Time sure flies when you are not at war…….

Three years ago I was in a bunker in Kuwait praying for a swift end to this war.  The warning sirens of incoming missiles were constantly screeching like a banshee delivering us her death message.  The subsequent Patriots missiles being fired afterwards gave me some sort of comfort that I might make it.  Back then those days seemed like it took years to come to an end, especially when you can’t sleep or in my case because of the “uncertainty” that was all around me I refused to close my eyes. I had to remain focused.  Who ever said “war is hell” was right and I wasn’t even in the heart of the battle.  I sure wished I was though. 

Fast forward to a year later, this is when I got my chance to go Iraq.  I volunteered to leave my plush assignment in Washington DC to spend a 6 month vacation in Baghdad.  Why did I want to go again after all this “uncertainty” I had the prior year? I can’t explain why, Aw Heck! That is what Old Soldiers do and what we live and die for. This is known as DUTY!  

Listening to the “The Doors” song “The End” reminded me about my buddy “uncertainty”  I thought I had left him behind in DC but sure enough he was sitting next to me on the airplane.  I started to wonder… Is Iraq really it worth all of this? Where do we go from here? Lastly, how are we going to get there, if we get there at all? “Uncertainty” surely was instigating. I can understand why most Americans feel the way they do about the war. As you can tell I too had those same doubts.

I never doubted the strategy, the plans, the field Generals or my Commander in Chief.  What I doubted was the resolve and commitment it will take to see this thing through. When I joined the Army in 91 the last of the Vietnam soldiers were phasing out.  Arguably, they played major influence on my way of thinking and still do to this day.  Vietnam provided the template for the enemy that using guerilla tactics will exhaust the will of the U.S and eventually America will pull out.  The war has not gone the way we have hope, but if you can show me one that has then I can fully understand your rationale.  The first gulf war, the crushing of the Taliban in Afghanistan, and finally “shock and awe” gave us that false sense of security yet the swift and decisive action it took to demoralize and destroy the enemy has been our Achilles heel. Patience is not an American virtue however, it is for the insurgency.  What got rid of my uncertainty were the efforts I saw with my own eyes from the soldiers, coalition partners, and civilian and government contractors to rebuild a fragile country that was in dire need of being help.  After decades of being ruled by a brutal dictator and wars that plague this country’s history, stability is what’s needed. 

As long as we are moving continue to move forward, I consider this to be progress.  Don’t you? Not only do the Iraqis want this more than ever, so do we. I know this because I was there.

Recently the Secretary of Defense, The Honorable Donald Rumsfield said in a speech at the Harry S. Truman Presidential Library…

 “Let there be no doubt, the United States did not win the Cold War by luck – and our victory was not inevitable. It took perseverance.  It took confidence in our course, despite the many uncertainties and critics both at home and abroad.  The same is true in the long struggle our nation faces today and in the years ahead.”

I agree, and “uncertainty” will suppress “hope” .