This morning started with me reading an email saying that the President had ordered flags at all military bases world-wide to be flown at half-staff in light of the Virginia Tech University shootings. So before I did anything, I walked to our flag pole and lowered it properly to half-staff. After this was done, I got on with my day of a couple of cups of coffee, going through emails that arrived over night and checking up on the latest news.

Well the big deal today was going to the bazaar again, in order to get some last minute gifts and trinkets before we leave. This made the 3rd time in a row that we hit the bazaar up at the PRT, which is only there on Thursdays. We take that time to also head to the mail room and ship stuff out. So we worked our way through the bazaar vendors haggling deals and usually walking away from satisfied vendors with pockets filled with cash and we had hands full of bags. After an hour or so of shopping, we were all done and then headed to the post office. I brought along a couple of extra boxes this time so I could turn around and quickly ship out anything I had just bought. Today’s tally was 4 more boxes (which brings to a total of 15 boxes I have shipped home), all filled with items from last week’s bazaar and today’s bazaar run.

After I returned from the bazaar I sat down in front of my computer and recorded a video birthday greeting for my son Jordan, who turned 14 today. I wanted him to see it when he first got up and before he went to school. Another reason why I love technology, so I can do things like that. It beats a late letter or a few minute, scratchy phone call.

Speaking of technology, there was one thing I read today which upset me a little bit. I mean, we joke over here that we are the new Korean War (i.e. The Forgotten War), but I never realized just how much forgotten. Since the war started here in October, 2001 I have usually had friends here just like I have had in Iraq. So maybe I am more sober of the fact that the war has been and still is going on here. Also, with all the support, packages, wonderful letters and cards, and everything else we get from everyday Americans I thought that someone knew about this place. I realize that events here are not as heavy in the news as Iraq, but that is our own doing. The media goes to where the story is, because that is what the people want to watch. Anyway, I stumbled across this article today at www.caller.com/ccct/national_world_news/article/0,1641,CCCT_812_5491912,00.html and it just made me sick to read it. It is one thing not to be in the news or for people not to realize there is still fighting going on, but something else when support organization (or so they like to call themselves) refuse support to a family member of a fallen hero, or not even want to interview a family member just because their loved one didn’t die in Iraq.

A person dying for their country, whether it is a Marine guarding an embassy in a “friendly” nation, a vehicle accident in S. Korea, an IED hit in Iraq or a sniper in Afghanistan should not matter. Everyone that raises their hand and volunteers for military service is doing it unselfishly. They all know they could be in harms way and that their life could end prematurely or be disfigured for life. Where they died, how they died, or what they died from does not matter. Dead is F#$%^& dead. They aren’t coming home, they aren’t going to watch their kids grow up, and they aren’t going to be at family reunions anymore.

It should not take the media thinking it is newsworthy in order to judge someone’s sacrifice as honor-worthy.

And that’s all I got to say today….

It started as an idea from Rog-O and Prophet. We have a tradition in the Army of exchanging things with other country’s armies like patches, uniform things, coins or gear. This has been going on for as long as I can remember. So Rog-O and Prophet came up with the idea of trading some patches with the ANP and getting us some of the police patches in exchange for unit patches. Especially unit patches we don’t care about, like the 41st.

So one day we went over to visit the ANP on a regular trip and we cornered the Chief of Operations, who we normally deal with. Rog-O told him we would like to trade patches and handed him a stack of patches we had put together. Well the chief took us upstairs to what we though was the supply room with the patches, but instead he took us in to see the Asst. Chief of the Province. He is a nice man and always very hospitable, so there is no heartache with visiting him. None of us really knew what was going on or why we were there, so we just went with it. As the chai boy (what they call young boys in their mid to late teens who act as personal servants for more than just chai!!) served tea, candies, nuts and raisins we went through the normal introduction and small talk. We talked about our countries, cultures, and how things were going. Now this chief is in his 60s and like I said a very pleasant fellow to be around. During our talk we started discussing wives (because they can and do normally have more than one), kids, and things related to that. The chief looked at me and told me he liked our practice in the US of essentially “shacking up”. He said he thinks that is a good idea, because you can have “fun” but not have to get married. I must tell you that was not something I had expected to hear from him at all, much less in this meeting.

Anyway as we talked the chief of operations came in and explained to the General (that is the asst. chief of the province’s rank) that we wanted to exchange patches. We were not sure why the chief told him and did not just keep it between us, but then our terp explained that like the ANA, the ANP love to have ceremonies with Americans and will find any excuse to do it. The General started laying out a whole plan for us on how we could do this. He identified 9 people (which later grew to 11) that would stand side by side with one of our team and they would do the exchange and have their picture taken. As the conversation went on the General brought up the idea of maybe presenting certificates and I knew exactly what he meant. He meant from us to them. Afghans love color certificates. They also love having their picture taken. Can you blame them, everything in this country is brown, drab and ugly. Of course they would like to have color in their lives.

After about an hour of meeting, drinking chai, and eating nuts, we left with an agreement of a time and place. Later that day we had a team meeting and told them all to plan for this event and to feel free to bring anything they want to trade. I had my terp get all the names and ranks of the guys we would trade with and then I got busy designing a certificate. It did not take me long to get them finalized and all created. As soon as they were done, I put them in a folder to protect them and just waited for the day.

