Friday, October 2, 2009
HOME
Alright, Ive been home since the 24Th.... I didn't have a chance to post in Kuwait... I wasn't going to pay 5 dollars for 15 min of Internet... I'm home now and I'm reintegrating... I really don't have much to say or talk about at the moment... I don't know where to go from here with the blog but I'll think of something... bare with me...
Saturday, September 19, 2009
SEQUENTIAL EVENT #2
TENT CITY...
Here I sit on my little cot cramped in the middle of about 50 others. My space encompasses my cot and about a foot off of that in all directions... This space is mine for the next day or so... Any challenge of my space will be met with a stern confrontation and aggressive counter measures to ensure the sovereignty of my rightfully owned space.
"Hey guy.... Move your fucking assault pack away from my cot..... That's where my boots go"...
I mentioned before how tent city was about a three day event... and now I'm saying I'm only going to be here for a day or so... The reason for this is that I decided that coming to tent city two days early would be arbitrary, and definitely in my mind not absolutistic... Instead, I opted to stay in my room which was furnished with a bed and TV for the last two days.... I just finished moving into my new space and now I'm eagerly awaiting the info on my fight to Kuwait...
Pirated DVD's.....
I've wrote before about how you can get pirated dvd's for 2 bucks here in Iraq. Well, we were all briefed yesterday that Navy customs in Kuwait is making everyone throw all but ONE of your pirated movies away. Now that can't be right. It doesn't make sense. You would think that they would adopt a policy of either you can have or you can't have. A "you can keep one pirated dvd but that's all policy", that would be asinine, and you can bet that i will be doing my fair share of ear bending on behave of my soldiers if that turns out to be true. The fact that the US government allows pirated dvd's to be sold to soldiers on almost every base in Iraq is enough ammo for me... If the policy is you can buy them but not keep them, then that needs to be specified prior to purchase. I would have still bought some but not to the extent that i did...
I know when i was here my first time the policy was that you could have one copy per movie... you couldn't try to bring home 25 copy's of the same movie... Now that makes sense. I think that still is the policy and people are confused. I got the brief from my 1SG and PSG. I told them about the policy before and they shot it down saying "No, you can only bring one movie period". My movie collection has swelled from about 70 predeployment to around 400 now... So to play it safe I sent all my movies home in the mail today to avoid any serious confrontations with the Navy in the next few days... I'll update on this after I find out for sure.
Other then that I'm stuck in a rather long game of hurry up and wait. If I'm honest I think I've been playing it for the last 5 days, and it won't stop until I'm at my house...
Here I sit on my little cot cramped in the middle of about 50 others. My space encompasses my cot and about a foot off of that in all directions... This space is mine for the next day or so... Any challenge of my space will be met with a stern confrontation and aggressive counter measures to ensure the sovereignty of my rightfully owned space.
"Hey guy.... Move your fucking assault pack away from my cot..... That's where my boots go"...
I mentioned before how tent city was about a three day event... and now I'm saying I'm only going to be here for a day or so... The reason for this is that I decided that coming to tent city two days early would be arbitrary, and definitely in my mind not absolutistic... Instead, I opted to stay in my room which was furnished with a bed and TV for the last two days.... I just finished moving into my new space and now I'm eagerly awaiting the info on my fight to Kuwait...
Pirated DVD's.....
I've wrote before about how you can get pirated dvd's for 2 bucks here in Iraq. Well, we were all briefed yesterday that Navy customs in Kuwait is making everyone throw all but ONE of your pirated movies away. Now that can't be right. It doesn't make sense. You would think that they would adopt a policy of either you can have or you can't have. A "you can keep one pirated dvd but that's all policy", that would be asinine, and you can bet that i will be doing my fair share of ear bending on behave of my soldiers if that turns out to be true. The fact that the US government allows pirated dvd's to be sold to soldiers on almost every base in Iraq is enough ammo for me... If the policy is you can buy them but not keep them, then that needs to be specified prior to purchase. I would have still bought some but not to the extent that i did...
