It is a tissue alert, but a powerful dispatch to read and digest. After reading it be sure and tune into You Served Radio (www.youservedradio.com) next Tuesday on December 6th from 8-10PM EST to listen to my good friend, Soldiers’ Angels Executive Director, author and documentary film star, Toby Nunn reflect on and discuss this trip and share the details from these 108+ hours. 

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Also, since I am talking about RESTREPO, tune in tonight to You Served Radio at www.blogtalkradio.com/youserved to listen to author Sebastian Junger who is the author of the book that is partnered with this film talk about the book, the film and his experiences in Afghanistan.

Below is a new trailer and different from what I have posted here before. Please take a moment to watch it.

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We’ve got LTG Freaklley coming on the show this evening, and we’re pretty excited to have him as this is 2nd visit to You Served Radio. Lieutenant General Benjamin C. Freakley assumed command of U.S. Army Accessions Command, Fort Monroe, Virginia, on 18 May 2007, consisting of U.S. Army Recruiting Command, Fort Knox, KY; U.S. Army Cadet Command, Fort Monroe, VA; and U.S. Army Accessions Support Brigade, Fort Knox, KY. Additionally, General Freakley exercises Department of the Army directed executive agent authority over the United States Military Entrance Processing Command, North Chicago, IL, and executive oversight of the U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command Human Capital Enterprise Board. You can read more about LTG Freakley at www.usaac.army.mil/cg.html.

Tony Canzonieri and Abel Moreno from Vets4Vets.com will join us in the second hour. Vets4Vets is a non-partisan organization dedicated to helping Iraq and Afghanistan-era veterans to heal from the psychological injuries of war through the use of peer support. Founded in 2005 by a decorated Marine Corps combat veteran of Vietnam, Vets4Vets was selected the next year as one of the 50 outstanding nonprofits in the country serving returning veterans by the prestigious Iraq-Afghanistan Deployment Impact Fund (IADIF) for $1.2 million in start-up funding. Abel Moreno served 7 years in the Army’s 82nd Airborne Division 307th Engineer Battalion as a L.E engineer. He served one deployment in Afghanistan and one deployment in Iraq. He supported the 3rd Brigade Combat team along with L.E support with Charlie Company 307th Engineer Battalion. Duties performed were fortification, engineer recon, convoy security and demolitions. He has worked with Vets4Vets since 2006 setting up peer networks through out the country for Afghanistan and Iraq veterans. He leads and runs weekend workshops for Vets4Vets participants’ and is currently the Deputy Director for Vets4Vets.

If you can’t make the live show at www.blogtalkradio.com/youserved, you can listen to and download the archives afterward at that link or from iTunes.

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We get many guests on the YouServed Radio show that give and donate things to the show which we sell on the ebay store to raise money for the awesome charity of Soldier’s Angels. The auctions run Thursday-Thursday (because the radio show is on Thursday nights). Starting this Thursday Marcus has acquired the new book, Rage Company, A Marine’s Baptism by Fire (Amazon, Barnes & Noble) by Thomas Daly. In addition to getting this book if you win the auction, the publisher has also thrown in a BRAND NEW and much sought after iPad.

So the winning bidder, of the auction that starts on the 29th and will end on May 6th, will win not only this great new book but also a iPad. All in the name of Soldier’s Angels.

But you don’t have to wait until then to get some great stuff and help out Soldier’s Angels, because you can head over to the eBay Store now and bid on this week’s auctions. They are only gonna be up for 2 more days, so be sure and check out a brand new signed CD from Bridge of Sighs or a copy of the awesome book my Eric Blehm, “The only thing worth dying for”. I did a review of the book here on Bouhammer.com at www.bouhammer.com/2010/02/book-review-the-only-thing-worth-dying-for/. We also had Eric on the You Served Radio show on Feb. 12th, and you can listen to that interview at www.blogtalkradio.com/show.aspx?userurl=youserved&year=2010&month=02&day=12&url=episode-75.

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The great folks at VA Mortgage Center.com who sponsor the YouServed.com Blog and Radio show are sending me there, so needless to say I will mostly be blogging and tweeting for them. I will also try to put some posts up here on Bouhammer.com over the weekend, but look towards www.youserved.com to get most of the updates. Also check out www.vamortgagecenter.com/blog/livestream/ to follow our livestream of the entire conference.

