Posted on 03/05/2005 2:33:57 AM PST by Jet Jaguar
BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) - Their enemy has changed, from Iraqi soldiers in uniform to insurgents in civilian clothes. But for the soldiers of the 3rd Infantry Division returning to Baghdad, some things remain the same.
The smell, for instance - a mixture of smog, rotting garbage and sewage.
"It's only here, it's only in Iraq," said Staff Sgt. Jason Barr of Roswell, Mich. "I don't know what it is, but it gets to you."
Nearly two years after they first entered Baghdad, the Fort Stewart, Ga.-based 3rd Infantry is back in Iraq, taking charge of the Baghdad metropolitan area. While some of the soldiers are here for the first time, most were part of the invasion and capture of Baghdad in April 2003.
Sgt. Joshua Butler of Jackson, Mo., is a team leader in A Co. 3rd Battalion, 7th Infantry Regiment. His company, code-named Attack, was among the first to roll into Baghdad and spent four months in Iraq in 2003. Bivouacked in an old barracks in south Baghdad, he feels as though he never left.
"The last time I was here, my guard was up 24/7 and I went back home and everything relaxed and it was fine," Butler said. "Now we're back and that feeling is there again all of a sudden."
Butler's life, like that of many of the returning soldiers, has changed since the invasion. He has been promoted from private first class to sergeant. He has married, has a child and owns a house.
"This time I have to think about having a wife and a daughter back home," he said. "I'm responsible now for bringing home my guys alive to their family."
The quick redeployment to Iraq takes a toll on families.
"Just as you begin to get relaxed and get back into a normal rhythm with your family, it starts all over again, the pressure of getting ready to leave again," said Barr, a father of two.
"It's not just being gone that's the hard part; the hard part is getting ready to leave, preparing your family for it and everything you do to prepare your family for it reminds them, and yourself, that you're leaving," he added. "The few months before you leave are hard; the first few months after you get back are hard."
The soldiers say what they fear most this time around are roadside bombs - there were at least 81 in January alone.
Patrolling southern Baghdad will be more dangerous this time around, said Spc. Jacob Pfister of Buffalo, N.Y., because the insurgents fight from the shadows.
"In a direct firefight, we've got them hands down. But what you have to worry about is what you don't see, driving up and a guy has got a bomb on the side of the road," Pfister said.
Although Pfister lost 25 percent of his hearing in a bombing in 2003, he has decided to make a career out of the U.S. Army. But many 3rd Infantry soldiers have seen their enlistment involuntarily extended.
Spc. Desmond Lackey, who was due to get out on Saturday, said his first thought on returning to Baghdad was: "My God, I can't believe I'm here again, I thought I was going to get out and go back to school."
The U.S. Army has told him that he won't be allowed to leave the service at least until the 3rd Infantry goes home next year.
The one thing all the soldiers agree on is that the living conditions are much better now. Instead of sleeping on sidewalks, they live two to a room in a barracks with running water and electricity. They eat hot meals in a mess hall run by KBR, a U.S. contractor, instead of prepackaged meals.
"I haven't had so much lobster in my life," Staff Sgt. Thomas Slago of Los Angeles said of the weekly "surf and turf" menu of lobster tail and steak.
But while life is more comfortable inside the garrison walls, with a television in almost every room, outside a war is still raging.
The last time the 3rd Infantry was in Baghdad, it entered with overwhelming force, fighting sustained urban combat from April 7-11, 2003. Their square patch with diagonal stripes became known as "the Death Patch" among Iraqis.
Capt. Ike Sallee, the 30-year commander of Attack company, served as a staff officer during the invasion and he said the mission in Iraq now is much more complicated.
"Iraq doesn't look different on the surface," said Sallee of Kissimmee, Fla. But "the threat is more dangerous now because of the unpredictability of the enemy."
He said the division will try to strike a balance - to make the insurgents fear his men, and instill hope in civilians.
Sgt. Micki Nixon, 32, of Jacksonville, Fla., said he wanted to see for himself how Iraq has changed since his first deployment here.
He said he believes the invasion was right and he planned to re-enlist so that he could "finish the job" of installing a sustainable, democratic government in Iraq.
But maybe not on this deployment, he acknowledged. "We'll be back several more times."
AP-ES-03-05-05 0305EST
GOD BLESS OUR TROOPS. WE LOVE YOU! DISCO
The U.S. Army has told him that he won't be allowed to leave the service at least until the 3rd Infantry goes home next year.
It's no mystery to me why the Army is not meeting recruiting goals.
I wouldn't want to go there even once.
When you join the US military you do as you are told.Sorry but that is the way it is.Hope it stays that way.
Military life ain't for everybody. But, if you're in and you gotta go, you go.
Ya think?
What's that got to do with my post?
Sorry that was meant to be to be to the original poster.
2nd tour. Use your 'Lessons Learned.' Stay Awake & Stay Safe.
Leadpenny are you sure you are on the RIGHT side of this? Im retired USAF and know what Im talking about.
Thanks
Recruiting and Retention were far worse in the late 90's.
The short sighted and ill calculated personnel cuts from 93' Bottom Review have come home to roost. We were supposed to be able to fight a two theater war after President Clinton was done trimming an additional 25 percent from the Bush 41 recommendations. Think that's possible now? I'm sure it provides the Iranians and Syrians great comfort.
Now sustaining 145,000 man liberation force for two years is grinding up the force!
These are the Best of the Best and they and their families will always be in my thoughts and prayers.
I'm afraid GWB's "no draft" may turn out to be the "no more taxes" of his father.
Ooops, more=new
The current situation is unprecedented (i.e., recalls in a matter of months).
I haven't thought of it that way but that is entirely possible.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.