I know when i was here my first time the policy was that you could have one copy per movie... you couldn't try to bring home 25 copy's of the same movie... Now that makes sense. I think that still is the policy and people are confused. I got the brief from my 1SG and PSG. I told them about the policy before and they shot it down saying "No, you can only bring one movie period". My movie collection has swelled from about 70 predeployment to around 400 now... So to play it safe I sent all my movies home in the mail today to avoid any serious confrontations with the Navy in the next few days... I'll update on this after I find out for sure.
Other then that I'm stuck in a rather long game of hurry up and wait. If I'm honest I think I've been playing it for the last 5 days, and it won't stop until I'm at my house...
Friday, September 18, 2009
SEQUENTIAL EVENT #1
About two hours ago I finished my last combat mission on the streets of Baghdad I will probably ever go on. It was a surreal feeling. I knew while out on the road that it was my last mission so i just tried to soak it all in. I can't tell you how many times I responded to an IED/EFP attack on a road that I'd traveled at least 100 times before. It always made me feel the same way. I'd look at the blast seat and the truck damage and say to my self fuck man, I've rode down this street hundreds of times before.... I've driven by that spot so many times... I would feel lucky that it wasn't my convoy, but I'd know that it just wasn't our time. This city has been my stomping ground for a year now. I've become very familiar with this city... When i first got here I didn't know my way around at all. Everything in this city was new to me... Now I can go anywhere in Baghdad without a map... I routinely make route changes on the fly without having to look at anything or second guess myself... It kinda feels like this is my city... Alot like how you'd feel about your home town... It's familiar and you notice immediately if something is out of place. I'm leaving now and will probably never return... Deeper reflecting on this will reveal weather that's a good thing or not...
I've made it.... I'm home free.... I don't know if what I've done here this deployment will end up being worthy of much or not. I think that would require strong thought and a clear mind, both of which i don't possess at the moment. However, I will say that my only goal when coming to this country this deployment was to bring myself and my men home alive. I've done that. I know it may seem premature to ring that bell being that we're still in Iraq and technically IN DANGER, but baring a hugely unlucky plane crash, a rogue mortar ( also very unlucky ), or the Kuwaiti base we fly from getting over taken, I'd say the odds of us not making it now are up there with winning the lottery and getting struck by lighting. So, ring ring ring.... and I'll take my chances.
I've made it.... I'm home free.... I don't know if what I've done here this deployment will end up being worthy of much or not. I think that would require strong thought and a clear mind, both of which i don't possess at the moment. However, I will say that my only goal when coming to this country this deployment was to bring myself and my men home alive. I've done that. I know it may seem premature to ring that bell being that we're still in Iraq and technically IN DANGER, but baring a hugely unlucky plane crash, a rogue mortar ( also very unlucky ), or the Kuwaiti base we fly from getting over taken, I'd say the odds of us not making it now are up there with winning the lottery and getting struck by lighting. So, ring ring ring.... and I'll take my chances.
Thursday, September 10, 2009
A LITTLE OF THIS A LITTLE OF THAT CONTINUED
SINGLE DIGITS...
I say single digits but if I'm honest I'm really counting down to like 4 different sequential events. The first being when I will finally be done running missions ( more to follow on that ). Then after that's passed our chalk will leave the comfy confines of our little tin two man rooms for big 100 man tents. Tent city as its called is hell. Living on a cot with nothing to do and 100 people all around you for days sucks, especially when your just waiting to go to fucking Kuwait. The third event is getting to Kuwait. I have a date but flight dates are always subject to change. Getting to Kuwait is the start of the " I'm finally fucking going home feeling". Frustration sets in shortly after. It's almost impossible to stay giddy and excited about being on the cusp when the cusp is days long... It can be mental torture. Kuwait is its own animal. No one knows how long we will have to wait there. I've heard 1 day and I've heard 3. Last deployment I heard we would only be there for one day but it ended up being 7. Kuwait is tent city with more rules and less to do. You wait and wait until you can finally start your 22-26 hour plane ride back home. Fun..... All in all you work here in Iraq until your finally able to start your going home process. In a perfect world this process would just be the plane ride home. Instead the Army has managed to find a way to make this process a 10-20 day event. HOOAH...
MISSIONS...
