Bouhammer Note- The following is part of a series of dispatches (blog entries) from my good friend Andrew Lubin. Andrew’s site is andrewlubin.com/. Andy is currently embedded in Afghanistan with the Marines and has given Bouhammer.com permission to publish these entries.

While superficially 1st Platoon’s mission of patrolling seems to be the same daily grind, 1st Lieutenant Carl Quist and SSGT Chris Whitman are pleased at how their relations with the locals are progressing. Every day builds on the one prior, Whitman explained, “every day of peace and stability makes the locals like us more and more.”

The continuous patrols are paying off in a multitude of ways. “We’ve captured a lot of IED’s and IED-making equipment,” Quist said,” from 10 – 30/lb IED’s, plus fuses, plus pressure plates. We’re burning up their supplies and our patrolling makes it more difficult for them to re-supply.” The locals are friendly and getting friendlier, he continued. “It’s a matter of trust and confidence; the shopkeeper up the road told me that they like the Marines and don’t like the Taliban, but don’t like the fighting. And while they don’t want to pay taxes to the Taliban, they’ll have to pay them to the Karzai government, so that’s a wash. But when I remind him that we’re the ones trying to bring schools and clinics, he nods and agrees.” Clearly the fight here is one of trust and confidence as much as firepower.

“The Taliban is scared of our firepower and our ability to use it so accurately,” Whitman said. “When we moved into this compound,” Whitman added, “we took fire within maybe the first 30 minutes; heavy duty stuff like RPK’s and other automatic weapons, and from all four corners; they wanted to test us right away – so we responded with heavy outbound fire and a Javelin.” Two weeks ago there was a firefight in which 1st Platoon shot two people who the locals identified as Taliban, which has dropped the level of incoming fire from machine guns attacks to that of scattered harassing fire. Plus four days ago a known bad guy was captured at a vehicle check point as he tried to flee on foot, Quist said, “he was carrying blasting caps and other IED-related items, so that may keep the area quieter.”

The Taliban wanted him back; they forced a delegation of village elders to travel to Camp Hanson and beg for the Talib’s release; even bringing in an unknown woman to claim she was his mother and that he’d been arrested in error…but during the meeting some of the elders were gently shaking their heads at the Marines and motioning “no,”, and the young man remained detained.

During the “clear” phase, there were no civilian casualties, and the villagers quickly became respectful of the of the Marine’s weaponry, and how it was employed. “During one firefight,” Whitman remembered when “the Taliban occupied a house 300 meters away, and forced the family to stay downstairs while they shot at us from the rooftop. After the fight was over, the family thanked us for not using a helicopter to destroy their house!”

With the three patrols daily bringing in considerable daily intelligence, Quist and his company commander discuss their short and long term goals daily. Although the locals agree wholeheartedly the Taliban needs to be killed, the question of how goes beyond avoiding collateral damage – 1st Platoon struggles daily with how to kill Taliban that always fights in and around the locals…

…there is a big irrigation canal north of this area, bringing water and acting as a sort of boundary between the agricultural area and the desert. Three bridges cross the canal, and are becoming known Taliban crossing points, a situation that is being addressed by Quist and his CO. Should we destroy one or more of the bridges, the CO wants to know, and if we do, what will be the repercussions from the villagers as to their own transit, as well as the overall response? And the bridges are substantial, if it’s decided to take out a bridge; should it be via engineers or EOD?

The enlisted Marines enthusiastically recommend an airstrike, with Hellfire missiles, and are promptly ignored by Quist.

But despite PB McElhinney’s austere environment, Whitman ensures that Marine decorum and discipline remains intact. The compound is policed, with trash and wag bags being sent to the burn pit several times daily. They cut each other’s hair. Even though the Marine’s clothing hangs virtually in tatters, weapons are kept clean, and between the morning and afternoon patrols, there was a promotion ceremony; lining up in a column of two’s, 1st Platoon watched as two Marines were promoted to the rank of Lance Corporal.