Tuesday, May 8, 2007
Soldiers Experiences
A Veteran's Recounting
And includes the quote by Samuel Johnson: "To improve the golden moment of opportunity, and catch the good that is within our reach, is the great art of life." Samuel Johnson
What strikes me about this blog is the optimism of the writer. He writes from a positive optimistic perspective as opposed to most other war blogs which focus on the negative aspects of war. He is also writing from America not Iraq, six months after he has returned home to his wife and children. I chose this blog in particular simply because I appreciate the warm, positive, happy aura of the posting.
Monday, May 7, 2007
Now I know................
My brother has been serving the military for about 15 years he first went to the marines and then went to the army. Throughout his time in the military I’ve seen positive changes; he’s more disciplined, loyal to his family and kids, keeps his promises and overall as they say “it made a man out of him”. The only time I saw that the military really made him a cold person was after his first voyage to Iraq. When my aunt died I couldn’t understand why my brother was so cold about it. They were so close and she practically raised him until the age of five. He was more sensitive before he went to Iraq and I think being there and experiencing the things that he experienced may have affected him emotionally and caused him to maintain this military concept that trueman explains. Even trueman shows this when he writes about the time he visited his friend’s grave, he couldn’t express his emotions however he was able to find his comfort in his own “soldier way”.
Many of the soldiers are mourning for the death of their fellow soldires, commanders and friends. In the second blog we have read “The Crew of Alpha 3/2” the speech that is posted for the death of the five soldier in a way is disturbing to me.“You led by example, you fought the good fight, you ran a good race. Well done and be thou at peace. We, Able Company and the entire Panther Battalion will carry on your fight so that your death will not be in vain. We will continue to take the fight to the enemy. We will continue to close with and destroy our nation’s enemies so that your memory will live on forever”. http://www.adayiniraq.blogspot.com I feel as he is saying to continue to kill more people in order to justify the death on the five soldiers and more. The nation’s enemy the he is addressing also includes innocent children, women and men. Continuing this war is not only killing our soldiers but innocent Iraqis. Is that Humane? The soldiers are sent to Iraq regardless of their views on the war and by the commander stating that “collectively we know that without Alpha 3/2 we must go on, for that’s what they would want us to do.” The commander is assuming this because the soldiers don’t have a voice of their own they must comply with whatever decision the military makes for them. Even while they are dead they still making decisions for them. How free are our soldiers?!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Sunday, May 6, 2007
Eva Lugo
Civilian Soldiers: Middle Ground
The military is clearly a tool, used to do great things, but not always positive things. If the personal opinion of every soldier were considered it would be the equivalent of a heavy-handed bureaucracy, and nothing would get done. Yet it is still disappointing that the bravest of us, the ones who actually fight to defend our freedom, can’t enjoy the spoils of their own war, if they even wanted to be there in the first place. The military is a tool and tools do not decide how they are used, but they also don’t have a voice, and our soldiers do.
The greatest thing about the modern phenomena of solider blogs is that soldiers can have their voices heard. Though still infantile, we can get an idea of how the soldiers themselves fell. Though they can’t complain to their CO’s and change things in that manner, they may just be able to reach the entire world, and ask the voters to empower someone who they believe will use the tool of the military more effectively. This is a new level of freedom for soldiers that strikes a great middle ground, and the restriction of this freedom would be tragic.
Thursday, May 3, 2007
War are Politics
Today I read a couple of blogs from the American Soldier in Iraq. There was one that got my eye, "Submerged in a River in Egypt". This blog made me think about the War, and if it's really a War about Terrorism or a Republican and Democratic power War. Buck Sargent say that George W. Bush is doing this country just like what "Uncle Tom's Cabin did to Slavery", putting it out in the fields to work his labor and his hands stay clean. He goes on talking about "I've noticed a trend among people who persist in calling for a return to the draft, then always seem to be well past service age or you don't see too many of these placards being hoisted on College campuses, but what these artists fail to realize is that contrary to popular belief the Military draft is still very much alive. As of 1973 it's been entirely optional. I agree with Buck Sargent opinion about the War being for a Political stand and not for terrorism or American safety, because I come to realize that the area in which the War is being fought has nothing to do with the 911 accident or people that started it. (http://www.bucksargent.net/2007/03/submerged-in-river-in-egypt.html)
Open your eyes America!