I kinda feel like a douche complaining about going on missions because to be honest, I like going on missions. One of the most common questions I'm asked by family and friends in the civilian world is why would anyone like going into the streets of Baghdad? Why would I enjoy putting myself in harms way? I believe from the many conversations I've had about this that there is a common misconception that going outside of the wire is dreaded by soldiers. It's not. In my experience, most COMBAT soldiers enjoy and look forward to going out. The analogy I use when explaining this I will call the fire fighter analogy. As a fire fighter you train and train to fight fires. You practice hundreds of different scenarios, sliding down the pole, prepping your gear and truck, among many other things. This can go on for months or even years and nothing real world happens. Then all the sudden there's a house fire somewhere. Do you think that fire fighter wants to go? I bet he wants to go bad. That's his job. That's what hes been training and practicing for. He wants to go and maybe even has been hoping for a fire somewhere. It's the same for a soldier. I train and train for war. I practice different scenarios and go through different schools all to prepare me for war. Then a war breaks out somewhere. Do i want to go? Fuck yeah i want to go. Not only that but i want something to happen. I don't want to just sit back and ride it out. I want to be in the front. I want to put my skills and training to the test.
I don't know if that make sense. I know my soldiers feel the same way because we've talked about it. They like going out and hope something happens while we are out there as well. There's not a mission that goes by that my gunner doesn't ask me if he can shoot something.
Walters: Sgt. McNeil theres a rag head up ahead on the right just standing by the road.
Me: Yeah I see him Walters... Just watch him.
Walters: Can i shoot him?
Me: lol, No Walters you can't shoot him.
Walters: Well can i shoot a dog tonight? Or shoot off some of my nonlethal rounds?
Me: Nope.
Walters: Why not, you've let me before.
Me: EOD's with us and they will tell on us.
Walters: Fuck them POG's.
For the last 2 weeks we have responded to a call every night. Evey single time we gear up to go I think to myself... This is it.. Today's the day... Time to cash in and meet my maker... Tonight's the night that I will be condemned to an afterlife of.... well fuck it you fill in the rest......... The point is when your this close to the end, your done. No one wants to make 11 and a half months. I no longer want to go out. I'm done risking it. I just want to go home now. I've seen and heard to many story's about soldiers dying in there last weeks. Guys who die when they were suppose to be home already but for some reason were still in theater. I no longer hope for missions. I feel like a bitch for whining about it but it's time to pack it in. I'm done playing soldier this deployment.
FOOTBALL TIME...
opening weekend... I'm pumped... i wait for this all year long... I'm a huge cowboy fan... we won and are now 1-0... we have a tough test next week but i think we will be up for the challenge...
LASTLY... UPDATE
this post was written over the course of a few days... so the date stamp isn't correct, it's when i started this post... right now I'm looking at being out of this country in under a week and possible being home in under a week... i have one more day of missions... cross your fingers... ill go out into the wild probably two more times before I'm done.... shit it's the last day of missions, i may even wear my Kevlar this time...
I say single digits but if I'm honest I'm really counting down to like 4 different sequential events. The first being when I will finally be done running missions ( more to follow on that ). Then after that's passed our chalk will leave the comfy confines of our little tin two man rooms for big 100 man tents. Tent city as its called is hell. Living on a cot with nothing to do and 100 people all around you for days sucks, especially when your just waiting to go to fucking Kuwait. The third event is getting to Kuwait. I have a date but flight dates are always subject to change. Getting to Kuwait is the start of the " I'm finally fucking going home feeling". Frustration sets in shortly after. It's almost impossible to stay giddy and excited about being on the cusp when the cusp is days long... It can be mental torture. Kuwait is its own animal. No one knows how long we will have to wait there. I've heard 1 day and I've heard 3. Last deployment I heard we would only be there for one day but it ended up being 7. Kuwait is tent city with more rules and less to do. You wait and wait until you can finally start your 22-26 hour plane ride back home. Fun..... All in all you work here in Iraq until your finally able to start your going home process. In a perfect world this process would just be the plane ride home. Instead the Army has managed to find a way to make this process a 10-20 day event. HOOAH...
MISSIONS...
