Dawn Patrol

Top 5 dumb things I did this week [From My Position... On the way!]
...When The Pin on Mr. Grenade is Pulled, he is not our friend.

Note to self: As far as grenades go, I don?t schlep around the frags. I keep them in the truck until I need them, which is usually right before I get out of the truck to raid something. No point in a) carrying the extra weight (they are a little over 1 LB each) and b) risking getting them snagged on one of the other hundreds of things I have tied to me. Now, I do carry smoke grenades in my pouches. A red one for MEDEVAC, and a purple for marking, and a white one for obscuration. I also carry a flashbang, because it can serve my purposes until the frags are needed. Well we needed a smoke grenade to mark our position for the whirlybirds who were helping us look for bad guys in the palm groves. I reached into my pouch, pulled a smoke grenade, pulled (and subsequently tossed away) the pin, and realized I was holding the wring friggin grenade. Mr. Flashbang sat there in my hand. It?s the same size and shape as a smoke grenade, and I couldn?t tell the different texture because I was wearing gloves. The spoon is taped down when it rides in the pouch, but I?d already torn that off, so I couldn?t set it next to me. Sure I could throw it, but it?s really loud and everyone would think we were being attacked

Senior Marine Officer - Operations New Market and Mongoos [Blackfive]
Below is an email via Seamus from a Senior Marine Officer involved in several Operations in Iraq. It touches on many things - what's really happening, the media's portrayal of our forces, etc.

Early morning raid [Phil and Becky]
Two day ago, soldiers from Charlie Company conducted an early morning raid targeting suspected members of an Ansar al Sunna cell in a small town named Kharnabat. Kharnabat is a town of approximately 15,000 people, split 70/30 between Shia and Sunni. It is a generally friendly town, as far as towns here go. Several members of the Iraqi Army live there and, aside from minor trouble here and there, the town stays pretty quiet. At least in terms of things that make it onto our radar screen.

Car bomb by Buhriz [Phil and Becky]
At the bottom of this article is a short paragraph from our neck of the woods:

A car bomber killed two Iraqi soldiers at an army checkpoint near Buhriz, about 35 miles north of Baghdad, said Diyala provincial police spokesman Ali Fadhil.

The Descent of Amnesty International [Dadmanly]
...Where on earth are the Trustees? What do the founders and supporters of AI think of this report? Are domestic U.S. Politics so valuable to you, that you will sacrifice the very soul of your organization? Are American Conservatives and Libertarians so beyond the pale, that you need to brand us as evil as anything you can conceive (and yes, observe) in the world today? Do you think this is some nightmare you will wake up from, and if you just tough it out, you will never have to deal with U.S. Republicans or Conservatives again? Do you want to fight true oppression, or do you want to play politics, because if it?s the former, we can work together, but if it?s the latter, you?re irrelevant to us (and to your very charter).

Rivkin and Casey conclude:

A Robust Non-Defense Of The ICRC [Chapomatic]
From the journal The National Interest, an article that describes well the pickle Americans are in with respect to the International Committee of the Red Cross:

Under a Angry Moon [365 and a Wake Up]
Last night the blood orange moon hung low in the sky, as if some celestial giant had impressed his dirty thumbprint into the heavens themselves. In ancient days astronomers might have read ominous portends in that lidless eye. It seemed somehow fitting, for under that baleful moon I returned to the FOB. As our helicopter thundered into the LZ (Landing Zone) a great pillar of dust twisted round in our wake, almost as if the desert was greedily reaching out gritty arms to welcome our return.

Running, Jingle truck [Going Down Range]
Sometime when I have a spare hour I will run early in the morning or early evening. I used to run a lot, but running here offers many special challenges that I would not encounter back home. Since there are no paved roads or sidewalks here, you share them with John Deere Gators, Humvees, Jingle trucks, construction equipments and other vehicles. So you are sucking a lung full of dust. If you stray off the roads you can end up in a minefield and that is not good for your health.

An Air Force Reply to an Army Friend In Iraq [Dude, Where's The Beach?- My Hitchhikers Guide To The World]
Funny thing... in Kirkuk all I ever heard about from the Army guys was how we in the AF treated our folks better. Honestly, we may do that, but I've spent the entire weekend thinking about taking advantage of the blue to green program. The Air Force may be great, but I was never meant to sit behind a computer screen in a cubicle and waste away. As we celebrated memorial day I wanted nothing more than to spend the time out there pounding sand. I guess I've been stir crazy ever since coming home.