Marcus and I kick off the unofficial start tonight when we host our You Served Radio show from the Hotel in Washington DC. CJ was also supposed to be with us, but due to a family emergency his plans had to change at the last minute. He should be calling into the show however. We will be having several call in guests, to include the lead singer of the awesome Rock Band Smile Empty Soul, Sean Danielson and Ceaser’s Palace Performer and UK music superstar Matt Goss.

In addition to them we will have several prominent milbloggers “in studio” like Greta Perry from www.kissmygumbo.com, Mark Seavey from the American Legion’s blog, burnpit.legion.org and This ain’t Hell, but you can see it from here, Boston Maggie from bostonmaggie.blogspot.com and more than likely several other surprise guests. We will kick off the livestreaming by doing it for the show tonight (or at least that is the plan right now). So if you are a regular listener to the show every Thursday from 7-9PM EST at www.blogtalkradio.com/youserved, you also have the option this week of “watching” the show.

But while you are waiting for the excitement, please check out our You Served ebay auctions that are going on. This week’s auctions have not done that well and then end in a mere seven hours from now. Head over to stores.ebay.com/userved and check out the Gina Elise Shirt and the Korean War coin. Back when the Korean War was going on, there were no challenge coins like there are now. So if you know a Korean War vet, they would probably love this beautiful coin to recognize their service.

I hope you follow along at www.youserved.com and especially the livestream feed. It will be a chance for you to “see” some of your favorite milbloggers.

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I have been struggling with how to write this review as I want to be able to highlight key parts of this book but don’t want to give it all away. I have edited this many times so I hope this review gives the book justice.

Eric Blehm (who was interviewed on You Served Radio Feb 11th, www.blogtalkradio.com:80/youserved/2010/02/12/episode-75) did a great job writing the story of ODA574 and how this single 11-man Special Forces A-team did the true Special Forces job of partnering with local opposition to overthrow an oppressive regime and help that opposition train to get ready to fight against the regime. In this case the oppressive regime was the Taliban, and the opposition was a little-known influential leader in the area named Hamid Karzai. Even though there were already SF teams and CIA in northern Afghanistan teamed up with the Northern Alliance, the Northern Alliance was a loosely disciplined and defined fighting force. In the south, it was Hamid Karzai with maybe a dozen loyal supporters.

Eric does a fabulous job of not inserting his opinion or viewpoints into any part of this book. Instead he simply tells the story of them men that were part of this critical mission. Actually to call it critical is an understatement. Had this team not partnered with Karzai, or had any number of things happened which could have caused this mission to fail, it is without a doubt that Afghanistan would not be where it is today. Yes, this 11-man team wrote history and has had a direct influence into where we are today in the Global War on Terror.

Kandahar was the last city to fall in Afghanistan, and was considered the headquarters of the Taliban in 2001. When that city surrendered the initial “liberation” stage of the war in Afghanistan was considered complete. The actions of this team, and many others that supported them caused that to happen. In addition to helping bring down Kandahar, they also protected Hamid Karzai at all costs because they recognized his importance to the success of Afghanistan.

Unlike many other books I have read which tend to name and highlight people that do good things but hide the identity of people that screw up, Eric does not do that. Because he is truly just telling the story of these men, he calls out and tells the story of even those that made mistakes…even mistakes that costs American lives. The book is an easy read and does not cause the reader to have a Google page opened up to define military jargon. As my buddy CJ says, it does not go into the technical weeds that will cause the non-Special Forces reader to get lost.

The book starts with a prologue of Eric finally getting a chance to meet with Hamid Karzai in a NYC hotel room. Eric was given 15 minutes between meetings of (then) VP candidate Sarah Palin and (then) Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. That 15 minute meeting dragged on for over an hour as Karzai recited many facts from memory about the men on that team and looked at photos that Eric brought with him. Secretary Rice was made to wait, but I am sure she would understand if she knew why.

As per Eric’s website, I want to highlight the following paragraph

From the author of the award-winning The Last Season comes a one-of-a-kind war story that redefines our understanding of America’s early days in Afghanistan. THE ONLY THING WORTH DYING FORreveals, for the first time, the astonishing true story of the Special Forces A-team that helped conquer the Taliban in southern Afghanistan, and bring Hamid Karzai to power. In powerfully simple prose, Eric Blehm weaves together the unbelievable chain of events that intimately expose the realities of modern unconventional warfare and international politics during the critical months after the September 11, 2001, attacks on the United States. Following Captain Jason Amerine and his ten Green Berets, Blehm puts the reader on the ground alongside Hamid Karzai and his guerrillas as the men of two very different worlds unite to seek a reckoning for the horrors haunting both of their nations…

The video below is Eric himself telling a good overview of the story and them men he wrote about. It is worth the watch.