I kinda feel like a douche complaining about going on missions because to be honest, I like going on missions. One of the most common questions I'm asked by family and friends in the civilian world is why would anyone like going into the streets of Baghdad? Why would I enjoy putting myself in harms way? I believe from the many conversations I've had about this that there is a common misconception that going outside of the wire is dreaded by soldiers. It's not. In my experience, most COMBAT soldiers enjoy and look forward to going out. The analogy I use when explaining this I will call the fire fighter analogy. As a fire fighter you train and train to fight fires. You practice hundreds of different scenarios, sliding down the pole, prepping your gear and truck, among many other things. This can go on for months or even years and nothing real world happens. Then all the sudden there's a house fire somewhere. Do you think that fire fighter wants to go? I bet he wants to go bad. That's his job. That's what hes been training and practicing for. He wants to go and maybe even has been hoping for a fire somewhere. It's the same for a soldier. I train and train for war. I practice different scenarios and go through different schools all to prepare me for war. Then a war breaks out somewhere. Do i want to go? Fuck yeah i want to go. Not only that but i want something to happen. I don't want to just sit back and ride it out. I want to be in the front. I want to put my skills and training to the test.
I don't know if that make sense. I know my soldiers feel the same way because we've talked about it. They like going out and hope something happens while we are out there as well. There's not a mission that goes by that my gunner doesn't ask me if he can shoot something.
Walters: Sgt. McNeil theres a rag head up ahead on the right just standing by the road.
Me: Yeah I see him Walters... Just watch him.
Walters: Can i shoot him?
Me: lol, No Walters you can't shoot him.
Walters: Well can i shoot a dog tonight? Or shoot off some of my nonlethal rounds?
Me: Nope.
Walters: Why not, you've let me before.
Me: EOD's with us and they will tell on us.
Walters: Fuck them POG's.
For the last 2 weeks we have responded to a call every night. Evey single time we gear up to go I think to myself... This is it.. Today's the day... Time to cash in and meet my maker... Tonight's the night that I will be condemned to an afterlife of.... well fuck it you fill in the rest......... The point is when your this close to the end, your done. No one wants to make 11 and a half months. I no longer want to go out. I'm done risking it. I just want to go home now. I've seen and heard to many story's about soldiers dying in there last weeks. Guys who die when they were suppose to be home already but for some reason were still in theater. I no longer hope for missions. I feel like a bitch for whining about it but it's time to pack it in. I'm done playing soldier this deployment.
FOOTBALL TIME...
opening weekend... I'm pumped... i wait for this all year long... I'm a huge cowboy fan... we won and are now 1-0... we have a tough test next week but i think we will be up for the challenge...
LASTLY... UPDATE
this post was written over the course of a few days... so the date stamp isn't correct, it's when i started this post... right now I'm looking at being out of this country in under a week and possible being home in under a week... i have one more day of missions... cross your fingers... ill go out into the wild probably two more times before I'm done.... shit it's the last day of missions, i may even wear my Kevlar this time...
Sunday, September 6, 2009
THROUGH AMBER LENSE...... RIP
A few post back I wrote about a new milblogger who was starting his second tour in Iraq. I had the chance to write back in forth with him a few times in the last month. I never got the chance to meet him, or to speak with in directly but i knew from the content of his writings that he was cut from the same cloth as I.
I've been waiting patiently for the last few days for him to write a new post to no avail. I just stopped by his page and saw that he had 58 comments on his last post to the 6 he has on the post before that one. I went to read the comments and saw that he has been killed. He died on the 2ND of Sept. The details are unknown to me right now. Although i only got to talk to him a few times, i feel like I've lost a friend. This has hit really close to home. Losing someone over here is always hard, no matter how many times it happens, it never gets easier. It hits you like a ton of bricks. He will be missed. I urge you all to stop by his page and pay your respects.
Througharmberlenses.blogspot.com
I've been waiting patiently for the last few days for him to write a new post to no avail. I just stopped by his page and saw that he had 58 comments on his last post to the 6 he has on the post before that one. I went to read the comments and saw that he has been killed. He died on the 2ND of Sept. The details are unknown to me right now. Although i only got to talk to him a few times, i feel like I've lost a friend. This has hit really close to home. Losing someone over here is always hard, no matter how many times it happens, it never gets easier. It hits you like a ton of bricks. He will be missed. I urge you all to stop by his page and pay your respects.
