Priorities

A check of the most recent headlines on most of the big news websites:


-Lindsay Lohan out on $75,000 bond after 5 hours in jail


-Marc Anthony wants JLo to gain weight


-Florida woman finds six foot alligator in house


-Sheen gets dumped by "Goddess" in text message


-The Royal Wedding is in full force too, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.





Nothing of the four Soldiers killed and 11 wounded in Afghanistan on 22 April.


Nothing on the two Troopers killed in Iraq three days ago either.


And nothing mentioned about the eight guys killed in Afghanistan on 16 April.

Over 160,000 Soldiers spent another Christian holiday in a muslim country. Hope you had a good Easter.

We have been in Afghanistan for 3,485 days. Operation New Dawn has been chugging for 234 days. (Did anyone even know we changed the name from Operation Iraqi Freedom to Operation New Dawn?) Operation Iraqi Freedom lasted over seven years = over 2,555 days.

I'm neither a Bush or Obama fan or critic, but it sure seems like America's wars have been placed on the back burner since Obama came in. In his State of the Union address in January, Iraq wasn't mentioned, and Afghanistan was mentioned I think once.

Regardless of your opinion on the wars, we are still here, and we are still fighting it, we are still making the difference we can make, until someone tells us we are done. So say hi to a Soldier, Sailor, Airman or Marine and tell them thanks. Get involved, give to the USO, or just be grateful to have what we have in the US because 1% continues to sacrifice for the benefit of the other 99%. Or, write your politician and express your opinion.

Just don't take it for granted.

Sorry, had to vent.

Put up or Shut Up

Most that have known me in my career know that I can be more than critical of my higher headquarters. Well, with the promotion came a big combo plate of "whatcha gonna do now that you are in charge?" My new position has me in charge of all of the operations for the Brigade, in a completely different section of the country. I am now "them" and "those guys."

Regionally I am more southern now, and I have never been to this part of the country. Add to the madness, I was the furthest removed from the Brigade's operations-- my old unit was detached and was working in Baghdad. So the irony is they took the guy who was most ignorant of everything going on in a four province area and told me to get busy. The joke's on me now.

It has been an interesting week, and I still struggle to understand the Brigade's unique problem set. Luckily the guy I am replacing is still around and walking me through it. I learn a little more each day the more I read and visit and talk to folks. The next month or so is going to be rough until I can figure things out.

The problem is different here. The part of the country we are in is extremely Shiite, and there is a good chunk of it to the east that really wants us to go home. Baghdad was in was more secular, and while there were people who didn't like us, it was about what you would expect for a big city. Stuff up there for the most part is going well, minus the occasional car bomb. Some places here are doing fine, investment is coming, and there is potential and progress. Most of the Iraqi Security Forces (ISF) are demonstrating more capability every day, and training, advising, and mentorship continue. US Soldiers continue to demonstrate the right way to do things through action every day, and it is beneficial. Some ISF, however, aren't ready. That is a complicated problem to explain that involves religion, tribes, outside influences, and a high level of animosity. But for the most part, the ISF is ready for us to take the hand off the bike seat.

Here, I think part of the problem is bitter hatred for anyone who isn't in the tribe or who hasn't lived here for at least 2000 years. Some say the violence is increasing, but I bet if we leave it will pretty much fix itself. There is a lot of foreign meddling on many different levels with different interests, and we may be a big part of the problem. If we left I am not sure the violence would be exported to other parts of the country due to the regionality of the people. I think Iraq is almost ready for it to become what it will become. We have to leave to let this happen, and we have to allow it to get ugly so it can get better. It will likely take a long time, which sucks for the Iraqi people. But much in the same way the US became what it is, warts and all (civil war, civil rights movement, great depression, government corruption, you get the idea) Iraq has to have its catharsis.

I hope we aren't around to see it.

Take care-
Ron

Lieutenant Colonel Ronald of Arabia

Last night I got promoted to Lieutenant Colonel. We did a small impromptu ceremony in the dark and I got a chance to say a few words after my Squadron Commander pinned rank on my Stetson, and my Brigade Commander stuck the rank on my chest.

My comments centered on an analogy of the three doctrinal elements in a raid, drawn from my formulative experience as a light infantryman. The three elements are Assault, Support, and Security. In a raid, nothing in the assaulting element is achieved without a good support element and a good base of fire. Everyone who has ever been a light guy knows the Support element usually gets hosed... They carry the heaviest stuff the furthest distance, occasionally they have to pull the assaulting element's bacon out of the fire, they rarely get any glory or appreciation for what they do, and they usually finish the raid as they started- cold and wet.

Throughout my career I have enjoyed three distinct groups who have made up my support by fire element. The first is my family. My parents gave me a foundation and let me do what I wanted to do. Somewhere along the way I met someone who I thought would be pretty neat to share life with- we got married, and then I established a history of leaving for extended periods of time. When I was home (defined as not deployed or at training) I was perpetually unable to tell her when I would be home each night. Our 13 year old daughter has sacrificed much more than the average kid, but I am amazed and inspired by how she handles diversity and turmoil. For some reason they stick around, and I am grateful they do, as they make it all worthwhile. I regret they were not able to see it in person, as all great achievements aren't worth much if you don't have someone to share them with.

