The reader will kindly forgive any tendency to rough language or behavior on the part of the site owner...
TMGlogo2006-2007phs-copy.jpg
"Good people sleep peaceably in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf."
TMGbloglabel1 copy.gif

TMGbloglabel3 copy.gif
TMG MONTHLY ARCHIVES
[-]



TMGbloglabel10 copy.gif

TMGbloglabel2 copy.gif
The Mudville Gazette Feeds

 

Add to Technorati Favorites
Technorati Profile
add.gif
Add to Google
addtomyyahoo4.gif
ngsub1.gif sub_modern5.gif

xml.gif rdf.png atom feed.jpg

digg.jpg

Find the best blogs at Blogs.com.

pl-news.gif

tvc_logo_small.png

Mrsg- Greyhawk's Profile
Mrsg- Greyhawk's Facebook profile
Create Your Badge
TMGbloglabel5 copy.gif
TMGbloglabel6 copy.gif
350.jpg
Greetings! You are reading an article from The Mudville Gazette. To reach the front page, with all the latest news and views, click the logo above or "main" below. Thanks for stopping by!
« Want some real news from Iraq? | Main | “There is no jihad. We are just instruments of death,” »

July 28, 2007

greyhawk copy sm.png

Wolves Among Us

By Greyhawk

"You know, boss," I once said to my boss, "we have over 200 people in this organization. Any type of person you can imagine, good or bad, any character flaw you've ever heard of, in this unit I can guarantee you there's one of each."

I've been around a while, I know. And this isn't unique to the military. Cut a random slice of the population, and you'll find the same. Hey, none of us are perfect - we are all of us flawed mortals. Some more so than others; some can't get to work on time two days in a row. Some abuse their children or wives. Some bounce checks, some steal CDs from the Exchange even though it's payday. Some go for all the above and more.

Some people are prone to that sort of behavior but somehow avoid it. Until they meet someone else who has already started down that path and whose example provides just the right amount of temptation to push them over the edge. This invariably happens to more than a few young people who leave the protection of their parent's home and join the military - just as it does to more than a few who leave their parents home and go to college - or band camp, or elsewhere.

And let's face it - war ain't band camp. Some are attracted to military life purely for the opportunity to participate in sanctioned violence. Some years back I had a good friend who was a volunteer fireman - I believe he was the first person to tell me that arsonists - or perhaps pyromaniacs would be the better term - often find employment as firefighters. The vast majority of fireman, however, have other motivations for what they do. They are, in fact, the exact opposite of that sort.

And that's true of America's warriors as well. Perhaps the best explanation for this comes from LTC (RET) Dave Grossman's On Sheep, Wolves, and Sheepdogs:

"Then there are the wolves," the old war veteran said, "and the wolves feed on the sheep without mercy." Do you believe there are wolves out there who will feed on the flock without mercy? You better believe it. There are evil men in this world and they are capable of evil deeds. The moment you forget that or pretend it is not so, you become a sheep. There is no safety in denial.

"Then there are sheepdogs," he went on, "and I'm a sheepdog. I live to protect the flock and confront the wolf."

If you have no capacity for violence then you are a healthy productive citizen, a sheep. If you have a capacity for violence and no empathy for your fellow citizens, then you have defined an aggressive sociopath, a wolf. But what if you have a capacity for violence, and a deep love for your fellow citizens? What do you have then? A sheepdog, a warrior, someone who is walking the hero's path. Someone who can walk into the heart of darkness, into the universal human phobia, and walk out unscathed.

But believe it or not, many - if not most - people who join the military are sheep.

*****

There are degrees of "bad behavior" - in war and elsewhere. On the lower end - but sliding ever upwards - might be actions like those described by Scott Beauchamp; verbal abuse of people (anyone out there not guilty of this one?), physical abuse of objects, animals, and human remains. Somewhere further along you'll find infliction of pain on fellow man for one's own pleasure. A bit beyond that, rape and murder. Combinations and degrees of all the above blur the scale, as does motivation and premeditation.

Scott Beauchamp:

Yeah man,” I continued. “I love chicks that have been intimate—with IEDs. It really turns me on—melted skin, missing limbs, plastic noses...

...He slowed the Bradley down to lure the first kill in, and, as the diesel engine grew quieter, the dog walked close enough for him to jerk the machine hard to the right and snag its leg under the tracks. The leg caught, and he dragged the dog for a little while, until it disengaged and lay twitching in the road. A roar of laughter broke out over the radio. ...

