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August 17, 2007The Boo Radleys V.By GreyhawkThe story began here, latest entry here.
Smoke from factories, smoke from battles, smoke from the burning of crops... Exhaust from vehicles, many new, many more some years from professional repair... ...all mix with the dust and sand lifted up from the ground by the winds, or the passing of those same vehicles, or the tread of a million feet, to form a near-permanent haze that obscures the view of things at distances at which they should be plainly seen. Outlines blur and colors vanish and everything takes the hue of the desert until somewhere in the all-too-near horizon the earth merges with the sky at a point undeterminable to the human eye. (Michael Totten's latest includes a picture that captures that here.) That's on most days... On others the real dust rolls through, and visibility is limited to hundreds of feet - or even tens. If you've been following the story I've woven throughout this ongoing ramble, you might suspect that it's a story of one of those days. You would be right. We'll get back to it, soon enough. But first... ...an earlier entry from Michael Totten: A large man wearing shorts and no shirt opened the door. An old man in a dishdasha stood behind him. They weren’t armed and didn’t seem threatening.From an earlier report: “Want to walk past your favorite house?” Lieutenant Lord said to Sergeant Lizanne."You know it makes one feel rather good deciding not to be a dick." - Earnest Greyhawk, The Sun Also Rises in Iraq Flashback: And when it does, it gets hot. There is an ever-present quality to the breeze on a hot day in Iraq. If you've ever stepped too close to a large fire, to that point where you feel uncomfortable and instinctively taken that small step back to your comfort zone you know what I'm talking about. It's the sort of heat that produces an immediate sweat, then evaporates it just as fast. In Iraq, as opposed to near a fire, that small step back gains you nothing. And then the sun sets, but the heat persists. And one fine night I sat in a passenger terminal and waited for my flight home. Said passenger terminal would have had the average American swearing to never fly again - a tent with a wooden floor and benches - but also with the ever-present big-screen TV along one wall (once again the obscene amenities rear their ugly little heads). And eventually the official word came down: all flights cancelled. The dust from Syria had spread wide enough and far enough and with enough intensity to lower visibility to the point where routine aircraft operation would be hazardous beyond the point of acceptable risk. I would remain away from my home away from home for at least 24 more hours. I had a place to sleep, and nothing to do. And I wondered for a moment about the guy who was supposed to go on emergency leave, who had taken my seat on my original ride, and who's flight was cancelled as well. There are many reasons for emergency leave to be approved in time of war. None of them are good. I stepped out into the night. The heat was there, and darkness near complete. No lights illuminated this desert outpost, and silence was broken only by the ever-present hum of generators in the distance, a background noise at any camp and one you scarcely hear until they stop and the roaring silence announces that something's wrong.. But that was not tonight's problem. Tonight, above, the dust had blotted out the stars. And that would only be part of the problem. I wandered into the TOC, because it was nearby, and because I could, and because I was tired of watching the news and wanted to see what was going on in the war. I hoped the answer was "not much". I was wrong. As you may recall, In Iraq, a group of young men armor up and arm themselves and prepare to go outside the wire. As much as any one of them might want to relieve himself of obligation to his fellows, none will. Each knows they might not come back. Because this is part of a flashback, I can tell you now that one of them won't. He was in fact wounded. He was, in fact, in need of urgent medevac - meaning by helicopter. And you may recall: all flights cancelled... There were two options - and a couple variations - available. One, hope ground evac would be fast enough (not likely - or the helo request wouldn't have been made) or two - launch the medevac bird and risk a crew and an aircraft to (maybe) save his life. "Whoever does not have the stomach for this fight, let him depart." If Haight-Ashbury is the centre of the American hippie world, then Yorkville is Canada's hippie heartland. Full of coffeehouses, boutiques, longhairs, draft dodgers, and freaks, Yorkville is a tourist attraction — one where the tourists prefer to watch the excitement from the safety of their cars. A 19-year-old draft dodger named William Gibson conducts CBC Television on a tour of the village, where Beatle-haired kids, drugs and free love are rampant.Later:: It had much more to do with my wanting to be with hippy girls and have lots of hashish than it did with my sympathy for the plight of the North Vietnamese people under US imperialism. Much more, much more to do with hippy girls and hashish.I repeat myseslf: This reduces my enjoyment of his work not one bit. Any non-veteran readers might be surprised to learn that those who fought in Vietnam were probably glad not to have the company of the sorts of folks described above. And now, 40 years later, I'm quite glad to have some of Gibson's work to read in Iraq. And I can think of at least one "writer" today who could have done us all a favor and sat this war out - and perhaps launched his career in fiction a few years later. More back to school stories: Juvenile detainees gain second chance through Dar Al-Hikmah Extremists destroy one school, rig a second
Posted by Greyhawk / August 17, 2007 8:17 PM | Permalink 4 Comments |
November 18, 2009Dawn Patrol 11/18/2009 [Mrs Greyhawk]
Welcome to the Dawn Patrol, our daily roundup of information on the War on Terror and other topics - from the MilBlogs and various sources around the world. If you're a blogger, you can join the conversation. If you link to any of these stories, add a link to the Dawn Patrol too and your trackback will be added to the list. Hat Tips to the Dawn Patrol are greatly appreciated.Refresh for updates.