Wednesday, May 2, 2007
American Citizen Soldier: Humming the Haifa Street Blues
Personal thought about the soldiers in Ireq War
My Response to American Soldiers' Voices
my thoughts
reading this passage only made me agree more that sending the troops home is the best thimg to do. we are in a country with people who dont want us there and are ready and willing to fight with there everything to get us out. The soldiers are risking there lives every day and dont know why. some citizens in Iraq are welcoming like the kids who run along side the RVs and ask for candy and balls, and some are ready to fight.being unsure of life or death is only o.k when ther is a purpose, there is no purpose for being in Iraq.
Something I never realized
In the work, “Not so Quiet,” it deals with a young girl who enters the war unwillingly. In class we have discussed how her parents perceive the war and what is actually going on from her point-of-view. However what was extremely different is that this girl was young and did not really gain the support she needed from her family and others no in the war. She was facing many gender ideology issues at that time and was not taken seriously when she told her family that she hated the war. I see here how this courageous soldier did all he could for the people in Iraq and gave it his all in fighting the war. He did his best and knew what eh was doing was for a good cause. Most importantly, this soldier has the world’s support at his feet. We all believe that one day the world will come at people because of these brave men who have risked their lives to save this country and even other ones too. “[They] have no choice but to finish the job [they] started. Anything less would be disastrous for the Iraqi people, anything less would mean that every person who's died there, did it for nothing. Wise didn't die for nothing.”
Post Comment ( link for November 11, 2003) http://rebelcoyote.livejournal.com/49236.html?mode=reply
What Would You Do?
I read A Day In Iraq (http://www.adayiniraq.blogspot.com/) and it was very interesting. The blog I read was titled The Crew of Alpha 3/2 written on Monday, November 13, 2006. This blog was written by Michael a former soldier who served in Iraq. The blog’s purpose was to remember those men who died. Michael includes the Commanders speech who highly spoke of the soldiers who lost their lives. He praised them yet didn’t realize that these young men died without accomplishing anything. Yes, the soldiers are in war fighting! But why are they there? Does Bush really care for the justice of Iraqis? Shouldn’t we try solving real issues such as global warming? (Just a few questions to think about) Seriously, how pathetic does his speech sound: “They died so others could live free and today we collectively mourn their loss. We lost some or our nation’s greatest resources, young men who had the courage to serve their country, young men who answered our nations call to duty.” I do believe soldiers are heroic for fighting for this country. But I don’t agree with the war. Needless to say with Bush’s intrusion. So many young American soldiers die everyday in Iraq. And for what? How many more need to die? This is similar to what we read in class Not So Quiet. People need to realize “war is dirty. There’s no glory in it,” (Helen Zenna Smith). It’s funny how many Americans speak down on Iraqis. Call them terrorist. Yet think about what how you would react if someone came intruding into your homeland…
Summary Eternal youth for the price of a mortar round and My good bye
For the other posting the sad thing is to say good bye to a love one when they died right next to you in combat knowing that you can just watch them die in front of you. i think we all lost the meaning for this war and because of this we are losing our love ones for the lost cause.
Kk
The Strength and Resolve of Our Soldiers
Honestly, I don’t even know what to say here. Whenever I think of war, I think of how those who fight it knowingly risk their lives to the hands of Death for every step they take on the front lines. It’s definitely not pretty, but then again, that is the nature of war. I decided to head to www.soldierlife.com to find an entry that would catch my interest. One of them did in only 5 seconds (No, I am not joking). Titled, There are no men in black here, and entered on February 11, 2006, our anonymous Soldier vividly described what is more or less a typical day serving on the Iraqi front.
What I got from reading it was this: If you’re looking for a simple one-shot solution that’s gonna end the war, tough luck! The title of the entry was a clue to this. He describes the area he’s assigned to as torn up from either old or recent IED explosions and how he can’t let his guard down on something as simple as a turn considering the possibility of a hidden IED somewhere. He also describes that on one hand, the people (particularly the men) look at him and his fellow soldiers as if they were dirt, yet on the other hand, the children wave and shout out to them lovingly. As I read deeper in, this soldier expresses that this war is no joke and how the “debate” over this war back in the States is nothing compared to what the Iraqis are going through. By the time I finished reading this entry, this one soldier made it clear that he’s simply going to do what he’s has to on the Iraqi front as long as he has to, a great show of strength and resolve soldiers like him have.
No, I am not going to reveal my stance on this front of the war, and to me, what opinions people have on the Iraqi front doesn’t matter. What does matter to me is how are our soldiers doing out there. This is why I actually liked this assignment: I always wanted to know what the soldiers had to say and how they felt about the Iraqi front. I will continue to show support for the soldiers that make it possible for our freedoms and rights to survive to this very day, regardless of any circumstances.