The story actually starts with ODA574 training in K-stan with local forces there on 9/11/01 and how they agonized with being stuck overseas while their country is under attack. Eventually they get back to the US and thru all the right things happening at the right time, they become the team selected to insert into Pakistan for a mission that would take them and Karzai into Afghanistan to start what was supposed to be several months of local fighter training for an eventual clearing of Taliban forces in Southern Afghanistan. However, as we always say in the military, the best plans in the world get thrown out the window once you hit the ground. That is no different for these true warriors. Murphy’s Law was present, but they adapted and overcame and rather than a couple of months of train-up, they had literally days before they were thrown into the fight.

The courage and bravery of not only the 11-man A-team, but also the courage and guts of Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC) rescue pilots is demonstrated in this book. These guys flew the first daytime missions into Afghanistan, over populated areas and some of the crew had only been in the area for a few hours. Sadly the incompetence and fear of the Marine Commander at Camp Rhino is also portrayed and I am sure it will make you as mad as it made me. Especially seeing who that Marine General was and what he eventually became to be. I can also say (as I had blogged on here before) that this book changed my mind about Hamid Karzai. I have said some very non-so-nice things about Karzai on this blog many times, but after reading this book I have to be honest when I say that I have a lot more respect for Karzai now than I ever did before. Not to say Karzai is perfect, but at least I know how he used to be and where his roots are in the Global War on Terror.

The whole story is told in this book, from the impact of 9/11/01 on these guys and our military, to the planning process and decision making, to the decisions entrusted to a Captain (Now-Major Jason Amerine will be interviewed on You Served Radio on Feb 18th, 2010 at www.blogtalkradio.com:80/youserved/2010/02/19/episode-20) and 10 of his men to how things tend to get screwed up when higher command go against their own doctrine and micro-manage competent professionals.

There is no doubt that as the years pass, more and more “history” books will be written about the war in Afghanistan. But you don’t have to wait long to find out how our forces inserted cold into the southern part of the country, with no support network, cut off from the rest of the world while deep behind enemy lines. How they ensured that the person who would eventually be selected to lead Afghanistan (three times) stayed alive and how all of them were either wounded or killed doing it. But for those that died, they knew it was THE ONLY THING WORTH DYING FOR.

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!!!MEDIA ADVISORY!!!
MAKING EVEN MORE MILITARY WISHES COME TRUE
Overwhelming interest inspires Sears to extend the
Heroes at Home Wish Registry deadline

 
WHO:  Sears is pleased to announce that due to overwhelming interest in the Heroes at Home(sm) Wish Registry they have extended the deadline for military families to participate so that even more wishes can be fulfilled this holiday season.
 
Eligible military members and their families can register for the Sears Heroes at Home Wish Registry by visiting www.sears.com/wish. To be eligible for the program, a member of the family must be serving on active duty.
 
WHAT:  The Heroes at Home Wish Registry, one of a number of Sears Holdings’ programs supporting the military and their families, enables Sears’ customers to thank America’s military heroes for the sacrifices they make for our country. Through the Heroes at Home Wish Registry, Sears continues its long-standing tradition of support of the military, and especially their families, whose sacrifices also deserve much recognition and reward.                     
 
WHERE:  Eligible military members and families can visit www.sears.com/wish and register for the program. 
 
Registration is first come first serve, and opened at 6:00 a.m./CT on Thursday, Oct. 22.
 
Between Nov. 2 and Dec. 31, 2009, Sears will invite America to donate to the Heroes at Home Wish Registry which will provide military families with a Sears gift card.
 
WHY:  The Heroes at Home program provides support to service members, veterans and their families. Sears Holdings spearheaded nationwide fundraising efforts over the past year and has raised more than $16 million through Heroes at Home for several military programs. Heroes at Home has helped hundreds of military families across America and the Wish Registry continues Sears Holdings’ support of the men and women who serve our country. 
 
CONTACT:  To find out more about Sears’ Heroes at Home Wish Registry, visit www.sears.com/wish.  For more information on the Wish Registry please contact Carolyn Goldberg (carolyn.goldgber@eurorscg.com) or 212-367-6947.

