. Ramona

[marmar]

I just haven't figured out how to cut and paste. So I rely on BC. He is really cool that way.

[U S Army EOD]

If you meet this guy on the street, reach out and shake his hand but keep your left hand on your wallet. I know these EOD guys.

In most cases, body armor does little good when you are working on an IED. It just basically adds to the frag to include your body parts that might hit a friend behind you. I know of one case in Vietnam where one of our guys got a sucking chest wound from the fingers of the guy in front of him.

I personally had to use both arms and push with both legs to pull the bones of a leg that went through a ammo box one time so I could put it in the body bag along with everything else we were picking and literally scraping up with my trusty K-bar knife.

We never used body armor or any other type when we were in Vietnam. When you get an earburst from a large explosive item, its all over. We always use to wonder if you could see the case swell before you died.

These guys have really got it rough compared to what we did because of the technology that is now available to build IED's. Pray for them.

[CedarDave]

To fledgling jounalists, putting the same face on Iraq as was put on Viet Nam would be a badge of honor. In their twisted way of thinking it would give them the recognition that the Dan Rather's got during the Viet Nam war. Individually, no matter what they say about "making the world a better place", it is in their subconscious that they can have a better place in future assignments/positions in journalism if they treat the war this way so that they can gain favor with their editors (now and in the future) and be given special recognition among their peers.

[CedarDave]

Despite one soldier's journalist-written question to Rumsfeld, Rummy is well regarded by the troops. They respect a no-nonsense defense chief who does not sugar-coat problems like most politicians, but instead tells it like it is. I wish we had more Republicans like him in the Senate instead of always grandstanding McPain, Rino Collins, and Letscompromise Lott.

[blackie]

Just highlight and copy, then go to your email program and paste ~ or, just copy the FR link amd send it, that way they can read everyones comments. :)

[MikefromOhio]

thanks man...

I am sure that in a couple of months or maybe a year you will be right about me missing it. But as of right now, I could leave today :)

I have a lot of things cooking back home right now. Things that will be a lot easier for me to handle when I am back home.

Thanks for the thoughts man.

[MikefromOhio]

Armor is great, but there's no substitute for not getting caught napping.

---

ding ding ding!!!

we have a winner :)

[Eagle Eye]

Since I only get one BK meal every few months, eat one for me when you get back.

21?

[MikefromOhio]

it will be 21 and a wake up here in about 20 minutes or so (I go by east coast time :))

I had BK yesterday :)

[ChefKeith]

A note here from one of Your Clan, Sir

[Squantos]

HUA !

[Travis McGee]

Amen.

[zip]

ping

[Travis McGee]

Yep, great letter!