Source: http://www.soldierlife.com/2006/02/11/there-are-no-men-in-black-here/
horrors of the war
The second entry was striking in a different way. The soldier feels relieved to be out of the war zone. We feel his happiness through his words and we also feel his sorrow. He lost friends and he made friends and he was bound to them with an invisible thread. I don't think anyone can break these threads. From his entry you can see how much he learned about friendship, courage and valour and how much he values them. I just wonder when he came back how did he adjust to the normal life again.
Warblog summary
In this entry he tells the story of how he lost his best friend Wise, in a surprise attack while patrolling in a humvee. He gives meaning to every soldiers death, and gives a first hand experience of what is really going on in Iraq. What most people over look is the amount of progress being done their.
Most people think that absolutely nothing is being accomplished with our troops being in Iraq, but he proves the media wrong. He mentions the community center that his unit created to give Iraqi children something to do.
Reading this entry shows that while he thinks the war is being fought for the wrong reasons he Is still willing to fight to bring freedom to those in need.
Tuesday, May 1, 2007
The War
Iraq War
Different views of War..
As I read Trueman’s journal, http://rebelcoyote.livejournal.com/55594.html I was very impressed to find out that soldiers felt safer on foot then by cars because they would be easy target on cars. It should be very frighten to feel that every time you get into a car the vehicle could explode in any minute. However, what struck me the most was that Baghdad wasn’t a war zone, but soldiers were still dying in there. This means that they were never prepare to fight because they wouldn’t know when someone would attack. Truman describes that “there wasn't a single time they went out that he wasn't aware that every bush and pile of trash they drove or walked by could have a bomb in it; unfortunately the last time, one did.” It is very impressing that although Baghdad was one of the parts of the country that was dangerous, it wasn’t a war zone. In the other hand, he describes that they were friendly with the kids and “their day to day life wasn’t a battle.” I guess it doesn’t feel so awful to describe that way of living during a war.
It is very sad to read that he wasn’t able to overcome Robert, his friend’s death. “For two years, this haunted me. In my mind, I’d left Robert there in Baghdad that day.” It is an awful feeling to read that this is reflected in a large number of soldiers that went to war or still in Iraq. Robert was only 21 as well as Trueman which shows that most of the soldiers that were in war were very young and inexperienced.
As I read the American soldier journal, http://www.soldierlife.com/2006/02/11/there-are-no-men-in-black-here/ there was a difference in the way each of them talked about war. Trueman showed that he was frightened of war and he wanted to get out from it as soon as possible. In the other hand, the American soldier reflects patriotism as he says, “Every mission is different than the last and we ensure and do what we have to do to come back into the wire safely. Sometimes we all don’t make it back but we will still stand with the strength to go back outside the wire the very next day.” He describes that it is normal to lose someone at war but they are out there to fight for their country and that’s what they will do. He also reflects that they have to kill the enemy in order to survive. He feels that they have to do what they have to do and they shouldn’t feel so sad about it. This blog reflects Smith, “Not So quiet” in which she reflects at the end of her experience, a debate between B.F and Edwards because Edwards disagree with war and thought it was dirty and awful. In contrast, B.F believed that we should fight for our country, kill the enemies and do our bit.
- Daniela Piure
My Thoughts
Before I read the blog www.livejournal.com/users/rebelcoyote I thought so negative of the war, mainly because as a citizen of the United States we as a nation was never informed of what was exactly was going on inside of Iraqi. The governemnt tries to censor all the event happening in Iraqi. The war is still portrayed as a negitive idea and it is sad to hear about all the soliders dying. However its nice to know the military is helping in buiding schools, bringing computers, and giving electricity to the country. But why did we (United States) have come with forces to bring all these positive things to Iraqi? Why do young men and women have to risk their lives? All the money that was spent on this war could have been used in improving all third world countries also. Not to fight to get some oil.
Monday, April 30, 2007
Last Days at the FOB
In this blog he also speaks of the family that he has developed with the other soldiers while in combat. Ones that he gets to go home with and ones that he has lost. for instance, "But here on the bleeding edge we became more something greater than our individual parts. We became a family." He is filled with sadness and the fact that he has lost fellow soldiers that he considers family, however he is overjoyed with the fact that he is soon going to come home to his family.
From reading this blog, I learned that even if the soldiers return home with minor injuries or scares there is still going to be a lasting effect of mental damage that they will encounter. This will be due to the things that they've seen and the people that they've lost while over there. The only thing that i can say is that the soldiers need to come home to their families. What is going on in Iraq is something terrifying that makes you question whether or not your going to live to see the next day.
by: Geraldine Norlaes