part two

"Unknown Soldier" Speaks Out To Bring Troops Home

part two

"Unknown Soldier" Speaks Out To Bring Troops Home

A soldier back from Iraq discusses the war and the U.S. soldiers fighting that war, the suicides, and much more.

Interview by Daniel Redwood
published March 4, 2004

Because members of the military are limited in their ability to speak out publicly, the soldier interviewed here must remain anonymous. A military medic who served in the Gulf War in the early 1990s, he is a member of the Reserves who was called up to serve in the current war in Iraq. His primary role is to deliver medical care to U.S. military personnel as well as Iraqis.

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Whatıs it like to be serving in Iraq, on a typical day?

Thereıs lots of waiting. Lots of time to wait around and think about things. It depends on what your job is. If youıre on patrol, of course, thereıs real danger. You donıt know whoıs the enemy and whoıs your friend. They donıt wear uniforms and we donıt speak the language. I could be treating an Iraqi family on my medical table during the day, and who knows, maybe one of them is going to be trying to kill me or someone in my unit that night.

Do you have enough Arabic interpreters?

No way. Not even close. We didnıt have enough when we came in and we donıt have enough now. Itıs unbelievable. And they donıt even encourage us to learn the language. Without being able to speak the same language, weıre worlds apart from the Iraqis.

So you donıt know any words in Arabic?

They teach us a few words and phrases.

Such as?

Stop. Get down. Kneel. Shut up.

No friendly words?

Not that I can remember.

President Bush said on Meet the Press, ³We are welcome in Iraq² because ³they realize what a free Iraq will be.² What have you concluded about the feelings of Iraqis toward the Americans?

They think we did a good job getting rid of Saddam. Now they want us to get out so they can run their country. Itıs not so different from our war with England. We were glad the French helped out, but the French didnıt come in and say, ³Okay, now weıre going to occupy you for the next 20 or 30 years.² They want to do their own thing like we did our own thing. Thatıs one thing that we havenıt figured out  they donıt want us there! They feel that they can solve their own problems, just like we solved ours.

Do the troops currently serving in Iraq have a sense of how long the U.S. military is likely to remain there?

Yes. We know itıs going to be a minimum of ten years.

Based on what?

Based on our government telling us that. A minimum of ten years.

So even if there is an Iraqi government of some sort formed Š

We will still be there, to make sure the government thrives. If you know anything about the British occupation of Iraq, the British people after a few years pulled their soldiers out. They said, ³Weıre tired of this, we donıt want to do this any more.² The British government set up an Iraqi government. In a very short time, that government was dead, and the Baath Party came into being.

So are you, therefore, not terribly optimistic about peace, freedom, and democracy taking root in Iraq very soon?

As soon as the Ayatollah [Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani] says go to war, the people will go to war. When he tells them to go home, they go home. When he tells them to get up, they get up. And heıs going to be our worst nightmare because he controls over 60 percent of the people [the Shiıa] in that country.

There was an attempt on this Ayatollahıs life recently.

And I wouldnıt be surprised if it was us who tried it.

Seriously?

Yes. Because he will mess up our plans. We donıt want to turn Iraq into another Iran.

By another Iran, you mean a radical Islamic state?

[Run by] ayatollahs. We dropped leaflets promising them that you will have elections, you will have a democracy, you will be able to choose your own leaders. Sistani is going to hold us to it. They will have elections. One man, one vote.

But the United States is currentlyŠ

Balking at that idea.

Saying that for one reason or another, direct elections with one man, one vote are not possible, or not yet.

Correct. Because if they allow one man, one vote, he will win in a landslide.

He being Ayatollah Sistani, or candidates that he designates?

Yes.

And these caucuses that have been proposed by the American occupation authorities and the Iraqi Governing Council they appointed?

Theyıre not going to fly.

Because there would be American control over them?

Yes.

Which is what people like Ayatollah Sistani are questioning.

Dead against. He thinks the Governing Council they have now is phony. They will not survive if an election happens. Many of those people are from Virginia, New York, and London. They spent the last 20 years in the United States and England.

Do you feel the Bush Administration has honestly and fully explained why they went into Iraq and why the U.S. military is still there?

No, and I donıt think they ever will. Thereıs no one to hold them accountable. Congress is a joke. We laugh at Congress. They come over and want to get their pictures taken. Thatıs nice. But what are they doing? Theyıre not helping us. They gave this man [President Bush] carte blanche to do whatever he wanted, and heıs doing exactly what he wants.

Is it true that the American invasion of Iraq acted as a magnet, to bring in foreign fighters who werenıt there before?

Yes, because they donıt want Iraq to become a haven for the United States. They want it to be an Arab country. Youıve got to remember, what weıre installing is actually against the way of life theyıve always known. It would be like somebody coming into this country and installing a dictatorship. We would fight that with everything we had. See, freedom for one person is not freedom for another person. If youıre going to take over their religion, take away their culture.