...One private, infamous as a joker and troublemaker, found the top part of a human skull, which was almost perfectly preserved. It even had chunks of hair, which were stiff and matted down with dirt. He squealed as he placed it on his head like a crown. It was a perfect fit. As he marched around with the skull on his head, people dropped shovels and sandbags, folding in half with laughter. No one thought to tell him to stop. No one was disgusted. Me included.

Ignore for a moment whether those stories are true or not, and read this one:
Not long into their stay, two of the soldiers appeared at the base one day with animal carcasses. They'd found a dead goat and a dead cat somewhere and started slicing them up. Someone took a photo of a soldier pretending to have sex with the goat's head. "Then they cut off the cat's head and shoved it on the top of a soda bottle," England says.

For several weeks, the decaying animal heads provided entertainment for the soldiers. "Someone put sunglasses on them, and put the rifle next to the heads and took a picture. Some soldiers put a cigarette in the cat's mouth," she says. The soldiers stashed the severed heads in their rooms.

"It was funny," England says. "So funny."

That's a true story - and Beauchamp's stories reminded me in some way of that account. I'm not even suggesting that story inspired him, just that they sound like tales told about the same type of people.

That comparison story, by the way, is one told by Lynndie England of her fellow soldiers' actions immediately prior to their arrival at Abu Ghraib. They were certainly on there way there, you might say.

*****

So if many who join the military are sheep, believe me when I say that many are also sheepdogs - and some few are wolves. But it's a society of sheepdogs - believe it or not, it is so. Start out a sheep and stick around for a while and you'll become one - or at least more like one. But lest you revert, keep this in mind:

Do you believe there are wolves out there who will feed on the flock without mercy? You better believe it. There are evil men in this world and they are capable of evil deeds. The moment you forget that or pretend it is not so, you become a sheep.
There are wolves in here, too.

Is Scott Beauchamp a wolf? Hardly - he strikes me as a sheep who's trying to live up to his misunderstanding of expectations. He's confused the behavior of the sheepdog with that of the wolf. Back to LTC Grossman's description of the sheepdog: "He looks a lot like the wolf. He has fangs and the capacity for violence."

But...

The difference, though, is that the sheepdog must not, can not and will not ever harm the sheep. Any sheep dog who intentionally harms the lowliest little lamb will be punished and removed. The world cannot work any other way, at least not in a representative democracy or a republic such as ours.
And who will perform this removal, you ask? The answer is not the sheep. Scott Beauchamp is not a sheepdog. And he is not a wolf. He is, like Lynndie England before him, someone who may slide the wrong way down a certain path. Who has in fact done so, in word if not in deed. He is fortunate in that he will be judged much sooner than she was; that if found wanting, he will simply be returned to the flock.

And in the strange world we live in, who are his strongest supporters? They are those who share his confusion:

The sheep generally do not like the sheepdog. He looks a lot like the wolf. He has fangs and the capacity for violence. The difference, though, is that the sheepdog must not, can not and will not ever harm the sheep. Any sheep dog who intentionally harms the lowliest little lamb will be punished and removed. The world cannot work any other way, at least not in a representative democracy or a republic such as ours.

Still, the sheepdog disturbs the sheep. He is a constant reminder that there are wolves in the land. They would prefer that he didn't tell them where to go, or give them traffic tickets, or stand at the ready in our airports in camouflage fatigues holding an M-16. The sheep would much rather have the sheepdog cash in his fangs, spray paint himself white, and go, "Baa."

Until the wolf shows up.

.(More to follow)


Posted by Greyhawk / July 28, 2007 1:45 PM | Permalink

8 Comments

This story i find hard to believe. Driver of a Bradley sits down and in the machine on the left side of the vehicle, with the engine to his right. For the driver to do this as described, he would have to be able to see thru the engine as there is most certainly a blind spot on the Bradley to the right of him.

"...He slowed the Bradley down to lure the first kill in, and, as the diesel engine grew quieter, the dog walked close enough for him to jerk the machine hard to the right and snag its leg under the tracks. The leg caught, and he dragged the dog for a little while, until it disengaged and lay twitching in the road. A roar of laughter broke out over the radio. ..."

I think for some in places like Iraq, there is an issue in how one defines "their" flock. It goes without saying that it includes the American people (even, or perhaps especially, ungrateful lefties), and also those of NATO countries (not to include the French) - but how does it apply to Iraqis? It probably includes the Kurds, who have generally been good allies. Most would agree that it includes very young childen and very old folks. It likely includes most women - but what about men aged 12-60? Are they part of the flock, or are they wolves in sheeps' clothing? And how on earth can you tell which they are before they set off an IED or begin spraying with an AK-47?

For soldiers operating in a hotbed of terrorist/militant groups, how can they not look askance at these potential killers?