Througharmberlenses.blogspot.com
Thursday, September 3, 2009
DATES UPDATE
I finally have solid information on when i leave iraq.... I have heard it from the horses mouth. Standing in Battalion evesdroping on my platoon sgt. and 1sg, I heard them give solid dates for when we leave. The funny thing is they knew i was evesdroping. I made no attempt to hide the fact that i was. Shit i was standing 5 feet away from them. I stared intently at them listening to everything they were saying and they saw me. I didn't look away or attempt to play off my interest in the conversation. When they looked at me, I looked back at them silently. It was an ackward moment. Just silent staring. Although nothing was said or heard, it kinda sounded like my eyes where saying "hey keep talking fags, i want to know when im going home too". They got the point and continued the conversation.
So, I have a solid confirmed date for when i fly to kuwait from iraq. As for when i leave kuwait for the states, that's still up in the air. I'm being told that it shouldn't be more then 3 days...
That's all I have for now. If you were thinking I was going to tell you the date then your an idiot. I can't because it would violate OPSEC.... but that's not why I wont tell you. I'm not telling because I'm an asshole.... and assholes do asshole things.... lol
So, I have a solid confirmed date for when i fly to kuwait from iraq. As for when i leave kuwait for the states, that's still up in the air. I'm being told that it shouldn't be more then 3 days...
That's all I have for now. If you were thinking I was going to tell you the date then your an idiot. I can't because it would violate OPSEC.... but that's not why I wont tell you. I'm not telling because I'm an asshole.... and assholes do asshole things.... lol
Sunday, August 30, 2009
BIRTHDAY BOY
Once a year we celebrate with stupid hats and plastic plates the fact that I was able to make another trip around the sun.
And the whole clan gathers around and gifts and laughter do abound and we let out a joyful sound and sing that stupid song.
Happy birthday… now I’m one year older
Happy birthday… my life still isn’t over
Happy birthday… I did not accomplish much… but I didn't die this year so I guess that’s good enough.
So lets drink to my fading health and hope that I don’t remind myself my chance of finding fame and wealth decrease with ever year.
It feels like I’m doing laps and eating food and taking naps and hoping that someday perhaps my life will hold some cheer.
Happy birthday… what have I done that matters
Happy birthday… I’m starting to get fatter
Happy birthday… its down hill from now on… ill try not to remind myself my best years are all gone.
If cryogenics were all free then I could live like Walt Disney and live for all eternity inside a block of ice.
But instead my time is set this is the only life I get and though it hasn’t ended yet sometimes I wish it might.
Happy birthday… I wish I had more money
Happy birthday… life’s so sad its funny
Happy birthday… how much more I can take… fuck it, my friends are hungry so I’ll cut the stupid cake.
And the whole clan gathers around and gifts and laughter do abound and we let out a joyful sound and sing that stupid song.
Happy birthday… now I’m one year older
Happy birthday… my life still isn’t over
Happy birthday… I did not accomplish much… but I didn't die this year so I guess that’s good enough.
So lets drink to my fading health and hope that I don’t remind myself my chance of finding fame and wealth decrease with ever year.
It feels like I’m doing laps and eating food and taking naps and hoping that someday perhaps my life will hold some cheer.
Happy birthday… what have I done that matters
Happy birthday… I’m starting to get fatter
Happy birthday… its down hill from now on… ill try not to remind myself my best years are all gone.
If cryogenics were all free then I could live like Walt Disney and live for all eternity inside a block of ice.
But instead my time is set this is the only life I get and though it hasn’t ended yet sometimes I wish it might.
Happy birthday… I wish I had more money
Happy birthday… life’s so sad its funny
Happy birthday… how much more I can take… fuck it, my friends are hungry so I’ll cut the stupid cake.
