posted @ 03:39...

IBA (Individual Ballistic Apparatus, aka body armor) gets heavy real quick when you have to wear it anytime you venture outdoors. I had the day off all day Saturday, but I had left my helmet and IBA at the office. That's a good distance from where I live. The morning of my day off, it was determined that the uniform status should be upgraded to include the helmet and IBA. This meant that in order to be considered "in uniform," I would have to walk all the way to the office -- on my off -- in an "incomplete" uniform, just to get my gear. Huh. So I sat in my room all day, reading and watching movies. Good thing my roommate and I had some snack foods from various care packages lying around, because I couldn't go eat in the wrong uniform. Today I snuck between trailers all the way to work, and only got yelled at once for being out of uniform. The NCO understood though, when I explained my situation to him.

posted @ 15:49...

Someone please explain to me why George W. Bush personally flew to Baghdad, and personally unlocked the door to that explosives stockpile... and then just walked off and left it open! How could he? Didn't he realize that someone could just take off with those 380 tons of ordnance? See the logic in blaming the President for this? Me neither.

Kerry has jumped to conclusions without knowing the facts. It's all too typical how he immediately jumped on it and placed blame on the administration. Anyone with a few IQ points is seeing right through that. In reality, the stuff went missing before we even rolled in. If I were a Kerry supporter, I'd be cringing, and somewhat embarrassed about my hero shooting off his mouth like that without knowing the whole story.

posted @ 15:05...

Some guys in the office and I have been answering a few "pen pal" letters from kids at an elementary school in a town in New York. The letters the kids write are cute, and mostly they ask what life is like here in Iraq. They also ask about our favorite colors, and what kinds of pets we have back home. However, there are a few that are actually pretty funny. One kid wrote, "I hope you won’t die!" Another wrote, "Have you lost any body parts yet?" We were cracking up, but I’m sure we’ll find tactful ways to reply to those inquiries.

I also wish I had something more exciting to tell them about my job. In the mind of eight-year-old, all soldiers simply shoot the enemy. That’s the job. Somehow I don’t think they’ll understand how I, uh… aid chains-of-command in administering non-judicial punishment to soldiers who have broken the law. When I was their age, running around the neighborhood playing "army," I was a Ranger or Special Forces. I never pretended to be a paralegal, sitting at a desk typing up Article 15’s. And I certainly didn't think soldiers would ever break the law.

posted @ 08:41...

Some of you might be pleased to know that there are some in the military who support John Kerry. Not a lot, but some. In fact, one of these is a friend of mine whose job is "combat journalist." He and his buddy are soldiers who write news stories and take pictures. Some of these end up in various publications like the Stars & Stripes, and some of their work has been picked up by wire services like AP. Being a professional military journalist, he keeps his personal feelings out of whatever he's reporting on, but I know how he feels just from talking to him. And it's interesting hearing his views on the war, on the president, etc. He has never said anything derogatory about the President or anything like that, but he just honestly and intelligently disagrees. I have to respect that, even though I don't always agree with him politically.

posted @ 03:55...

I have a newfound respect for Wayne Newton. See, the Wayne Newton USO tour came through here last night. I wasn't sure what to excpect from Mr.Newton, knowing he was a Las Vegas entertainer. He's actually a very talented, versatile performer, mastering instruments like the guitar, banjo, violin, and piano. He brought with him some very talented people too. Comedian Rob Schneider was the one everyone had been waiting for. He was really funny, but didn't stay up there as long as we would've hoped. There was also a former host of a Univision show that came out to read letters of support from people in the States. And there was a Korean-American girl that sang. Apparently, she was the Korean-American entertainer of the year, but I can't remember her name. Anyway, I haven't done the evening justice with this post, but it was pretty amazing. They came all the way over here for us. That in itself was incredible.

posted @ 22:14...

I almost forgot about this cool bumpersticker I designed a while back.
There's also this T-shirt...

posted @ 22:01...

Flag Flap: High School Administration Suspends Students for Displaying American Flags in Graduation Picture

And here's my email to the school:

I am a soldier currently serving just outside Baghdad, Iraq. I am writing this email in support of the students that you have reprimanded for their attempts to be photographed with U.S. flags.I proudly wear the U.S. flag on the right shoulder of my uniform; all who see it know exactly who and what I'm fighting for. I love this country. If I didn't, I wouldn't be here. I have a wife and a young son at home. I'd rather be with them, but this is where duty has called me.

To the school administration: Please put this situation in perspective.Compared to a lot of problems that happen nowadays in America's highschools, displaying an American flag in a photograph should be anextremely minor concern. You should be proud of these students. Honestly,what are you smoking?

To the students: Wave 'em proudly. We've got your back!

Sincerely,
Brian

posted @ 06:19...

