Monthly Archives: May 2009

When I was in Iraq, I did two things that continue to haunt me to this day: kill an innocent woman and killed the father and uncle of a 6-year kid.

In Samawah, Saddam’s Fedayeen were using civilians as shields as they fired at us. During one of the battles, one of the fighters was using a woman as a shield outside what was looked like it was a cafe or something. He was resting his AK-47 on the shoulder of the woman. Her ear was bleeding from the concussion of each round as he fired at us. The only way to get him to stop shooting at us was to take them both out. If I were an artist, I would literally draw her portrait from memory.

In Fallujah, we played a major role in securing the mayor’s office. One day, a van driving entirely too fast opened fire on our position. Bad move. We opened up on the van with everything we had. After killing all five people in the van, it eventually ran into a wall and came to a stop. We approached the van to find all five males dead along with a surprise: a eight-year old kid who was miraculously unharmed. What dumbass insurgent group brings their eight-year old to a firefight?! And guess who’s responsibility it was to take this kid to his house and explain to the rest of his family what happened? As soon as he got out of the truck, they knew exactly what had happened.

So, after reading this article, I can’t help but think about what these Soldiers are going to go through for at least the next six years, since that’s how long I’ve been dealing with it and it’s not gone yet. It’s one thing to accidentally kill a child in the exchange of gunfire, but to actually have one in your sights and to pull the trigger is not something I think any Soldier is prepared for. They don’t train us to have to kill kids, but that’s the position the terrorists are putting us in. This story just really broke my heart.

The US military said on Saturday its soldiers shot dead a 12-year-old boy who tried to attack a joint American and Iraqi patrol with a grenade in the tense northern city of Mosul.

“Coalition forces fired on two of three individuals positively identified as involved in the attack, killing one, who they later discovered was a 12-year-old boy,” Master Sergeant Michael Wetzel told AFP.

“We have every reason to believe that insurgents are paying children to conduct these attacks or assist the attackers in some capacity, but undoubtedly placing the children in harm’s way,” he said, following Thursday’s shooting.

Read the rest HERE.

UPDATE: I’m bumping this post because we’re all about to get a much needed education from what I’m sure is a well-researched and thoughtful Soldier about how our government works and declares its wars. Stay tuned to the comments. We all desperately need this constitutional tutoring!

But not for the reasons you may think. I’m tired of all the whining Soldiers who haven’t yet received what the media wants you to think are “tour bonuses“. That’s what they’re calling them these days because stop loss money just doesn’t sound cool enough.

The Pentagon has not started complying with a law requiring the payment of monthly bonuses of up to $500 to soldiers forced to remain on active duty beyond their enlistment period, military officials said.

First of all, these Soldiers aren’t being “forced” to stay on active duty. EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM signed a contract promising an eight year commitment. Let me repeat that because I don’t think the all caps is enough. EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM committed to eight years.

10. MILITARY SERVICE OBLIGATION FOR ALL MEMBERS OF THE ACTIVE AND RESERVE COMPONENTS, INCLUDING THE NATIONAL GUARD.

a. FOR ALL ENLISTEES: If this is my initial enlistment, I must serve a total of eight (8) years. Any part of that service not served on active duty must be served in a Reserve Component unless I am sooner discharged.

Let me also note here that the emphasis is NOT/NOT mine! It’s actually in bold on the contract itself! Therefore, Soldiers who are stop lossed are NOT/NOT owed extra money. It’s not a “back door draft” as the media and our ignorant politicians want to label it as. How about giving $500 per month instead to those Soldier who have fulfilled their commitment and continue to give their life in service to our nation beyond those eight years!?

Congress is full of a bunch of ignorant civilians who have never served a day in their life, with few exceptions. One look at a contract that EVERY enlisted Soldiers signs will obviously show that there is nothing wrong or unusual about stop loss.

On another note, I realize that in rare cases there are troops that are getting stop lossed AFTER the eight year mark. If that is the case, I understand these types of “tour bonuses”. They only signed up for eight years, they’ve done their time, they deserve to be compensated. However, I could also say that if these Soldiers REALLY want out of the Army, they can sue for breach of contract because they only volunteered for eight years!

I don’t want to hear any more whining about stop loss. It’s a non starter and if you “didn’t know” what you were signing, you’re a bonehead too.

JetBlue is offering an AWESOME military special during the month of May. It makes me wish I was still stationed in the DC area. In addition to the great offer, they’re going to support a great cause:

JetBlue proudly supports our men and women in uniform. In honor of National Military Appreciation Month, we’re offering active duty military personnel $1* fares for domestic, nonstop flights, for a limited time, departing from the two JetBlue cities nearest to our nation’s capital: Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD) in Dulles, VA, and Richmond International Airport (RIC) in Richmond, VA. To further honor our military, JetBlue will donate $15,000 to the Wounded Warrior Project (WWP), a non-profit organization whose mission is to honor and empower wounded warriors. Learn more about the Wounded Warrior Project.

Here’s the deal. You have to book between now and May 7 and travel between the 8th and the end of the month. You have to travel FROM either Washington Dulles or Richmond International Airport, but you can travel to ANY continental US city that flies nonstop from these airports. Unfortunately, it’s only offered to troops currently serving on active duty.

To book your $1* fare call 1-800-JETBLUE (538-2583) and select option 4. Important: Flights cannot be purchased online or at the airport service counter. Servicemembers are responsible for applicable taxes and fees. At the airport, you must check in at the service counter and present a current, valid DOD Common Access Card and official documentation from your branch of service verifying that you are on authorized leave from active duty. Failure to present these documents will void your reservation.

The $15 phone booking fee will be waived for this promotion only. Have your credit card number handy to pay taxes and fees. For more information, check out JetBlue’s website.