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
DUALITY OF THE MIND
The finish line is in sight. No longer are we running towards an invisible end. It's so close we can almost reach out and grab it. A month and a half from now I'll look back to this moment while watching a football game on my big screen with one of my friends, either Jack or Beam. I'll be sitting on my couch with my feet kicked up, and some home made chicken wings on the table. I'll be wrestling with my boys during commercials, and giving my wife that "stop talking to me during the game" look while watching my cowboys wreck havoc on the opposition. I'll sit there staring at the screen and at some point during the game my mind will wonder back to this place. I'll come back to this moment in my mind and say to myself, that went by quick. Time flies in hindsight, but I also know that in the moment it can be an eternity. I remember when i was at the 90 day mark. That seems like forever ago. Now I’m down around the 30 day mark and the times going ungodly slow. It seems like for the last 30 days I’ve been between the 30-40 days left mark. The logical side of my brain tells me there's not a difference of 30 between 30-40 (lol, I can count), but physically and subconsciously my mind and body feels as if I've been stuck in a time warp of sorts. Maybe it's because once you get down to the last month you can start counting weeks by default. Or maybe not. Maybe I’m just trying to understand this time pause so that i can unpause it metaphorically speaking. Whatever it is i just want it to be over. It's like for a year I’ve been running at a nice comfortable pace and now that I can see the finish line i want to sprint it out.
A part of me is telling me to slow down though. Don't be in such a hurry to have all of this end. It's telling me to soak it all in and let it resonate with in me. A part of me knows that these last 30 some odd days will probably be the last I ever spend in this country. Like it or not, this country and the two years I've spent here have become a part of my soul. It will all end soon and all I'll have are the memories. Believe it or not, they're all aren’t bad. The bonds formed through tribulation and the friends turned brothers are experiences that I will never forget. As the years pass we will all take different paths through life and disconnect. I'm going to miss my brothers. If i live to be an old man I'll look back on these days and truly feel sad. I'm going to miss these guys. There's a lot to be say for going through a shitty situation while having the luxury of being surrounded by some great people.
I miss my family more then words can express. That's what makes this deployment hard. I'm mentally strong by nature, but not being with my wife and children for a year has the ability to push the limits of my resolve. Soon I'll be with them again. I'll awake to them in the morning and be there when they go to sleep at night. After a while it will become routine and I'll start to miss the guys with whom I've lived with for the past year. Some of them will still be in my life, while others with drift away into the shadows of my memories. It's inevitable. It's a double life that i live. One with my brothers in arms and the other with my love and seeds. I wish like hell the two could merge into a hybrid well balanced life but I fear any attempt of mine to have this wish realized would be fruitless. I know there isn't a way for me to assuage the anguish of the situation. So I'll choose my family..... but miss until my days end the men with whom I stood shoulder to shoulder with in the face of an adversary hell-bent on destroying us.
A part of me is telling me to slow down though. Don't be in such a hurry to have all of this end. It's telling me to soak it all in and let it resonate with in me. A part of me knows that these last 30 some odd days will probably be the last I ever spend in this country. Like it or not, this country and the two years I've spent here have become a part of my soul. It will all end soon and all I'll have are the memories. Believe it or not, they're all aren’t bad. The bonds formed through tribulation and the friends turned brothers are experiences that I will never forget. As the years pass we will all take different paths through life and disconnect. I'm going to miss my brothers. If i live to be an old man I'll look back on these days and truly feel sad. I'm going to miss these guys. There's a lot to be say for going through a shitty situation while having the luxury of being surrounded by some great people.
I miss my family more then words can express. That's what makes this deployment hard. I'm mentally strong by nature, but not being with my wife and children for a year has the ability to push the limits of my resolve. Soon I'll be with them again. I'll awake to them in the morning and be there when they go to sleep at night. After a while it will become routine and I'll start to miss the guys with whom I've lived with for the past year. Some of them will still be in my life, while others with drift away into the shadows of my memories. It's inevitable. It's a double life that i live. One with my brothers in arms and the other with my love and seeds. I wish like hell the two could merge into a hybrid well balanced life but I fear any attempt of mine to have this wish realized would be fruitless. I know there isn't a way for me to assuage the anguish of the situation. So I'll choose my family..... but miss until my days end the men with whom I stood shoulder to shoulder with in the face of an adversary hell-bent on destroying us.