I've found that a lot of my blog posts start by me simply realizing that what I've just written in an email to a friend would make a good post. Perhaps I'm lazy to be re-gifting to all you folks, but then my writing is hardly a gift!

Recently, I was thinking more about the election. Specifically about how tired I am of the election. It's more and more like Christmas. Retailers set up the fake trees in June, just after the "back to school" sales start, and every store has a the holiday section growing bigger and bigger until December 26th, when return lines take over where the fake trees left off. Hey, at least wrapping paper is cheap.

I laughed out loud the other day when I got a mass email from the Sergeant Major of the Army. He was just reminding everyone about the upcoming election. Makes about as much sense as sending an email December 21st, reminding everyone that Christmas is coming.

I've sometimes compared Christmas to the passing of a large, albeit festive, kidney stone. That's a bit harsh, especially since it's the day we celebrate Jesus' birth (although many believe His actual birthday was in March or April). But the 26th often brings relief for those few weeks until the credit card bills start arriving.

Ooh, I'm sidetracked again. Imagine that! Ahh, the election. As with Christmas and stones, it'll be a huge relief when it's over. You all know I've tried to keep this blog non-political, and then I go off about how I like Bush and I don't trust Kerry. Well, I was thinking about something... These guys are both politicians. And how much can we really trust any politician?

By the time they rise to the level of a presidential nomination, they've been through so much that taints them as individuals (special interestgroups, lobbyists, money, etc.). I'd like to vote for a smart, educated person (male or female) who has never been in politics. General Eisenhower is an example. He never wanted to be president, but he finally bowed to the pressure after both parties relentlessly pursued him for several years. He had proved himself as a leader, but never wanted to be a politician. Many of the founding fathers were the same way. And now we have these people arrogantly standing up, going off about how great a job they'd do. Ike, Jefferson, and Washington would be dismayed. (It's worth noting, too, that before Ike left office, he "urged the necessity of maintaining an adequate military strength, but cautioned that vast, long-continued military expenditures could breed potential dangers to our way of life." Source: whitehouse.gov)

Of course, nowadays being a leader in the military means you have to be a politician to some extent. The height of the rank is proportionate to the percentage of one's psyche overtaken by the mind of a politician. But that's for another post.

posted @ 03:32...

Full o’ Grace!
There was a movie a few years back called "Pecker." The main character was a kid by that name, who was an aspiring photographer. His grandmother, whom he loved very much, was a devout Catholic. She had a Virgin Mary ventriloquist dummy which, she would claim, miraculously spoke to her. In reality, she would simply speak in a high voice from the side of her mouth, and repeat the phrase "Full of grace!" The rest of the movie was okay, but that part was particularly funny.

posted @ 22:46...

I know I just had wonderful things to say about KBR (the clean latrines, good food, etc.). But it appears I spoke too soon. Yesterday, after I had consumed half of my stir-fry lunch, I realized there was a dead fly right there in what I had not yet eaten. Disgusting. It took a trip to the ice cream counter to regain my appetite. And then today, as I poured milk on my Frosted Flakes, I salivated at the thought of crunching through "part of this nutritious breakfast," as they always used to say on the commercals. Unfortunately, the milk had gone bad. Furthermore, I didn't realize it until after I had poured some of that same milk into my coffee. Maybe it's not KBR's fault. Perhaps it was negligence on the part of their contracted foodservice company, Gulf Catering. I don't know...

posted @ 07:45...

On a lighter note, here's something to go see.

posted @ 07:07...

Today was the first time I experienced a military memorial service. A sergeant from a company that’s attached to one of our battalions died recently from wounds he received in an attack over a week before. The service was a unique experience, and it was good to be there. But obviously, given the choice, I’d prefer that there wasn’t a need for memorial services. The thing that always gets me is the roll call. “Sergeant Andrew Brown,” I heard someone’s loud, clear voice offer three times, with no reply expected. And there’s the 21-gun salute. There’s just something very final about it all. But then, that’s probably part of why they do it. The honor, the closure.

I didn't know SGT Brown. I'm sure various high-ranking officers didn't either, but they spoke anyway. I also heard from people who did know him, including his roommate. It was moving. How that guy held back the tears, I have no idea.

posted @ 08:39...

A dream I had the other night…
I dreamt that I was back at Fort Drum in some building with a bunch of different people. I was sitting around in this waiting room type place, and there was this girl there flirting with me. Eventually, after sitting down near me and talking to me, she grabbed me and started kissing me. I was like, "What the are you doing!?" Just then, my NCO was walking by about 20 feet away, looking at me as if to say, "You are such a bastard." Anyway, I immediately went home and told my wife what had happened. She was pretty cool about it, though not happy with the girl, obviously. But she realized that I wanted no part of the day's events.