I wonder if Beauchamp joined the Army with the intention of becoming the next Lynndie England. From what I know of England, her role in one of the worst IO disasters of the war was mostly unintentional. I don't believe she had any pretensions of being a great photographer. Did Beauchamp join the Army after Abu Ghraib?

Asstroturfing by Infiltraitors needs more attention. How many more are out there?

They used to call this sort useful idiots back in the Cold War. People that are so cynical that they will believe the worst about the best.

The sheep, sheepdog, wolves analogy leaves out one additional group; the Rams among the sheep. Not trained for the fight, but- if pressed- will do their utmost to defend the flock. There were a bunch of rams on United 93. Hopefully, there will always be a few rams around in these dangerous times.

Trackbacked by The Thunder Run - Web Reconnaissance for 07/30/2007
A short recon of what’s out there that might draw your attention, updated throughout the day...so check back often.

If you have the chance to see Team America, you know they used the same analogy with different words. They used (please forgive me) Dicks, Pussies and Assholes. Aside from the profanity, it was brilliant satire!

May Allah bless the Sheepdogs (Dicks)!

Salaam eleikum!

350.jpg
Mrs G copy.png

November 26, 2010


America@war
[Greyhawk]
I think anyone who's ever pondered the "comment" option - once only available on blogs and bulletin boards, now ubiquitous on almost any web site - will appreciate this:
The so-called faculty of writing is not so much a faculty of writing as it is a faculty of thinking. When a man says, "I have an idea but I can't express it"; that man hasn't an idea but merely a vague feeling. If a man has a feeling of that kind, and will sit down for a half an hour and persistently try to put into writing what he feels, the probabilities are at least 90 percent that he will either be able to record it, or else realize that he has no idea at all. In either case, he will do himself a benefit.

That's wisdom from the past, captured for posterity at the US Naval Institute, shared via the web on the institute's 137th anniversary.

From their about page:

The Naval Institute shall remain

INDEPENDENT - A non-profit member association, with no government support, that does not lobby for special interests;

NON-PARTISAN - An independent, professional military association with a mission, goals and objectives that transcend political affiliations; and shall encourage

IDEAS - Through its respected journals Proceedings and Naval History, its conferences, its books and its online content, in support of those who serve.

"The Naval Institute has three core activities," among them, History and Preservation:

The Naval Institute also has recently introduced Americans at War, a living history of Americans at war in their own words and from their own experiences. These 90-second vignettes convey powerful stories of inspiration, pride, and patriotism.

Take a look at the collection, and you'll see it's not limited to accounts from those who served on ships at sea, members of the other branches are well-represented.

I'm fortunate to have met USNI's Mary Ripley, she's responsible for the institute's oral history program (and she's the daughter of the late John Ripley, whose story is told here). She also deserves much credit for their blog. ("We're not the Navy nor any government agency. Blog and comment freely.") We met at a milblog conference - Mary knew (and I would come to realize) that milbloggers are the 21st-century version of exactly what the US Naval Institute is all about. Once that light bulb came on in my head, I mentioned a vague idea for a project to her - milblogs as the 21st century oral history that they are.

"Put that in writing," she said (of course - see first paragraph above!) - and here's part of the result.

Shortly after the first tent was pitched by the American military in Iraq a wire was connected to a computer therein, and the internet was available to a generation of Americans at war - many of whom had grown up online. From that point on, at any given moment, somewhere in Iraq a Soldier, Sailor, Airman or Marine was at a keyboard sharing the events of his or her day with the folks back home. While most would simply fire off an email, others took advantage of the (then) relatively new online blogging platforms to post their thoughts and experiences for the entire world to see. The milblog was born - and from that moment to this stories detailing everything from the most mundane aspects of camp life to intense combat action (often described within hours of the event) have been available on the web...

And et cetera - but since you're reading this on a milblog, you probably knew that. And you know that milblogs aren't just blogs written by troops at war, that many friends, family members, and supporters likewise documented their story of America at war online in near-real time, as those stories developed.

The diversity in membership of that group is broad, the one thing we all have in common is the impulse to make sense of the seemingly senseless, and communicate the tale - for each of us that impulse was strong enough to overcome whatever barriers prevent the vast majority of people from doing the same. Everyone at some point has some vague idea they believe should be shared - we were the people who, from some combination of internal and external urging, found and spent those many half hours persistently trying to write it down.

*****

But where will all that be in another 137 years? Or five or ten, for that matter. That's something I've asked myself since at least 2004 - when I wrote this:

Closing Blogs is nothing new. So many site's owners just give up on their own. They come and go, you know, these MilBloggers do. Like any other sort of blogger. Many post in the lonely down hours far from home, spill their guts for the world, then abandon their spots when the tour of duty is up. They have lives again somewhere in the world, and no need to share the details. So it goes.

