Posted on 09/26/2005 7:06:40 AM PDT by KeyLargo
Back from Iraq
Kasher had good time... and wants to go back
http://www.morrisdailyhearald.com
By Casey Toner Herald Writer
Saturday, September 24, 2005
Corporal David Kasher found the children of Iraq to be very receptive to American soldiers. Heres something you dont hear very often Corporal David Kasher had a great time serving in Iraq.
And, he really wants to go back.
Im glad I went, Kasher told a packed Fossil Ridge Public Library auditorium recently. I didnt think it was too bad. I actually had a great time out there.
The Braidwood native and Reed-Custer High School graduate served in the Middle East from Sept. 14, 2004 until April 2005, as U.S. Marine infantry, scoping out roadside bombs, manning turrets on Humvees rolling across the desert and helping train the Iraqi Army and National Guard.
Kasher signed up for the military Oct. 30, 2001, little more than a month after the terrorist attacks of 9/11. But there was a hang-up, he said, the word army in front of the ranger. So, like a regular jarhead, he enlisted in the United States Marines.
I looked at all branches and wanted to do something elite, Kasher said.
Enlistment led him out of Braidwood and into San Diego, Calif., where he marched through 13 weeks of training.
It was fun, Kasher said. It really wasnt too bad because I wanted to be there and I was in good physical shape. Its all a state of mind.
As was the Crucible a final challenge the size of a Californian mountain.
And then you have the Crucible, Kasher said. Minimal sleep, a couple hours a night, two-and-a-half meals for the two days. 54 hours. Its a lot of team building exercises that make sure you can lead.
At the end, you hump and go up the Reaper. Its a mountain. Its a big hill mountain and you march up that.
After finishing camp, Kasher was shipped to the fledgling democracy of Iraq.
Under the shining sun, Kasher carried 40 to 50 pounds of gear a day a helmet, flack jacket, backpack stuffed with gear to last two days (food, ammo, etc.), blanket, sleeping bag, and a backpacked water jug with hose straw poking through the front.
But mostly he didnt walk he stormed, kind of.
American troops raced across Iraqs rolling desert in Humvees, cutting down (but not out) the long hauls, or humps, through the desert.
We walked from Al Mahmudiyah to Al Latifiyah. It was a 26-kilometer hump. We humped from one state to the next and that would wear on you a bit, Kasher said.
When Kasher arrived in Iraq, it wasnt all sand and desert there was sand, lots of sand, yes, but there were also groves of palm trees and swimming pools in Baghdad.
It was hot in the day, but not burning hot. At night, a deathly chill claimed the country.
I dont know how hot it was, but it was the second coldest Ive ever been in my life, Kasher said, adding that he wrapped himself in flak, army issue blankets and all the gear he could scramble together yet still felt undeniably cold.
Possibly the grossest surprise was the plague of houseflies that stormed the area in 2004-2005, earning its fair share of television coverage.
Kasher described the plague as biblical, so large and plentiful the insects could cover military humvees like crawling sheets of black.
Media Misinformation and Rebuilding Iraq
Dont believe what CNN tells you Iraq isnt that bad. Its no bombed-out war zone.
The mainstream news, Kasher said, failed.
They dont portray whats going on there; theyre always looking at the negative, Kasher said. Ive never seen an article where theyre talking about how the power is back on and the water system is up and how the children are responding to us. The media doesnt want to portray it the way it is. The media is trying to get better ratings and I dont stand for that.
The media doesnt convey the change he sees in society as Saddam Husseins torturous earmarks slowly wither away from the Iraqi people.
The people are changing, theyre starting to understand how things are going on, Kasher said. Theyre getting more liberal with their opinions, voicing them. Theyre having a stronger sense of community.
They would say Saddam killed my brother or whatever else damage was done. Thats why its going to take some time for them to take control of their own country. Theres been generations of them knowing Saddam and how he treated his people.
Husseins former people have suffered such a terrible history, he said, they identify more with tribes and families than a federal government.
And training the Iraqis was harder than it should have been, Kasher said.
It was hard because of the language barrier, he said, adding paid interpreters helped guide the Iraqi army into form. For the most part, keep them close and watch youre back, because you dont know what theyre up to.
