Proving their Mettle

Without discipline an Army would just be a bunch of guys wearing the same color clothing.

                       Frank Burns

     When I was back home my wife and I decided to drive to Lake Tahoe for the weekend. The drive was gorgeous, the ebon ribbon of highway slipped through mountains casting off their winter cloaks and sprouting the jewel bright raiments of Spring. As we climbed deeper into the Sierras lush conifer forests gave way to granite cliffs adorned with pulsing necklaces of snowmelt. After climbing through a unbroken chain of majestic vistas we arrived at Lake Tahoe. You would think that after seeing so much raw beauty the eye would be deadened - but you would be mistaken. It’s difficult to describe the cascading blues of Lake Tahoe. Those deep, clear waters are glacially blue – fatally blue - a blue usually reserved for afternoon dreams of a sapphire sky that seems to stretch on forever.

     Shortly after arriving on those beautiful shores we decided to stop at a small little restaurant to let the tangled knot of roads ease their grip on our stomachs. And it was there that I had my sole run in with television news. During leave I methodically avoided watching television. Other then sitting down with my wife to watch DVDs I don’t think that our set came on once.

     The restaurant was a cozy, warm little place in the way only a lodge high above the snowline can really be. Since we were only stopping for a few minutes to settle our stomachs we decided to pull up a seat at the bar. We were sitting there enjoying some piping hot soup and a deliciously cool beer when the news caught my attention.

     An immaculately coiffed local newscaster was there on the screen prattling the latest "news" from Iraq. In a perfectly measured voice the anchor rattled off the number of bombings and Iraqi and US casualties like she was reading off the results of a local baseball game. "Today in Iraq insurgents set off three massive explosions targeting Iraqi troops" came the anchors voice as the camera panned over a smoking crater "resulting in 43 Iraqi casualties" she continued as the camera swept over the splintered remnants of the ruined neighborhood. "In Mosul US soldiers died, bringing the total of US personnel killed to…." At that point I turned away. It was too much, listening to that disembodied voice pick through tragedies like a vulture. That broadcast was like a cloud passing over the sun for a brief moment. But just as quickly as that segment intruded in our happy gathering it faded as the scene cut away to the next news segment. The cloud passed over and the news faded before my wife’s loving smile.

     I didn’t think back to that clipped broadcast until I returned to Iraq. Here in the throbbing heart of Baghdad, swimming in a sea of shimmering heat - that news segment seems almost disingenuous. I’m sure that yesterday, half a world away that same newscaster spent 10 or 15 seconds covering the latest insurgent ambush before moving onto the local weather forecast. And I’m equally certain that someone watched that broadcast and grew a little more despondent about the situation here in Iraq. But what was lost in that syrupy smooth slice of news was a story that shows just how much Iraq has changed, and about how disciplined some Iraqi Army units have become in a few short months.

     I heard the story this morning from one of our NCOs who works hand in hand with the Iraqi Army unit that was ambushed. After conducting operations outside of our sector the IA unit was returning in the shadowy silence of early morning. The unit was moving in a snaking column, a long sinuous file that took them right into the waiting ambush. I can imagine the silence of that morning, the only sound echoing off the urban canyon the grumbling clamor of Bongo trucks and Iraqi vehicles making their way down the road. And then the silence was broken, and the sky was aflame with a storm of machine gun fire. The insurgents had set their ambush in the middle of a quiet residential area an arrangement that guaranteed that any returning fire would careen through a densely populated neighborhood and compound the tragedy by killing innocent civilians sleeping in their beds. The Iraqi unit took the worst the insurgents had to throw at them, making the wrenching decision to limit their return fire to protect the civilians the insurgents were using as unwitting shields.

     When the vehicles staggered back to their compound several were awash in clotting rivers of crimson.  Once their comrades were evacuated several Iraqi soldiers slipped away into the darkness. But these soldiers weren’t shirking their duty, they were slipping back to their own vehicles hoping to find the perpetrators and repay them in kind. As the vehicles started to head towards the gate the commander had to cooly intercede and order his troops to stand down.  His order stood, and the flow of traffic heading for the gate slowly scattered and parked next to their respective barracks.

     In the coming days I am sure the IA unit will find their attackers, and deal with them in an appropriate fashion. But that won’t be their defining moment – that came early one morning when they put the lives of their innocent countrymen over their own lives. In that moment they transcended personal desire and exhbitied the backbone of any professional army... discipline.

Comments

[Mustang 23]

And with out Frank Burns "Hot Lips" wouldn't have a cool name. :)

[Ledger]

Most of the public now mistrusts the biased reporting of the MSM. As you point out Maj. K. they are like Vultures picking over some poor victim. Further, their footage is collected by "stringers" who may be an out-of-work Iraqi or an operative of the Saddam's old guard. Many people feel the MSM are giving aid and comfort to the enemy - while neglecting the to show the disciplined surgical work of the Coalition (Including Iraqi forces). The only way to get the straight story is to hear it from you guys. Keep posting. It's an important part of the war.

[Beth]

Thank you so much for telling us about this, Major K. It's one of the most encouraging stories coming out of Iraq that I have heard so far! Please let those brave, self-sacrificing Iraqi soldiers know they have the support and prayers of America on their side.