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CLEAN VERSION

www.bouhammer.com/download/This_Is_War_acoustic_CleanRev.mp3

EXPLICIT VERSION

www.bouhammer.com/download/This_Is_War_acoustic_Explicit.mp3

They were supposed to be on the You Served Radio show last week, but Sean Danielsen broke his leg last week and was laid up in the hospital. Well being the real trooper he is, Sean wanted to get back on the show and make good on his commitment to us. So he will be on You Served Radio this week (Oct. 1st) which airs from 7-9PM EST at www.blogtalkradio.com/youserved as it always does.

Not only is Sean coming on the show as a representative of the band and offering the download for free, they have agreed to send You Served some signed posters, CDs and a brand new signed Schecter guitar for us to auction off at our You Served Ebay Store in order to raise money for Soldier’s Angels.

So if you have not checked out our You Served Ebay Store lately, you better start keeping an eye there.

You can learn more about the band at en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smile_Empty_Soul

You can follow them on Twitter at twitter.com/_smileemptysoul

You can become a fan of theirs on Facebook at www.facebook.com/SmileEmptySoulOfficial

You can follow them on Myspace at www.myspace.com/smileemptysoulmusic

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Those two postings have been some of the most popular and most searched on my site over the last few months. There are a lot of people who appear to like the show and are interested in Wil. Well I have good news for you fans, you can now become a fan of the Special Ops Mission & Wil Willis Fan Club United! Facebook Group. Wil himself is a member and is pretty quick in answering people’s questions, comments, etc. If you like the show, I suggest clicking on the Group name above and becoming a fan.

Now that the first 6 recorded episodes are over, I guess there are talks with the Military Channel about the topic of creating another season of the show or not. You can help with convincing them to continue with the show by voicing your opinion.

Some of the contact info to let the decision makers know how much you like the show.

Deborah Gottschalk
Publicist
deborah_gottschalk@discovery.com
240.662.2930

David Schaefer
Director, Communications
david_schaefer@discovery.com
240.662.2954

Kristin Brown
Vice President, Communications
kristin_brown@discovery.com
240.662.5415

When we interviewed Wil over at You Served Radio, the people at Military Channel were nice enough to send us a special Screener DVD for us to review. This DVD is a one of a kind. It has two episodes on it; AT SEA Episode 1: Aviation – Final Cut and the other is SPECIAL OPS MISSION Episode 1: Operation Urban Terror – Final Cut.

This series is not available for sale yet. We have been given permission to auction off the DVD in order to raise money for this month’s benefactor, Soldier’s Angels. This auction runs through next Thursday (Sept 24th). So here is your chance to grab a one of a kind DVD and in turn help out a great organization like Soldier’s Angels.

You can check out the auction at cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=320425402334

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Up to 500,000 ballots cast in Afghanistan’s election could be quarantined and investigated over alleged irregularities

www.rte.ie/news/2009/0911/afghanistan.html

However if you heard the interview that CJ and I did with PJ Tobia on You Served Radio episode #54 on Sept. 3rd or the Bouhammer Roundtable Podcast that I published here on September 7th then you heard first hand from PJ and Scott Kesterson that the Afghan people consider the election a success. You have to realize that these are a people that have never had freedoms, and for most of them all they have known is death and war.

As was explained by both PJ and Scott, the Afghan people consider any democratic election a huge success, so the Afghans have a hard time understanding why so many non-Afghans consider this election a failure. The Afghan people are so glad to be able to vote, any election is considered an accomplishment.

To put the Afghan election in perspective, the US 2004 Presidential election only had a 56% voter turn-out. 56% with no threat of death, no threat of IEDs, no threat of being mutilated for casting a vote. So 40% turnout in a country with not even a fraction of the transportation or technology that our country has, and with all of those threats facing the voters, 40% sounds pretty good.

So the question is what is the definition of success and who determines it? Is it the US or is it the Afghans? Can we as a country truly tell another country how to run honest and fair elections after the last Presidential election we had? Who are we to tell another country that their election was not open, honest and fair after we had ACORN all across the county registering dead people and fake people, and groups like the Black Panthers using physical intimidation as voters entered the voting area.

Sounds kind of hypocritical if you ask me. I think in this case, we should defer to the Afghans on the quality of their election and let them deal with it. If we don’t start now, when will we? When will we finally start letting go of the bicycle so  they can ride on their own.

As any parent knows who has tried to teach a kid to ride a bike, there is a point that you have to let go and be prepared for them to fall and scrape their knees and hurt themselves.

Even though I cannot stand Karzai, and by leaving the election results as is means he may win, it is time for them to scrape their knees a little and learn lessons on their own

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