Then a day or two later, I saw this girl again somewhere. She started flirting with me again, so I told her something to the effect of "I don't want to be involved with you," etc.
"Give me one reason why!" she said.
I replied, "Because I'm in love with my wife!"
"Yeah?" she replied. "Well, I'm going to tell your wife about us!"
"There is no ‘us’," I answered, "Besides, I've already told my wife exactly what happened the other day, so you've got nothing!"

Then I remember thinking how I should have never allowed myself to be alone with this dumb girl... per the rule that we (along with other couples) have to never be alone with a member of the opposite sex, besides their spouses of course. But then we weren't exactly alone in that waiting room…

Anyway, then I woke up. Isn't that weird? I was reading yesterday in one of my Perri O'Shaughnessy books... The main character, attorney Nina Reilly, has a moment of weakness in which she lets the dishwasher repairman kiss her. Just then, her husband (also an attorney) walks in, home early from work. He says, "So this is how it is!" And the next day he files for divorce. So I was wondering this morning if I'm somehow dreaming things that are similar to, or inspired by, what I'm reading about in books. Maybe I've been reading too much.

The really weird thing is, that same night my wife had a dream that I hooked up with a girl over here. I tried to assure her that dreams don’t usually come true. Hooking up with someone is practically impossible over here anyway. There are females, yes. But besides my unwavering faithfulness to my wife, there are other reasons why it’s unlikely. I wear my ring conspicuously. I have photos of my beloved wife & child on my computer screen most of the time. This being a combat zone, there is a vastly skewed ratio of men to women. Among the females that are here, many of those are either too old, too young, married, or a combination of these. So narrowing it down, there are probably females who are of similar age, and who are either unmarried or unhappy in their marriages. However, they would have their pick of thousands of guys here. And even if I was into it, a 30-year-old E-3 with a wife, a child, and a low PT score is not high on their list. Women haven’t typically thrown themselves at me. Everything about me that is remotely attractive is what my wife has discovered, brought out, and enhanced. She makes me better than I could ever be without her.

posted @ 07:39...

“Always remember: Your equipment was made by the lowest bidder.”
The above quote is something I’ve heard repeatedly throughout my time in the Army. Some of the controversy this election deals with how Halliburton, the company V.P. Cheney used to work for, was awarded no-bid contracts for their services here in Iraq. I’m split about the issue, because it seems fair that every contractor should have an equal shot at the job, and it’s financially beneficial to the government to pick the company who can do the job for the least amount of money.

On the other hand, sometimes the people who can simply do the job cheaper isn’t necessarily the best option. The British military uses Land Rovers. The Germans use Mercedes Benz. Both of those companies are well known for building quality, dependable products. We use stuff from American General, a relatively obscure automaker, whose main business is defense contracting. Is the HMMWV a better vehicle than, say, a modified Ford Expedition or a Chevy Tahoe? Ask a soldier. Better yet, ask a soldier whose MOS is Light Wheeled Vehicle Mechanic. It seems like those things are always falling apart. To the HMMWV’s credit, those things are driven a lot of miles, by people who don’t necessarily care how the vehicles are treated. I just wonder, though, what would happen if the military put cost aside and focused strictly on quality, dependability, and versatility. The HMMWV would win the versatility category (probably because the vehicle is simply built to the military’s specs), but the other two categories might be in question. Anyway, sometimes it’s beneficial to pay a little more upfront than to keep making repairs down the road that could have been avoided if the equipment didn’t keep breaking down.

Back to the original Halliburton thing. They have a subsidiary called KBR. Those are the folks who do our laundry, maintain and clean our latrines and showers, provide upkeep on our living quarters, and make sure we have water with which to cleanse ourselves of the sand and sweat. They also take care of a lot of the food preparation. And they do a darn good job. Whenever I get out of the nice clean shower and go back to my comfortable, air-conditioned “hooch,” and put on my freshly cleaned and folded uniform, I‘m not thinking about how the people that made all this possible got a no-bid contract. I do wonder what it would be like if the military had settled for the “lowest bidder.”

posted @ 08:04...

What would possess someone to shoot a dog? I assume I'm not allowed to talk about specific military legal cases in public forums, so let's just say... Hypothetically, why would someone use a stray dog for target practice?

This hypothetical soldier was impressed by a hypothetical Iraqi national, who had quickly scaled a tree to pick dates. After the local had gone on his merry way, the soldier then said to his redneck buddies, "Lemme show you how I pick dates," and the proceeded to alledgedly fire his weapon at the top of the tree. The (again, hypothetical) sworn statement neglected to mention whether or not his efforts were, uh... fruitful.

And then he alledgedly turned his attention on a stray canine. What an alledged idiot.