In what way is the American occupation taking away their religion or their culture?

Because they donıt control their own country. Itıs an Arab country being run by, as they call us, heathens.

Do you feel that the Iraqi insurgency can be defeated militarily?

It would take a long time, because we are breeding more of them every day, because of the way we are treating the people.

How are they being treated?

We kick in their door, take the children and the women and put them in another place. Then we take the men out of the home.

And do what with them?

We interrogate the men about participation in the insurrection against the United States.

Whatıs that like?

I donıt do that.

My understanding is that Americans are also doing things to try to rebuild Iraq. How is that going?

There are efforts, but itıs not easy. One example Iım familiar with is that weıve built a lot of playgrounds. They donıt last long. It would be great in a stable community, but in Iraq people tear them all down for the scrap metal.

Whatıs the current situation with electrical power?

Itıs basically horrible by American standards. We have electricity on the base at times when they donıt have it in the town. Itıs going to take a long time to get to the point where electricity is working well. Iıll tell you, I donıt think we should be paying for that.

What else is happening in the military that we should know?

One thing thatıs really important, and that makes no sense, is that they are cutting 10,000 people in the Navy from active duty right now.

Why? To save money?

Yeah, and during a war. It said in the Navy Times that from October 1, 2003 to October 1, 2004, something like 10,000 sailors are going to go. Theyıre going to try to run some of the ships with far fewer people than theyıve always used.

How is that going to work?

It looks like they are going to try to cut the Navy down to the size of the Marine Corps and have people doing more jobs. Just wait until the first time they have a real ³general quarters² on a ship, an actual emergency. Because you need everybody on board to work as a team, to handle a crisis aboard ship. Itıs not like you can walk back to shore. So Iım waiting for the first crisis that occurs when they donıt have enough people. And it will come. Itıs astonishing that theyıre letting those 10,000 people go in wartime. If you get hurt, theyıll let you go. If your ³fit rep² is not as high as they want it to be, theyıll let you go.

But wait, at the same time, in certain parts of the military, theyıre ordering Reservists to stay on for much longer than they expected.

The Reserves are different.

How?

Because Reservists are not paid yearly. Reservists donıt make as much money as active duty people do. They donıt require housing; you donıt have to move the entire family to the base in order to ship them out. The whole idea is to get more people on as Reservists, so that they can use them to replace active duty. Itıs great for them [the government], theyıre saving money.

Without meaning disrespect to anyone who is serving in the Reserves, it occurs to me that this is like a corporation getting rid of full-time, experienced workers, and bringing in temps. Itıs great for the bottom line, and potentially very destructive in a whole host of other ways.

Exactly.

How long must Reservists stay in?

It depends. Theyıre already staying for much longer than any of them expected. If you are in what is defined as a ³critical billet,² it could potentially be for many years. If it was decided that my position was in a critical billet, then theoretically I could be kept on almost indefinitely, in my case until about the year 2030. If they decide to extend it to 2030, I will accept that.

So itıs a real sense of commitment and honor that you have about this.

It is.

What do you think of the United States remaining in Iraq now that Saddam Hussein has been overthrown and there are apparently no weapons of mass destruction?

We need to come home. We did our job.

So this whole notion of staying for the extra 10 years or whatever . . .

Why? Whatıs the purpose? There is no military purpose there. Weıre not the police. We have pressing needs in our country. We are spending money like itıs going out of style over there. Companies like Halliburton are gouging the American people over there. We protect them also. Part of our job now is actually to protect Halliburton employees. So, if we really want to cut off the spigot, we need to come home.

Youıre not too impressed with the corporate military contractors.

No. You know, they actually come up to you and offer you jobs. They say, ³Once you get out [of the military], go to this company to apply and you can come back over. We can use people like you.² I donıt think itıs worth any amount of money to be in a combat zone. You know, over 100,000 soldiers were offered $10,000 to re-enlist. Hardly anyone took it. I do not want to go back. I will do it if those are my orders, but I do not want to go back. Itıs not a winning situation for us. Youıre going to lose more people this summer than you did last year, I guarantee it.

Why?

For one thing, people going over there with inadequate training, like I said before. Heat, for another. Itıs unbelievably hot there in the summer. When it gets hot, people get upset. When April, May, June, and July roll around, watch how it spikes up again.

What do you expect to happen with the large numbers of soldiers coming back from Iraq?

Mass exit from the military. Mass!

Do you feel it is possible for American citizens to support the troops without supporting the policies under which the troops are acting?

Yes. Most definitely.

Any parting words?

We did our job. We need to come home.

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© 2004 by Daniel Redwood
Daniel Redwood is a chiropractor and writer who lives and works in Virginia Beach, Virginia.
This article comes from Intervention Magazine
http://www.interventionmag.com/

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