Many are truly gone - no site left at all. "The page cannot be found." Other blogs remain, like abandoned defensive positions in shifting desert sands.

Membership in the ghost battalion has grown in the years since, and an ever growing majority of those abandoned-but-still-standing sites are vanishing. Have you checked out Lt Smash's site lately? How about Sgt Hook's? If you're a long-time milblog reader you know the first widely-read milblog from Operation Iraq Freedom and the first widely-read milblog from Afghanistan are both gone from the web. If you're a relative newcomer to this world you may never even have heard of them - or the dozens upon dozens of others who carried forth the standard they set down.

If you have a vague notion that something should be done about that, (a notion I've heard expressed more than once...) then you and I and the good folks at the US Naval Institute are in agreement. Preserving the history documented by the milbloggers is just one of the goals of the milblog project, the once-vague idea that we're now making real.

And it's a big idea, if I say so myself - too big to explain in one simple blog post, so stand by for more. Likewise, it's too big a task to be accomplished by just one person. So if you're a milblogger (and exactly what is a milblogger? is a topic for much further discussion on its own) I'm asking for your help. All I'll really need is just a little bit (maybe just one or two of those half hours...) of your time, and your willingness to tell the tale.

We've already made history, it's time to save it.

(More to follow...)




Posted 4:02 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) |

TMGbloglabel7copy.gif
The Mudville Gazette is the on-line voice of an American warrior and his wife who stands by him. They prefer to see peaceful change render force of arms unnecessary. Until that day they stand fast with those who struggle for freedom, strike for reason, and pray for a better tomorrow.
TMGrecentcomments.gif
  • Miss Ladybug: Personally, although I'm a sheep, I very much appreciate the read more
  • Marzouq: If you have the chance to see Team America, you read more
  • David M: Trackbacked by The Thunder Run - Web Reconnaissance for 07/30/2007 read more
  • Mike O: The sheep, sheepdog, wolves analogy leaves out one additional group; read more
  • Ymarsakar: They used to call this sort useful idiots back in read more
  • Cannoneer No. 4: I wonder if Beauchamp joined the Army with the intention read more
  • holdfast: I think for some in places like Iraq, there is read more
  • Bill in GA: This story i find hard to believe. Driver of a read more

MBC2010.jpg

MILBLOGS NEWS

*****

Latest Posts From MilBlogs

*****

milblogsa1.jpg Prev | List | Random | Next
Join
Powered by RingSurf!
TMGbloglabel2 copy.gif
The Dawn Patrol Feeds

 

Add to Google Reader or Homepage Subscribe in NewsGator Online Add to netvibes Add to Plusmo myaol_cta1.gif

xml.gif rdf.png atom feed.jpg

TMGbloglabel8copy.gif

TMGbloglabel9 copy.gif
Blah Blah Blah
me220.JPG

The Mudville Gazette is written and produced by Greyhawk, who recently retired from 24 years of active duty in the US military, but will maintain this disclaimer: Unless otherwise credited, the opinions expressed are those of the author, and nothing here is to be taken as representing the official position of or endorsement by the United States Department of Defense or any of its subordinate components.

Furthermore, I will occasionally use satire or parody herein. The bottom line: it's my house.

I like having visitors to my house. I hope you are entertained. I fight for your right to free speech, and am thrilled when you exercise said rights here. Comments and e-mails are welcome, but all such communication is to be assumed to be 1)the original work of any who initiate said communication and 2)the property of the Mudville Gazette, with free use granted thereto for publication in electronic or written form. If you do NOT wish to have your message posted, write "CONFIDENTIAL" in the subject line of your email.

Original content copyright © 2003 - 2011 by Greyhawk. Fair, not-for-profit use of said material by others is encouraged, as long as acknowledgement and credit is given, to include the url of the original source post. Other arrangements can be made as needed.

Contact: greyhawk at mudvillegazette dot com

andsm.jpg

*****

Tending Distant
Fires


Far from hearth and home, watching
Cold alone but not alone
On distant shore and only wanting
Safe return and little more

What tales we'll tell
When that time comes
When tales can be told

When things grim
Seem far away
When other fires go cold

Some distant sunset, vision fading
Memories remain
And tired eyes gaze 'pon folded flags
While distant drums beat their refrain

Saluting fallen friends whose names
And youth will never fade
Here's to those on other shores,
for them live well, the price is paid

- Greyhawk,
Baghdad,
December 2004