Friday, August 14, 2009
THROUGH AMBER LENSES
All of you who follow my blog know that im on the cusp of ending this bullshit ass year long sentence. My release from this prison is imminent. I'll do my best to keep the blog going while back in the rear. I'm sure there will be plent to bitch about. But the Iraqi trail doesnt end here. Theres a new crop of rookies and seasoned vets embarking on another deployment of their own. Probably the last major cycle of deployees in this country.
I've found one new bloger named Jason whos in Kuwait right now days away from making his second push up to this shit hole. He's a good writer and from what i can tell from the few post he has on his blog, a good guy.
The end of a war is just as signifigant historical as the begining. He should be one of the unlucky ones who gets to wrap this pile of shit in to a nice and neat package before he steps off. I urge everyone to stop by and check him out
throughamberlenses.blogspot.com
NUGHT....
I've found one new bloger named Jason whos in Kuwait right now days away from making his second push up to this shit hole. He's a good writer and from what i can tell from the few post he has on his blog, a good guy.
The end of a war is just as signifigant historical as the begining. He should be one of the unlucky ones who gets to wrap this pile of shit in to a nice and neat package before he steps off. I urge everyone to stop by and check him out
throughamberlenses.blogspot.com
NUGHT....
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
A LITTLE OF THIS A LITTLE OF THAT... PART 1
....AAFEES....
Government sanctioned monopoly... They are the only major company allowed to sell on military post world wide. To those not in the know... The PX and commissary are aafees run businesses. Other then the Pog scam they run in Iraq and Afghanistan I really have never had a problem with them... But now they are forcing all the little cheap Iraq shops off the bases in Iraq. The main target of aafees is the DVD shops. All acrossed Iraq you can get pirated DVD's that in some cases arnt even in theaters for 2 bucks a piece. These shops are extremely popular among soldiers. I would guess that movie time in Iraq occupies the majority of down time for soldiers. But aafees isn't selling any DVD's. At 20 bucks a pop and 2 months lag comparatively with their new movies, they sell next to none. So they decided to play the piracy card to force the military to stop the sales of their competitors so that they can force soldiers to buy their 10X more expensive products. They can claim all day long that their plight is legitimate and that piracy is wrong, but the bottom line is that these stores are cutting into their profits. Aafees has always claimed to be for the soldiers. But its clear that the soldiers interest take a far back seat to Aafess mission..... PROFITS.......... FUCK AAFEES.
.....IMPORTANT PEOPLE DOOR......
Through the course of contemplating this I think I've been able to identify a pet peeve of mine. Stupid rules for the sake of having rules really bugs me for some reason. Huh, imaging that. Rules are restrictions. The more restrictions places on a group of people the more opportunity you give them to do the wrong thing. Restrictions in my mind are directly correlated with stress, moral, and overall happiness with the situation you are placed. I've found that in situations with alot of little stupid rules the moral is way down among the people affected. Stress is way up, and no one is happy to be where they are. Contrary to that, when in situations where there are no little unimportant rules moral is high, the stress levels are considerably lower and most everyone is happy to be where they are. Now i understand the need for rules, but I think you need to balance the importance of the rule against it's effects.
SITUATION: In our CP we have two entrances. A front and back door. They both lead to the common area inside the CP. For the longest time everyone was allowed to come in and out of both doors to enter and exit the CP. After a crack down of sorts on our platoon, the back door to the CP was designated for squad leaders and above. That's 4 people out of the 30+ in the platoon that are allowed to use this door. At first this rule felt like any other rule that's spurs from an impulse pissed off rant. I figured the door would be off limits for a week or two, then everyone would slowly start using it again until everything went back to normal. Much like when i was a kid and my parents would impose a dumb rule that affected my day to day norms because they were mad about something else. After a while that rule went away. All it took was a cooling off period and the rule would dissipate. Well it's been like 2 months in this rule is still in affect. What bothers me is that it severs no legitimate purpose. All it does is make those who are allowed to use the door fell superior to those who arn't. It's funny cause when a lower then squad leader level soldier comes and goes through this door the important guys ( squad leaders and above ) actually fell slighted. They have a look on their face that suggest that your in some way challenging their superiority or that you in some facet are putting yourself on their level. It's amazing how insecure some people are. That is why i have dubbed this door the IMPORTANT PEOPLE DOOR, cause it makes those who can use it fell important. Bottom line, if my avenue of approach is from the back of the building, im coming through the back door. It's absolutely ignorant to suggest that i walk all the way around the building to come through the front door just to satisfy to parameters of this asinine rule. To date i haven't been called out by any of the important people for use the door but a couple of privates have corrected me for using it. "Sgt McNeil, that's a E-6 and above door.... We arn't allowed to use it".... [ I smile back ] "I know".