Well when it came time for the ceremony, we went to the conference room and they had it all ready. Several chai boys were in there putting out cups, getting chai ready, and putting out the finger food. The chairs were all set, the badges were setup and ready for handout. Yes badges, we would have been happy with patches but they actually gave us police badges in exchange for our unit patches. We took lots of pictures, they gave us badges, we gave each one of them a certificate and a patch. Just like the ANA, they love to face the group, hold the certificate over their heads and yell “For the Good of Afghanistan” or something similar to that.

The ceremony was over fairly quickly. At least it went faster than I thought it would, and was less than half the time it took to talk about it in the meeting with the General. Overall it was good for the ANP I guess. For us, we just wanted some patches, but came out even better as we now have police badges. As we walked back over to our FOB, I mentioned to the other guys that we can hold up our own jingle trucks and make some money, because now we are ANP.

…besides mine of course, then I cannot encourage you enough to read this one. It is not easy to read, it is not shiny and pretty. It is real. It was written from the heart and the head, neither of which I think will ever be the same in this young man.

If you want to know what it is like for many a soldiers, marine, sailor or airmen, then read this. Not all are like this and there may be some that hurt worse or are more confused.

When the troops all finally come home, when the CNNs and MSNBCs quit talking about war and start talking about senseless and not really important news again. When America as a whole starts to forget about war and what it has been like to be in one for the last 6+ years.

Well when all that stuff ends, a lot of our boys and girls may finally start to heal a little bit. Maybe, but who knows.

Check it out at gocomics.typepad.com/the_sandbox/2007/04/on_being_home.html

Well it did not take as long as I thought. The video is posted back up in the pictures area or at the link in the original posting. The video looks to work fine and plays all the way through to the end now.

Enjoy……

I was notified that this video was corrupt and not playing correctly. Due to my bandwidth constraints, it will take some time to re-upload it. As soon as I do and verify that it works correctly, I will post it and put an entry on here.

Sorry for the inconvenience.

TS

Yes, the much-hated and dreaded dust storms are back again. Like the new enemy activity, heat and sweat, it is just another sign that winter is definitely over here. For a good part of the day we had beautiful blue skies and it had to be in the high 70s to lower 80s today. Then around 4PM, I heard someone outside ask if that was thunder they heard. I thought someone was joking, until someone else responded that yes it was thunder. So I had to go out and look and you could see the sky had went from blue to grayish-brown. The wind was blowing hard and the wall of dust reaching hundreds of feet in the air was coming from the north. I called for Prophet to come help me put the cover on the Humvee and we ran out. The gunner turret seals are not the best and they leak like a sieve. So we put a waterproof tarp over the top and bungee it down during wet weather.

As we walked back into the room, the rain started falling and the dust began to overtake the FOB. You would think that rain would suppress the dust and not allow a dust storm, but not in this country. Here they seem to get along well so you end up with what looks like raining mud. It is absolutely wonderful and makes me want the days to go by even faster.

A pretty quiet date besides the weather today. I mean, the country is not quiet, we got stuff happening everywhere and the enemy activity continues to intensify, but so far we have been spared anything directed against us. However all of us that have been here for any amount of time are just wondering not if, but when it will happen. We are pretty convinced it will happen before we get out of here. So the trucks stay loaded, as do the weapons. The gear is ready, the radios are checked several times a week and we never let our guard down.

For me and my team, we continue to pack, consolidate stuff and mail things home. The goal is to go home as light as possible, so we don’t have 3 or 4 bags per person we are lugging everywhere. I am essentially living out of my rucksack now, and I have segregated all the stuff I plan on leaving here. Sometime next week we are planning on having our short-timers yard sale. This will be where we sell off the things we have acquired here and don’t plan on taking with us. Things like PS2s, TVs, microwaves, couches, fans, rugs, etc.

We also have our second Madden 07 Tournament going on. We had one the other day that Tumbo won. Since Ranger and LT Adam have showed up here, we have the right amount of players to have a decent tournament. So the second one is going on and it is competitive. I am sponsoring this tournament, so I have created some tough rules to try and even the playing field for everyone. So that is our excitement right now, and that is not bad excitement to have, considering what we could be having.

Until Next Time…..

I have mentioned before that I will start writing more blogs that are based on my observations and opinions. As with every blog here, these are my opinions and nobody else’s. I can only speak of what I see, know and hear from people I trust. The things I talk about in this blog entry and others that follow are not based off of one incident or purely my single observation. If I state something in my blog that I believe to be true, then I really believe it is TRUE. There may be others that feel differently and not like or agree with what I say. All I can say to that is, go start your own blog then. Nobody forces anyone to read this one, that is for sure. I have hundreds of readers of this blog, and maybe my opinions or observations will drive some away or attract some. I really don’t care either way. I started this blog for my family and friends, and anyone above that is icing on the cake.