[Dave]

Where did you learn to write? If the military doesn't pan out you should work for the California tourism board. Reading the post made me want to go there.

[em]

Very good post. I am going to write about it on my little insignificant blog, if you don't mind. http://thefrazzledsister.blogspot.com

[YankeePaPa13]

..Damn straight..gave me goose bumbs just reading..that sense of pride that makes it all worth while..Hoo-Rah for 'our' fighting Iraqi Troops.."Pay backs are in order"..and there is not one thing wrong with that sense of morale..Give them an 'Atta Boy' from me also..Takes Determination and Bravery..Semper Fi..

[Lexie]

I used your blog in my blog... http://texlex.typepad.com/just_keep_swimming_just_k/2005/06/quotblogs_are_j.html Thanks for being who you are and doing what you do.

[b]

as i read your overly descriptive account of driving up a beautifully adorned velvet ribbon, i wonder why you are listed with the military blogs

[Edward]

Hi T6, Your recounting of the action of the IA gives me hope that a proud and educated people are beginning to awaken after the long nightmare. They are learning from our best representatives, men and women of the services, how to rebuild and save their country. You should all be proud of your accomplishments so far. Yes, the MSM here is attempting to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. We look to the milblogs for the real story. The best of America are serving in Iraq and Afghanistan. May you all come home safe to lead here too.

[Scott]

Really good to be reading your posts again T6. Thanks for sharing about how much you love your wife too. It's good to see that you've been able to maintain a healthy marriage in the midst of all you're dealing with, speaks highly of you both. Your first-hand accounts of how things are going over there are so valuable. You just don't hear stuff like you share about the IA. Please know how much it is appreciated by many of us "back home". Press on!

[Sgt. B.]

Hey Thunder Six: The MSM has become so clueless, that I rely soley on what I read from you war-fighters with "eyes on" the area in question... And while the MSM has problems, YOUR integrity is, in my mind, still intact and unsullied! Semper Fi...

[MOM]

I have to remark on the inspirational comments you have at the begining of your posts. I do so enjoy it. May even start doing it myself. T6, I pray you keep them images of your loving wife and revisit them often. You paint a pretty picture. I also know if I didn't have blogs like this one I would be as disconnected as the rest of America who thinks this war hasn't touched them. Thank-you for opening my eyes. People like me need people like you.

[Yankee Sailor]

Quoting Frank Burns - and making it relevant. Well done. You get a gold star for this one!

[NYgirl]

Hey, glad to see you blogging again. Yes, the MSM only tells what they want you to believe. But, don't feel so discouraged, we know that they lie & tell only half truths, I doubt that too many people put much faith in what they say. The rise of blogs is proof of that skepticism. That's why the milblogs are so important. Thanks. God Bless.

[onecornerma]

Hey, glad to see you blogging again. Yes, the MSM only tells what they want you to believe. But, don't feel so discouraged, we know that they lie & tell only half truths, I doubt that too many people put much faith in what they say. The rise of blogs is proof of that skepticism. That's why the milblogs are so important. Thanks. God Bless.

[Navigator]

T6, thanks again for adjusting my attitude. I am sometimes disheartened by the one-sided reporting here. Your recounting of the Iraqis' actions gives me renewed hope. Freedom isn't free, and the good people of Iraq are showing that they are willing to fight for it. With help from brave people like you they will surely achieve it.

[Cathy]

It is good to hear what the Iraqi army is doing...Thanks for that. God Bless you and keep you safe.

[membrain]

Thanks for posting this. If we were to rely on the MSM we would only get the story that things are going from bad to worse.

[Keith, Indy]

When I see these types of stories over here, I am saddened and grow despondent... ...over the state of our "free press." Numbers without context are meaningless. Just as recounting the score of a game, doesn't say how the game was won or saved by the heroics of the team. That's why I rely on good men like you, and your comrades in arms to provide the backstory. We are witnessing history, and the next "greatest generation" will have a lasting impact on the world, both here at home and abroad. Take Care...

[rkluin]

I share your feelings on the media. Their reports make it sound like the Iraqi's will never be able to protect themselves and our American soldiers will be there forever to protect the public. The reality is the Iraqi's are starting to stand on their own and are starting to walk hand-in-hand with the coalition troops. Soon, they will be able to walk the journey without our help. It will be good to have you home. Stay safe.

[Curt]

Thank you for providing a powerful first person account of the "understanding" gap that is all around us. I think you have done a fine job of making it real. I also commend you for your abillity to recognize how you have changed, and how you can describe that feeling by the way of your masterful description of the beauty of the trip you two took. I am in awe of a military that can think in flash about not only how to tactically respond to an ambush (which, with training, should be pretty routine by now), but instantaneously exercise "situational awareness" to protect those who are not part of the conflict (this is that addition that takes refined decision making), and at the same time, know that will mean they must risk their own future as a result (and to know you may die because of your decision). This is the story our news media needs to report, and not in a clinical manner, but with the passion and wonder it should be accorded. It is on the moments like this, carried out by many who are not even old enough to drink a beer, that history is being built upon. I think we are seeing another "Greatest Generation" making their mark on the World.... Please keep telling your story!