Loose Lips Sinks Ships [The Quonset Hut]
From the University of North Carolina Press comes a book by Michael S. Sweeney titled Secrets of Victory. This book examines the World War II self-censorship program and analyzes the reasons for its success.

Essential knowledge for the military spouse [Homefront Six]
My post about the woman who did not know what a pair of pliers was got me to thinking. The first thing I thought of was that this woman's husband had...

Live In 2005: WebCOM--Community & Communications for Military Families [VFW Auxiliary Blog]
Letters, radio, satelite phones . . . any form of communication from loved ones is welcomed by a soldier in service. The links to home is what keeps a soldier strong and positive. Much has changed since the days of long awaited care packages. Coming June 1st, you will be able to communicate with your soldier live and direct with audio and video through Military WebCOM.

Too Much Lobster, and Other Things.... [Hurl's Blog]
I've been here at my new location near the Jordanian and Syrian border for three days and I've had five lobster. All part of the Memorial day festivities. I'm thinking I may have had a few too many since I'm not feeling very well at the moment. One of the lobsters was filled with a nasty "black goo" which brought a sudden and abrupt end to my lobster feast. Now several hours later I'm a bit queasy.....

Iraq: USA Must Stay [The Indepundit]
THE IRAQI GOVERNMENT formally requested that the United Nations extend the mandate of the multi-national forces in Iraq, The New York Times reports.

DON'T SALUTE ME [SFC Kevin Kelly's Dixie Sappers]
This morning I got up to go eat breakfast. As I was walking to the chow hall I came up on one of the interpreters who had been gone for a few weeks. He walked up to me and then he saluted me. I don't know if you know much about being in a war zone, but you don't salute anyone out here. It isn't as big of an issue now as it was in Vietnam, but still if a sniper wanted to, they could see who is getting saluted and shoot the officer. I told him first of all, I'm an NCO and never salute me anywhere, then I told him not to salute anyone ever since he wasn't even a soldier. The guy walking with me said, "Only salute officers that you don't like." We all just laughed and the interpreter thought the guy was crazy. I'll never tell the persons name who I was with.

What is the mission? [sappersgt's Journal]
If you stop the average soldier on the street and ask him or her what the mission of the United States Army is, the usual answer would be "to fight and win the Nation's wars." And what they mean by that is to go to crappy foreign countries and blow the hell out of their military until the political leadership surrenders or goes into hiding and we start looking for them.

Sounds pretty obvious.

Killing for God [Michael Yon : Online Magazine]
Mosul, Northern Iraq
An American soldier told me today that he has been telling kids to stay away from his unit so they won't be killed. This is harder, on all parties, than it might seem to anyone who hasn't seen firsthand how much the kids here love the soldiers. The sound of heavily armored trucks rumbling through the streets has the same effect on these kids as the tinkling bells of the "ice cream man" back home. Imagine having to tell kids to run the other way when they hear the ice cream truck on a summer afternoon.

Paint It Black [This is Your War]
Two nights ago SFC Burt, my PSG, knocked on my door.
"You have to go down to the Battalion Commo Shop and register your web site."
It seems there have been problems with OPSEC and blog sites, not mine but others, I know which ones.

Supporting Poland's Troops in Iraq [Winds of Change]
Of of our readers just left a comment in our "How to Support the Troops" roundup, noting that the link re: supporting Polish soldiers is now dead.
<...>
So, if you wish to send a Christmas care package to a Polish soldier, to show your gratitude for their support in Iraq, then here is how to do it:

Honoring their sacrific [Marine Corps Moms]
Here are thousands of reasons for that moment of remembrance:

War casualties:

Iraq (March 19, 2003-present) 1,647
Afghanistan (Oct. 7, 2001-present) 187
Persian Gulf War (1990-1991) 382
Vietnam War (1964-1975) 58,200
Korean War (1950-1953) 36,574
WW II (1941-1945) 405,399
WW I (1917-1918) 116,516
Spanish-American War (1898) 2,446
Civil War (1861-1865) estimated 364,511 Union; 133,821 Confederate
Mexican War (1846-1848) 13,283
War of 1812 (1812-1815) 2,260
Revolutionary War (1775-1783) 4,435

The French aid American Interests (Part II) [Fourth Rail]
France, the lead architect of the anti-US position over Iraq, the country willing to divide Europe and America's allies to strike its leadership position as a counterweight to US supremacy and a nation at the core of integration has plunged all of Europe into chaos.