....TO BE CONTINUED.....
Government sanctioned monopoly... They are the only major company allowed to sell on military post world wide. To those not in the know... The PX and commissary are aafees run businesses. Other then the Pog scam they run in Iraq and Afghanistan I really have never had a problem with them... But now they are forcing all the little cheap Iraq shops off the bases in Iraq. The main target of aafees is the DVD shops. All acrossed Iraq you can get pirated DVD's that in some cases arnt even in theaters for 2 bucks a piece. These shops are extremely popular among soldiers. I would guess that movie time in Iraq occupies the majority of down time for soldiers. But aafees isn't selling any DVD's. At 20 bucks a pop and 2 months lag comparatively with their new movies, they sell next to none. So they decided to play the piracy card to force the military to stop the sales of their competitors so that they can force soldiers to buy their 10X more expensive products. They can claim all day long that their plight is legitimate and that piracy is wrong, but the bottom line is that these stores are cutting into their profits. Aafees has always claimed to be for the soldiers. But its clear that the soldiers interest take a far back seat to Aafess mission..... PROFITS.......... FUCK AAFEES.
.....IMPORTANT PEOPLE DOOR......
Through the course of contemplating this I think I've been able to identify a pet peeve of mine. Stupid rules for the sake of having rules really bugs me for some reason. Huh, imaging that. Rules are restrictions. The more restrictions places on a group of people the more opportunity you give them to do the wrong thing. Restrictions in my mind are directly correlated with stress, moral, and overall happiness with the situation you are placed. I've found that in situations with alot of little stupid rules the moral is way down among the people affected. Stress is way up, and no one is happy to be where they are. Contrary to that, when in situations where there are no little unimportant rules moral is high, the stress levels are considerably lower and most everyone is happy to be where they are. Now i understand the need for rules, but I think you need to balance the importance of the rule against it's effects.
SITUATION: In our CP we have two entrances. A front and back door. They both lead to the common area inside the CP. For the longest time everyone was allowed to come in and out of both doors to enter and exit the CP. After a crack down of sorts on our platoon, the back door to the CP was designated for squad leaders and above. That's 4 people out of the 30+ in the platoon that are allowed to use this door. At first this rule felt like any other rule that's spurs from an impulse pissed off rant. I figured the door would be off limits for a week or two, then everyone would slowly start using it again until everything went back to normal. Much like when i was a kid and my parents would impose a dumb rule that affected my day to day norms because they were mad about something else. After a while that rule went away. All it took was a cooling off period and the rule would dissipate. Well it's been like 2 months in this rule is still in affect. What bothers me is that it severs no legitimate purpose. All it does is make those who are allowed to use the door fell superior to those who arn't. It's funny cause when a lower then squad leader level soldier comes and goes through this door the important guys ( squad leaders and above ) actually fell slighted. They have a look on their face that suggest that your in some way challenging their superiority or that you in some facet are putting yourself on their level. It's amazing how insecure some people are. That is why i have dubbed this door the IMPORTANT PEOPLE DOOR, cause it makes those who can use it fell important. Bottom line, if my avenue of approach is from the back of the building, im coming through the back door. It's absolutely ignorant to suggest that i walk all the way around the building to come through the front door just to satisfy to parameters of this asinine rule. To date i haven't been called out by any of the important people for use the door but a couple of privates have corrected me for using it. "Sgt McNeil, that's a E-6 and above door.... We arn't allowed to use it".... [ I smile back ] "I know".
....TO BE CONTINUED.....
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