AFGHANISTAN/PAKISTANBoondoggle -- [3rd Time, New Country - in Afghanistan] Clinton in Kabul for Karzai's inauguration -- [Foreign Policy - AfPak] The war of leaks -- [Foreign Policy - AfPak] Ridding Afghanistan of Corruption Will Be No Easy Task -- [Los Angeles Times] Afghan Minister Accused of Taking Bribe -- [Washington Post] Vision for Victory, Part I -- [Washington Times] U.S. Turns to Local Guns-for-Hire to Guard Afghan Outpost -- [Danger Room - Noah Shachtman] NATO Chief Confident Afghanistan Will Have More Troops -- [Voice of America] Germany to extend Afghanistan mission another year -- [AP] Pakistani Successes May Sway US Troop Decision -- [New York Times] Where are Taliban and al Qaeda commanders, US media asks Pak -- [Daily News & Analysis] Pakistani Army Shows Off Captured Taliban Posts -- [Washington Post] IRAQIraqi Kurds Warn of Election Boycott in Dispute Over Seats - [Washington Post] US has time to reconsider Iraq drawdown plan-Odierno -- [Reuters] A few words from medics for the 41st Brigade -- [The Oregonian] Goodbye to Iraq, and thanks -- [The Oregonian] U.S. AND OTHER PARTS OF THE WORLDUS, China in Strained Diplomatic Embrace -- [Wall Street Journal] Obama: 'We've restored America's standing' -- [CNN] Somali Pirates : Maersk Alabama Attacked, Fights Back -- [Eagle Speak] Iranian COS Warns Russia: Your Security Is Tied To Ours -- [Memri Blog]
WAR ON TERROR /TERRORISMSuspected Fort Hood Shooter Believed to Be Self-Radicalized -- [Wall Street Journal] Guantánamo Won't Close by January, Obama Says -- [NY Times] SUPPORTING THE TROOPS...OR NOTNo Man Left Behind -- [Knottie's Niche] LTC Tim Karcher Update -- [Soldiers' Angels Germany] Support SA while Christmas shopping this year! -- [Soldiers' Angels Germany] Trees for Troops: Helping Military Families -- [AdAge.com] FOX 5 Special: I-Team VA Loans -- [FOX News] A FOX 5 I-Team investigation uncovered allegations of a nationwide scheme by banks and mortgage companies to defraud U.S. military veterans. The scheme, spelled out in court documents, claims banks are overcharging veterans on home refinancing loans. The question raised in a racketeering and class action law suit is how many of those loans involved banks defrauding U.S. military veterans. MILITARYMuslim discrimination in the U.S. military. Not. -- [Castra Praetoria] Time to revisit firearms policies on military posts -- [Atlanta Journal Constitution] Army's Record Suicide Rate 'Horrible,' General Says -- [Washington Post]
WELCOME HOMEVeterans' descendants welcome troops home to Fort Campbell -- [Clarksville Leaf Chronicle] 'Greywolf' Among First CAV Troops to Return Home -- [DVIDS] THE MEDIAWhere are Taliban and al Qaeda commanders, US media asks Pak -- [Daily News & Analysis] Army officials said that they have killed as many as 550 Taliban militants a month after the military began its campaign into the lawless territory, yet they acknowledge that hundreds, perhaps thousands more have melted away.
POLITICSRepublicans Criticize Obama's Call to Delay Hill Inquiries on Fort Hood -- [Washington Post] HUMOR / SATIRE
Iraq, Afghanistan, War, Terrorism, Military, Politics, Media, MilBlogs, dawn patrol Mudville
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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.
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![]() 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 - 2009 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 ![]() |
Greyhawk,
Have you read "Reading Lolita in Tehran"? This series of posts reminds me of why I appreciated that book (and MADE time to finish it), and makes me wonder if you might not have a book to write?
As an engineer, I often role my eyes at a lot of "literary references", but when done to good effect and successful even when the reader hasn't even read the "reference" (at all or recently - Sun Also Rises was AWHILE ago), I find it a powerful addition to non-fiction... something to do with the idea of universality or something. ANYWAY.
Wrote it before, and I'll write it again: I wish there was no cause that took you away from your family, but we are ever so blessed to have boots on the ground that are able and willing to blog as you do. Take care.
Thanks Lisa.
And thanks for being a Soldiers' Angel, too.
Trackbacked by The Thunder Run - Web Reconnaissance for 08/20/2007
A short recon of what’s out there that might draw your attention, updated throughout the day...so check back often.
"You know it makes one feel rather good deciding not to be a dick."
- Earnest Greyhawk, The Sun Also Rises in Iraq
This is destined to become a MG classic.