Military cluelessness at the Times of London [CounterColumn]
The Times of London notes that the US and UK increased the number of bombs dropped on Iraq in 2002 and thinks that that's evidence that Blair and Bush were deliberately increasing the number of bombs dropped in an effort to provoke the Saddam regime into a cassus belli.

Iranians Being Smuggled into the U.S. [Andi's World]
It's time to get serious about immigration.

Thunder and Lightning Silent and Invisible; "Blogosphere Supports Real Democracy in Iran Campaign" [The Adventures of Chester]
I've joined the campaign (and will post the button shortly) and will be posting a weekly roundup from RCI on Sundays. I encourage all to participate, as I've been a proponent of changing regimes via awareness myself as well.

Combat Action Badge [Watch Your Six]
The Army has approved a design for the new Combat Action Badge. The award is retroactive to 18 SEP 01 and will be awarded to anyone who engaged or was engaged by the enemy in the war on terror.

Gotcha - Congressional Travel Reports [Balance Sheet]
Tom DeLay has taken a lot of heat over trips he made that were paid for by a lobbyist. Democrats wanted his head. House rules require travel reports to be filed within 30 days.

The Democrats may have their own problems with travel reports.

Elder Bush Would Like Son Jeb to Run for President [Outside the Beltway]
President George Bush the Elder told Larry King that he would like to see son Jeb run for president some day, too.

Not Fair [Neptunus Lex]
There's a montage floating around out there that's also totally unfair. You'll have to click "read more" to see the montage, and how totally unfair it all is.
Editor 's Note: Be sure to watch the video

COOL [Trying to Grok]
Via RWN I found an interesting calculator that shows you how you'd fare under President Bush's Social Security reforms.

What Would Jesus Drive? [Balloon Juice]
Fresh and renewed after a week of rest after their successful ten year boycott of Disney, the American Famaily Association has set their eyes on that other great domestic Satan- Ford Motor Company:

Sign of the End Times [Horologium]
This may be the only time I ever do this, but I am linking to a DailyKos piece approvingly. This is important, if you are a blogger or enjoy reading politically-oriented blogs. The FEC is really over-reaching here, but the big-government types on both sides of the aisle are likely to let this go without a fight. I'm not willing to go quietly into the night on *my* free speech rights.

The Home Stretch [Soldier's Paradise II]
We are back on our "home" camp from our mission, that was a booming success, and it actually feels great to be back. We got to unwind for a few days and now we are right back in the swing of things. The new LT that we got has created a "super team" out of my team and Bunk's team. They should be really well prepared for what ever comes their way after I leave. A couple of my guys are not thrilled about having to stay, but they are happy about the extra money.

Unmanned Vehicles- Getting our kids out of harm's way[Uncle Jimbo- Madison's Favorite hawk]
The field of unmanned systems is one of the fastest-growing sectors of the defense industry. Not only are there UAVs flying over a large portion of the planet, but there are ground, undersea and other vehicles in the pipeline that will get operators out of even more military machines. I interviewed (I work executive search) a former Commander of TOPGUN who said something to me almost two years ago that blew my mind. He said the last fighter pilot has already been born. That is a concept to spin your head.

Iraq War Veterans Organization [Fort Lewis ACAP Center]
Some PTSD support groups are listed below. To be taken to the main page, click on the name of this posting or here:

Pajamas Media - Fair & Balanced [Swanky Conservative]
Roger L. Simon gets asked whether or not the forthcoming Pajamas Media project will be ?Fair and Balanced.? Damn good question. He asks for a discussion on the subject and I?m more than willing to throw my two cents in.

Iraqi Civilian Life Not Disrupted by 'Operation New Market' [Denfense News]
Marines, sailors, and Iraqi security forces are capturing and detaining terrorists throughout the Iraqi city of Haditha. However, officials said, for ordinary Iraqis, life there continues essentially unchanged.

Following Operation Lightning. [Iraq the Model]
Yesterday operation lightning began and we noticed an excessive presence of the Iraqi army and police forces on the streets and main squares in Baghdad with an obvious readiness for confronting the terrorists.

Bill Nassif - WWII POW: Someone You Should Get To Know! [My View]
I met Bill Nassif one night a couple years ago. I was out for dinner with a group of friends and Bill joined the group. He happened to sit next to me and otherwise I had never met Bill before. One of the group mentioned Bill was a WWII vet and that he had been a POW. So, Bill started to tell stories.