Article

I recently had the "opportunity" to write an article for our brigade's monthly news letter.  Now, I don't want to throw around the word propaganda lightly, but maybe, just maybe it smells a little like propaganda.  Since I had to write about what's going on at work for work, the article might as well find it's way onto the blog so I can combine work and not work.

One note on the article is that it is not about something my platoon did but about another platoon in our company.  However, we all do pretty much the same stuff and my guys and I have had very similar experiences.  Also, I tried to minimize the acronyms, but there's still plenty in there, so here's a short glossary:

IED- Improvised Explosive Device

IN- Infantry

SFC- Sergeant First Class

FOB- Forward Operation Base

HA- Humanitarian Aid

IP- Iraqi Police

SSG- Staff Sergeant

CPL- Corporal

AO- Area of Operations

ISF- Iraqi Security Forces (denotes military and/or police)

Kharnabot- a town in our AO (see above for AO definition)

One other note: this is the uncensored version that I originally wrote.  The Army, being what it is, didn't appreciate some of the sentiments expressed in the third paragraph so they changed it.  Not a big deal, but I think it's funnier this way.

Here's the actual article:

"On 15 May 2009, something significant occurred in Kharnabot- nothing involving insurgents, IED’s or rocket attacks, however.  Instead, 1^st Platoon C/1-24 IN assisted the Iraqi Police with Humanitarian Aid distribution in the town that formerly served as a base for rocket attacks against FOB Warhorse.  SFC Schramm led the patrol along with members of the Kharnabot Police Station and said, “It was an exercise in by the numbers to get them to plan and execute it, like in basic training.”  A total of 51 families received bags of rice or sugar, but more importantly, 1^st Platoon helped their Iraqi partners with an aid drop and showed Iraqi citizens that the Iraqi Police are not only capable of protecting them but also helping those in need. 

            While all the supplies came from Coalition Forces, SSG Jones ensured that the Iraqi Police did most of the legwork as far as organizing and distributing the drop.  “All they needed was to be pointed in the right direction, and once they saw what the goal was they got the job done,” said SSG Jones.  Previous HA drops in AO Centurion always featured ISF in some aspect, but Friday’s operation enabled the IP’s to set up, unload the truck, check the list of names, and pass out all the HA to the appropriate families; an especially important step for the IP’s given the looming 30 June deadline for all Coalition Forces to withdraw from Iraqi cities.  The days of Coalition Forces’ HA drops are numbered, but it is certain that the Iraqi Police now have the experience they need to continue assisting the poor in their towns.

            Although the aid distribution was an overall success, it was not without hiccups.  At first, some of the IP’s enlisted young children to help unload the heavy bags, but 1^st Platoon quickly put a stop to this.  Other people were discontent with either the sugar or rice they received, preferring one or the other.  “I guess free isn’t good enough,” said one CPL, a team leader in 1^st Platoon.  Despite the seeming lack of gratitude, most people were very happy with the food.  SFC Hart said that the part he was most impressed with was that all the key players arrived on time and that the IP’s had an efficient system where people could wait, get screened, and receive their aid with minimal hassle.  While the IP’s might not have conducted the mission in the exact same manner as 1^st Platoon, the end result was the same and the US soldiers learned a valuable lesson- enable the Iraqis to do things their way as long as it gets the job done.

            Once all the sugar and rice had been passed out and the crowd drifted away, US soldiers and Iraqi Police were left alone on the streets with the satisfaction that comes from knowing that they helped people in need.  For 1^st Platoon, there was an additional feeling of satisfaction because they are accomplishing the mission of training ISF to be self-sufficient.  In the large scheme of things, one successful HA drop might seem insignificant, but in Kharnabot joint distribution of Humanitarian Aid proved to be a substantial milestone on the road towards US withdrawal and Iraqi self sufficiency."  

Again, this is basically a GO USA puff piece for a newsletter, but hopefully the next time their reporters go on leave they won't "ask" me to fill in.

RLTW