I read in the news today that NATO is asking for 3400 more troops to be sent here in order to train Afghan Forces. The article said they want 60% of them to train ANP and 40% to train ANA. The article also said that our SecDef said the US may be able to contribute 1000 more as part of that 3400, but it could be tough because the Task Force here that is in charge of that is almost all National Guard and they may have a tough time finding the right people to fit this mission.

First let me say that if this mission was worth doing, then yes at least 3400 more would be good. In fact, that would maybe start to scratch the surface here. Since we have taken on the ANP training mission, all the teams that I know of are very low on people and are stretched thin. However, it will not make a difference, because as the saying says; “you can lead a horse to water, but you cannot make him drink”. They can put as many US soldiers here that they want, but these people are not going to get any better. They simply do not care. This country has no gross national product, they have no tax system, they have no way to generate revenue for themselves as a country or support themselves. If they are going to move forward like so many of us want them to do, they are going to have to rely on handouts. When we all pack up and leave here one day, there will be nobody paying the salaries of the government, providing them with infrastructure or anything else.

The only thing they have here that makes money is opium. There is no oil and the natural resources that are here are not enough to support the country. So I don’t see them “letting” us go. All this country has known for over 30 years is war. Between what the Soviets did and the Taliban, anything that could have grown here or prospered was destroyed. I have read that prior to the Soviet invasion, there were actually stretches of trees, and vegetation. But the Soviets wiped all that from the countryside while they were here and destroyed just about anything that could help the Freedom Fighters, whom eventually beat them.

The ANP are where the ANA were almost six years ago. They have had nearly no training, mentoring or specifically hand-holding like we have been doing for the ANA. The ANA are known to be corrupt, un-motivated and not really disciplined. The ANP are ten times worse. This country is not ready for two separate forces. Just like most third-world countries, they just need a paramilitary force. This is not the US of A. There is no separation of church and state or Habeas Corpus here. However, the great powers that be, think they can turn this place around on a dime. As Puss always says, “they are only a week and a half out of the stone age”. Our country did not have in place all the rules, regulations and laws that we do today. Why, because we were not ready for it back then. These people are not ready for it now.

Back to something else in my opening statement, the SecDef said they are trying to find the “right” people to send here. I am not sure why they are starting that now. As I mentioned in an earlier blog, this is a “Thank you on behalf of a desperate and grateful nation” tour. There are people here that are only here because their states have nobody else to send. They are not true leaders, never have been or ever will be. In the ANA and ANP, when someone screws up, they don’t kick them out, they just move the problem somewhere else. Why? Because they are a desperate army that is fighting hard to get near the strength in numbers that they need to be at. Well that is not so different here on the US side either. There have been team chiefs relieved, and even near mutinies that have happened because of bad leadership. There are people here of all ranks that DO NOT belong in the Army, much less in a combat zone. Many are not here, and instead hide out in the higher level FOBs and Camps. But there are some downrange that are so out of their element, it looks like a whale sitting in the middle of the desert. Unfortunately, states are getting thin on what they can send and it is not fair to send the soldiers that are always good, and leave the REMFs back in the rear collecting pay. If you are in uniform, then you should be able to serve. When people screw up on the US side, they typically do the same thing as the ANA, just move them somewhere else. Lucky for many of us, those screw ups have not cost lives, yet. Some have caused injuries, but lucky for most the screw ups are identified and moved to somewhere they cannot directly influence the lives of us downrange. That usually means they get moved to the HQ back in Kabul or at least higher up the food chain.

The bottom line is that they do need more ETTs here, since we are here for the long haul. They also need to have good ones here. True leaders, and true soldiers that will do the right thing, and not always the easy thing. They need people here that can think on their own two feet and be allowed to do so. They need to find a way to instill in the ANA, the will to want to do good and not just collect a paycheck. They need to find a way to instill in the ANA, the desire to do the right thing for the good of Afghanistan. This is something that gets many ETTs frustrated and what burns us out after about 9 months of being here. I think as a whole, just about everyone comes here to try and make a difference, try to make this country better for its people, safer for its people, and able to secure itself. I know I did, and just about everyone I know came here hoping we could leave it a little better than the way we found it. Nobody wants to try and help someone that won’t help themselves. Well that is what we are doing here. 95% of the ANA that I have experienced are only here for a paycheck. All they have ever known is war, so to them this is normal. For us, from the moment we get on that airplane, we put our “game face” on ready to be on 100% overdrive for a year and ready for war. For the ANA, this is just another day at the office.

Is there any easy answer….NO. There is no easy answer. Personally the only way I think we are ever going to leave here is to get the other NATO countries to step up and take this place over. Before we can do that, they ALL need to get into the fight. There are only about four other countries here besides us that really face the enemy, Britain, Canada, Australia and Poland. All the rest are restricted by their governments from direct-action, or don’t want to be near the threat of direct-action. There are many other countries here, but they are just about all in areas where the threat of enemy attack is nil to none. There is also no easy answer here because this country is not something that can be easily understood or tamed. It is a large country where every man is for himself, because there is nothing else. That is why the government is so corrupt, why the warlords truly rule all the areas outside of Kabul and why there will probably never really be peace here like we know it. It may be better than the Taliban rule, and for the people there that may be good enough.