Forgive me Father, for I have sinned AGAIN! It has been way too long since I last blogged.
But at least this time I have a good reason (or reasons). The Moron Step-son (the star of many previous blogs) is in Iraq! These last months have been a series of ups and downs -- first he was going, then he wasn't -- then he got transferred to another unit that was going -- then he didn't go. This has been particularly stressful on my wife. Finally on my birthday (of all days) the step-son got the official word -- mobiles and report to [the training base] 45 days later, he's in Iraq assigned to a Forward Operating Base (FOB) somewhere in central Iraq. (I know where he is, and what he's doing -- but I can't get into that here.)
Let's say he is supporting units that support units who are helping to rebuild infrastructure and supporting fighting units operating in Iraq. Is that oblique enough?
Now all the intellectual discussions about "should we be there or not?" and the platitudes from people who make movies and host talk radio shows have all faded into the background noise. It doesn't matter whether or not we should be there, whether the war on terror is located in Iraq or not and it doesn't matter about WMD's, saddens links to terrorists or any of that other "stuff" that gets rehashed every day on talk radio and letters to the editor. What has suddenly become important is the news from Iraq. Where before I would feel empathy for those killed or injured and his/her families -- now the words "Another soldier dies in Iraq today" send the icy grip of panic through my body.
When the phone rings, or someone pulls into the driveway -- our blood grows cold. "Is this an official Army vehicle bringing two nice young men to tell me how sorry they are for the loss of my step-son?" Has he been killed or injured thousands of miles away from his family, friends and everything he loves? Why the US is there is no longer that important. What matters is the step-son is there; in harm's way; far beyond the reach of his mother's arms.
If you are reading this, and do not yet have children, then you cannot know what a parent feels. I am not a parent, the step-son was already grown when I met his mother. So although I feel fear and worry about him, I cannot begin to feel what his mother feels every minute of every day -- and will continue to feel until he returns home.
The step-son is over there because he wanted to be there! In fact, his transfer was designed to put him in a unit to be deployed -- but his paperwork arrived too late to be shipped with the rest of his unit. He followed them a few months later, as a replacement for another mother's son who was killed by a road side bomb. Knowing this already, and knowing that since he didn't get shipped with his new unit he COULD have gotten out of going to Iraq, the step-son said "Send me!" He did this after talking with a Sergeant who had returned for two weeks leave from Iraq. He spent four hours talking with this Sergeant -- talking about the conditions, the danger and the missions. After that, and talking things out with his mother, he decided his place was in Iraq. He has a job to do, and he believes that the Iraqi people need help getting on their feet after years of saddens rule and now the attacks that go on every day in Iraq. He believes that the United States is one of the few countries that has the power to hold back the forces of anarchy long enough for the roots of self-government to take hold. He also believes that the United States should be protecting the innocents caught in the middle of this struggle for the future of the Iraq. He really doesn't care what the government looks like after he leaves, just that the Iraqi people has a say in who rules them.
Now this is a young man who has listened to all sides of the conflict. He has heard every reason the US should be there. He has heard every argument that said that the suits in Washington lied about the reason for us being there, and because of that we should be out of there yesterday. He is replacing someone who was killed in a Humvee that was blown into pieces by a large bomb buried in the side of the road -- and he has joined the same unit in almost the same capacity. And he is there because he believes. He believes that these people whom he has never met deserve the chance to be free -- and that his job as a soldier defending the United States includes helping these people. If they are safe, the US is safe.
Now you might disagree with his reasoning but you cannot question his dedication. His first day in Iraq he was welcomed by a mortar attack on his base -- five rounds lobbed into the perimeter -- no damage, no casualties but just a little "welcome" from those opposed to the US being there. They lob four of five shells into the base at random times, then run like hell trying to disappear before the Marines back track the trajectory of the shells and find out where the firing is coming from. Sometimes the attackers get away, most of the time they don't. However the next day there are new mortar crew lobbing shells saying "welcome to Iraq".
So in the future, we'll be dealing with "Morning Sickness" of another kind -- the kind that strikes with every news cast and every phone call.
Blog Out.
posted by Eric at 11:24 AM
