In a Time of War

ScreamingEagle
Mon, 29 Sep 2008 16:54:36 +0000

I’m reading this book now, and two things come to my mind:

1. Its truly incredible to read about the WP experience, having finished it, and realize that, no matter how much things change, so much remains the same from class to class, generation to generation. I’m amazed how simple words can evoke such strong memories of the long, gray winter of my Plebe year, Ring Weekend, or time spent shared with friends; it’s just amazing how it brings you back. I read absolutely american while I was a yuk and had the same feelings, but I’d be interested to see how that made me feel now. I felt that book was a masterpiece and truly captured the cadet experience like nothing else, but that was after only experiencing it for a year, I’m sure it’d be much different now.

2. It’s incredible to see how much Iraq has changed in the last few years. In a week or so, I will have been here for a year, and the combat depicted in this book bears no resemblance to the experience I’ve had. Period. I’ve lead over 400 combat patrols in my time here, and nothing has come close to how things were. I think that shows a great deal of promise for the future. As many flaws as Iraq has, it is not the chaos that I think the vast majority of Americans (those who take the time to think about it, that is) think it is. I was overwhelmed when I was home on leave in August by the impression most people had of what I’d been through. Make no mistake; I’ve been shot at, rocketed, watched Soldiers die, basically seen the absolute worst in humanity, but nothing like what is depicted in this book. I feel we’ve crossed an important berm in this war, and, more than ever, that this thing can be won (if you were to ask me this question at this time last year, on the eve of deploying, I would have said the exact opposite).