The second group is a solid core of Noncommissioned Officers (NCOs). My Drill Sergeant (SFC Darrell Jordan) team leaders, squad leaders, and platoon sergeants (SGT Tanner, SSG Horner, SFCs Daily and Fasavalu) all gave me a solid foundation of what being a Soldier looked like. As a tank platoon leader, I had four platoon sergeants, all who kept me straight, and other NCOs in the platoon made me technically competent. As a Commander of two different organizations I had five First Sergeants, all were vital partners in the Command, all helped me negotiate difficult leadership and moral challenges, all who continually reminded me what we were there for. In every staff position I held, there was a strong NCO to keep me straight. And as the Squadron S3 and XO, I enjoyed fantastic First Sergeants and a superb Operations Sergeant Major as well as Command Sergeant Majors. They are the true backbone of the force.

The last group I had in my support by fire position was a crop of peers and senior leaders (Company Commanders, Squadron and Battalion Commanders, and a Brigade Commander or two) who mentored me along the way. They let me fail and learn the hard lessons when I needed it, but they didn't let me be a failure. They listened, gave tough love when it was needed, dispensed wisdom and clarity when I was fogged, put up with some pretty goofy ideas, and helped me achieve my potential, even when I was content to settle.

I am grateful to all. Now it's time to get to work.

Thanks for reading- take care.

LTC Ron

The Westboro Baptist Church, Wayne Sapp, Terry Jones, and the Guardians of Freedom

SSG Jesperson is married, and has been for six years. Unfortunately, in those six years of marriage, he has had three one year tours and one fifteen month tour in Iraq. In the small amount of time he spent home, he went to two six-month schools, and spent four additional months at various training centers preparing to deploy again. When you ask him if he has kids, his reply is "well, you have to be home to do that." SFC Hanover is on his fifth tour, if you count Desert Storm in 1991. He is retirement eligible, but chose to deploy again because he wanted to make sure all of the Soldiers under him made it back alive. He was successful in the volatile Diyala Province in 2006, where the Squadron battled daily with insurgents. Overall, the Squadron lost 19 Soldiers in that 15 month tour, but because of his diligence, none of them were SFC Hanover's. MAJ Clark deployed to Iraq during the 2003 invasion, again in 2005 as a part of a training unit that did more fighting than training, again in 2007 as a combat advisor, and in 2010 he deployed to Afghanistan as an Operations Officer for a Cavalry Squadron. During an ambush in Afghanistan, two Soldiers in his small element were killed, and MAJ Clark was significantly wounded. The Squadron Sergeant Major was severely injured in May of 2005 in the Zafaraniya neighborhood in Baghdad when a suicide car bomb exploded, killing four children and severely wounding him. He lost his thumbs, and if you laid out all of his scars on his body, they would measure something ridiculous like 18 feet. He could have chosen medical retirement and gone to the house, but he continues to serve. MAJ Miller is on his fourth tour as well. In 2003 his unit took what is now known as the Baghdad International Airport as a part of the 3d Infantry Division. He was likely a candidate for Traumatic Brain Injury from the RPG that hit his vehicle in 2005, but he never sought treatment. He speaks almost fondly of Cigar Night on FOB Falcon, where they stargazed on the roofs, smoked cigars, and watched the Katusha rockets come in. They, and about a million others just like them, are the guardians of freedom. Wayne Sapp, Terry Jones, and the Westboro idiots can say what they want because of the guys like those listed above-- Call it a by-product of Freedom. But having freedom doesn't mean freedom from consequences. These nutjobs truly give us a bad name and it's a shame we can't beat them for being stupid. The blood of those killed in Afghanistan is on their hands. I wish there were a legal way to hold them legally accountable. Sorry this update was a long time in coming. Was going to write about Libya, but maybe later. Regards, Ron

Ronald Of Arabia's Plan for Getting Everyone Out of Iraq

Ronald Of Arabia wacking a golf ball off of the balcony of Al Faw Palace, home of USF-I Headquarters

The problem of how to get everyone out on a decent timeline persists at another "we gotta figure this out" conference at USF-I. As referenced below, everyone wants to go, but no one wants to go home because we assess we that need everything up to the last minute. Here's my plan for how to do it by 31 December:

Start with all of the goofy headquarters by making things uncomfortable.

Make them show an honest "Troops to Task" list (the kind they always ask us for) that shows exactly who does what in their headquarters, and then painfully question why one general needs a personal staff of six Public Affairs guys, a 30-man PSD, a Secretary, a Civilian Administrative Assistant, an Aide de Camp, and a reservations Clerk at the VIP hotel (I am making this up, but I don't imagine I am too far off).

Then start making people move CHUs (Containerized housing unit- basically a mobile home that Soldiers live in).

Have them move a lot.