Iraqi army officials were mainly volunteers off the streets of Iraq, looking for a job.
While danger wasnt immediate, Kasher braved it a few times an improvised explosive device rocked the Humvee in front of him in his first few weeks in Iraq.
We were going through late at night I saw a flash and heard an explosion, he said.
It flipped over the truck in front of him and sent a golf-ball sized shred of shrapnel into the gunners arm.
Until then, (Iraq service) was like playing cowboy, Kasher said. All it did was make me sort of realize where I was at.
The second time, an improvised explosive device merely cracked the Hummers windshield.
The insurgents dont know what theyre doing when theyre making these things, Kasher said. They buried it too deep or two shallow, so we got lucky.
As part of the group that investigated improvised explosives, Kashers squadron ran across a bomb shaped like dog.
It was an IED that was a cutout of a dog made out of wood. Two mortar rounds above it were rigged to explode, he explained.
Throughout his tenure, Kasher faced live fire as many times as he can count on two hands.
The biggest thing is stay calm, remember where youre at, where everyone else is at and where your enemy is at, Kasher said.
Its all thinking as far as knowing what your next move is. Before that time, we had our immediate action drills and theyd remind us what wed do in every single situation.
When I got ambushed from a palm grove, it was one of those things where we laid out, spread some fire, turned into the ambush, dismounted and went towards the enemy.
Despite the instances where insurgents shot at him or his buddies, Kasher insists Iraq is not entirely a war zone and that insurgents are not fighting a holy war, merely a tribal war.
Kasher said most of the insurgents march through the Syrian border, a desert border the size of Texas.
Iraqs tribal community contributes to the insurgency and some Iraqis have insurgent relatives or friends living in Syria, Kasher said.
Military presence in Iraq will probably continue for many years, because like with the Korean War and rebuilding of Japan, troop presence is vital to success.
Its a great military spot to have marines there anyway because it gives us a presence in the Middle East, Kasher said. If something were to happen, we could react faster. I do believe people will be in Iraq for awhile. For safety, just to make sure democracy does work.
Since he has come home to the states, Kasher said its been an easy adjustment process no sleep loss or post-traumatic-stress disorder of the sort veterans of other wars suffered.
Just mementos of the awareness Kasher earned by tramping through the dusty streets of Iraq.
I sometimes catch myself if theres a car riding low (on the expressway) I wonder whats in the back, he said.
As far as the welcome home, Kasher sometimes gets a free meal from the local restaurants and bar patrons tend to buy him drinks.
Anything to accommodate the local boy that flew to Iraq, trained foreign troops and scoured the road-side searching for hope and explosives shaped like house pets.
The mainstream news, Kasher said, failed."
Semper Fi Marine!
The biggest thing is stay calm, remember where youre at, where everyone else is at and where your enemy is at, Kasher said.
Good Advice...
The mainstream news, Kasher said, failed.
Truer words have never been spoken.
Hmm. That artistic work really bombed!
At least they didn't put Mohammed in a jar of urine.
Dont believe what CNN tells you Iraq isnt that bad. Its no bombed-out war zone.
The mainstream news, Kasher said, failed.
I wonder what he thinks CNN stands for -- Klinton News Network, Communist News Network, or maybe it is the Comedy of Mis-information Network (CMN)...
Need to get more people to hear the thoughts of returning service personnel...
bttt
I am impressed with the level of maturity, responsibility and awareness military service creates in these young people. Corporal David Kasher demonstrates it well. It's tough duty over there, but those that return are better citizens than those who have not served. God bless them and the USA.
I would drink from the Hudson before I drink from the Mainstream.
Sounds like a fine well-rounded normal human being with his head on straight.
I tel Ya'll...this Devil Dog could be THE 21st Century Audie Murphy..except that I don't think Pvt. Murphy was USMC.
And, he really wants to go back.
Im glad I went, Kasher told a packed Fossil Ridge Public Library auditorium recently. I didnt think it was too bad. I actually had a great time out there.
Holy cow ping!! What an awesome hero is he!!! I don't have my ping list at work - TOnk, yould you mind??
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