At a minimum, move all of the acronym headquarters people 2-3 times a month. Move them into CHUs without working air conditioners. Make the higher ups turn in their suburbans and have them ride in tactical vehicles around the Victory Base Complex. Then ration the gas. Shut off the commercial internet in the CHUs. Then get rid of the contracted restaurants- Shut down the coffee shops, pizza joints, concessions, local vendor stores, and souvenir shops.

Stock the PX with only one kind of shaving cream, one kind of razor, one kind of toothpaste, one kind of bar soap.

Then get rid of all the deoderant.

Then, each unit has a Class I account for food and drinks (seperate from the chow hall). All that is in this thing is sugary snacks and sodas anyway, so shut that down (except for the Diet Coke). Start rationing power and shut down generators randomly. Remove all the air conditioners from the CHUs. Reduce the size of available tactical bandwidth, and force units to simultaneously turn in all their non-tactical vehicles (make everybody walk) and then downsize tactical vehicles and containers.

Then ration each Soldier to five gallons of water a day for everything.

Folks should be pretty bitter by now.

Next step: Get rid of the KBR four square meals a day in the big air conditioned DFAC and serve only MREs. Send all of the contracted manual labor home-- Dudes need to start taking their own trash out.

At this point, this should disband all of the goofy big giant made up headquarters and their bloated staffs and most of these will go home. For the ones that still stick around, get rid of the Triple Canopy contracted guard force and tax every unit left to provide Soldiers to guard the walls.

Then, stop selling tobacco products.

For the hardcores that just won't leave, do away with the sanitation contracts, and get Soldiers back to disposing of human waste the old fasioned way we did it before: Pour Diesel on it and set it on fire and stir liberally. For hours.

Remember: The war cost the taxpayer $800 billion for a reason. I submit if we did this in August, most would be more than ready to go by September.

Just a thought.


Of note: 15 March is a "double post day" so be sure to see the next one below too!

See ya,
Ron

Boredom: A By-Product of Victory...

We continue to grow into our role here, and it is a sociology project to watch people adjust to their 2011 surroundings when their frame of reference is 2006 or 2007. Iraq has changed a lot, and some have a difficult time with that. The tactics have changed, and the second and third order effects of actions are now significantly greater than what they were in the past.

There just isn't a great amount to do, because of the capability of the Iraqi forces, and also because the security agreement signed between US and Iraqi forces puts the Iraqis in the lead, which is fantastic. As mentioned before, sure- stuff blows up from time to time, but it is an acceptable level of violence as the Iraqi forms of politics, law enforcement, and self expression evolve. The Iraqis handle issues in their own way and have grown into their authority. I continue to think this is good.

The by-product of this is an obsessive-compulsive Army that is bent on fixing things that aren't really broken, driven to leave a lasting impression and have a positive impact on a force that has had its share of mentoring, and quite frankly, in my assessment, ready for us to leave.

I heard a good analogy the other day: The US Army is great at fixing things and solving problems. Our problem is we don't know how to stop.

We stay because of what might happen: There are still potential for bad things to happen, still bad people here, but I am not sure the US Army is the best tool that can fix those things. And again-- we can continue to fix problems, but there has to be a GICOL (Good Idea CutOff Line) where it is time for other instruments of US and regional power (State Department, Arab League, OPEC) to step in and make Iraq what it will be. I have no idea what this will look like, and I don't think anyone else has an idea either. But I think we are close to that line for US forces, and it will be interesting -almost fun- to see it evolve.

The good thing about it is it gives Soldiers a break, it gives us a chance to take care of some guys, do some training, and catch our breath before we eventually move out of here.

Stay tuned.
Ron

My Iraq Analogy

I think I referenced this theory in a previous entry, but I think it is worth mentioning again, as it helps define what is going on in Iraq.

The United States of America is almost 236 years old. In that time we had two governments (the first one, Articles of the Confederation, failed and the founding fathers got a do-over and created the US Constitution), a Civil War where one part of the nation seceded, a civil rights movement, a women's liberation movement, a couple of world wars, a border war with Mexico, an industrial revolution, and a technology revolution. Along the way we also had a couple of recessions, a massive depression, some weather catastrophes, some social services implementations, and a Revolution started it all.

Iraq has done all that in eight years. So sure, it's not exactly going to be smooth sailing.

But to their credit, they are figuring it out. They even passed a budget, on time, something we still have yet to do. And theirs even has a surplus. Sure, stuff blows up from time to time-- that's how this part of the world expresses itself. Most of the attacks have some political ties to them, but they are fragmented. And yes, Al Qaeda is still here, but their attacks do nothing but disrupt the day for a short time, and people are so used to it they go about their business shortly after the attack. Sure, there's corruption; one need to look no further than our own political system and Government and see much of the same. Sure, they complain about civil services being inadequate... Under Saddam, no one paid anything for electric, water, medical care, education, or food, and no one paid taxes, so naturally they have high expectations for their government. Saddam pretty much created the welfare state (you could argue we are on the same road).

But every protest, violent event, or IED could be considered another form of Democracy: People holding their Government accountable, one way or another.

Call it growing pains. Iraq certainly has potential. I just hope they keep growing.

See ya.
Ron