DISPATCH 007--15 NOV 2006
Hello from Iraq,
The missions continue at PB Paliwoda, PB O’Ryan, FOB Brasfield-Mora, and LSA Anaconda. Your soldiers keep performing the everyday, common things that should make you proud of their service. As a certified news junkie, I have been keeping up with the results of last week’s elections and subsequent predictions about what the future military mission will look like in Iraq.
First, I think we should acknowledge something that is all too easy to take for granted: we live in a free country with a free press and a democratic system of government. Our elections, at all levels, with very little or no exceptions, are free of fraud and manipulation. Our political parties may argue, and candidates will oftentimes sling mud at each other, but for the most part our disagreements pale in comparison to how the rest of the world operates. It is not uncommon in other parts of the world, including here in Iraq, for political opponents to physically attack and sometimes kill one another. We are blessed to live in the only country, the only democracy in the entire history of the world, where the military has never staged a coup’d’etat or taken over the government. No matter who is in office, our military and her leaders will adhere to a foundational tenant of our Constitution--the military answers to the civilian leadership and not the other way around. We take these truths for granted because they operate in the background of many people’s lives, like they should. C. S. Lewis stated that the only reason government exists is to ensure that a man can sit beside his fireplace with a good book and not have to fear the lawlessness and chaos that comes with anarchy and war.
The second thing I would like to do is to send a belated Veterans' Day thank you to those family members, loved ones, and friends that give their veterans the support that we need to be able to focus on our mission. We often celebrate the man or woman in uniform, but he or she can only stand tall by resting on the foundation of the sacrifices that you have made for us. Our military families should all feel a sense of pride for the service that they have rendered to our republic. We could not keep ourselves together here without you being there, back there, for us.
Lastly, I want to share some eye-witness observations of what many in the media are labeling an all out civil war in Iraq between the Shia and the Sunni. We have both groups in our area of operations. While the two are both Muslim, the overly-simplified explanation of their differences is that the Shia believe that the true succession of leadership of the Islamic community (or umma) goes through Ali and then Hussein, both direct blood descendents of Muhammad. The Sunni believe that an elected caliph from Damascus was the rightful heir to this leadership position. Over the course of centuries, both factions have developed their own customs and traditions.
I have watched as our commander, LTC Dunlop, discussed some of the tensions with local city council members, and all these leaders emphatically shared how both groups have lived beside one another, have intermarried, and have worked together for centuries. I have spoken with my counterpart, a Shia chaplain in the Iraqi Army, and he has corroborated all that the leaders have said. LTC Dunlop has surmised that the conflict has its roots in outside influences and the struggle for economic and political power. Our challenge is to work with the Iraqi leadership from both communities to ensure that these outside terrorists do not cause feelings of distrust and vengeance. While things might be dire in other parts of the country, our soldiers have done a great job of deescalating the conflict between these groups while taking the battle to the enemy.
Our leadership is asking our soldiers to crush the enemy while constructing a nation. Many have said that this cannot be done or that it is asking too much of our young men and women in uniform. Here, on the ground, our guys and gals have been up to this complicated and demanding task. No matter what you might see or hear, there is still reason for hope and optimism about the future of those communities that we protect. Our soldiers’ actions also give me reason to believe that, by modeling their behavior and professionalism, the Iraqi forces we are training and working alongside of will be able to operate on their own.
We continue to ask you for your prayers, support, love, and loyalty. I would echo what I said in previous letters that I would encourage you to forward any questions about anything to me. I will try to answer them if I can or get you the answer. We miss and love you all very much.
Gratia et Veritas,
Chaplain Kevin Wainwright
The missions continue at PB Paliwoda, PB O’Ryan, FOB Brasfield-Mora, and LSA Anaconda. Your soldiers keep performing the everyday, common things that should make you proud of their service. As a certified news junkie, I have been keeping up with the results of last week’s elections and subsequent predictions about what the future military mission will look like in Iraq.
First, I think we should acknowledge something that is all too easy to take for granted: we live in a free country with a free press and a democratic system of government. Our elections, at all levels, with very little or no exceptions, are free of fraud and manipulation. Our political parties may argue, and candidates will oftentimes sling mud at each other, but for the most part our disagreements pale in comparison to how the rest of the world operates. It is not uncommon in other parts of the world, including here in Iraq, for political opponents to physically attack and sometimes kill one another. We are blessed to live in the only country, the only democracy in the entire history of the world, where the military has never staged a coup’d’etat or taken over the government. No matter who is in office, our military and her leaders will adhere to a foundational tenant of our Constitution--the military answers to the civilian leadership and not the other way around. We take these truths for granted because they operate in the background of many people’s lives, like they should. C. S. Lewis stated that the only reason government exists is to ensure that a man can sit beside his fireplace with a good book and not have to fear the lawlessness and chaos that comes with anarchy and war.
The second thing I would like to do is to send a belated Veterans' Day thank you to those family members, loved ones, and friends that give their veterans the support that we need to be able to focus on our mission. We often celebrate the man or woman in uniform, but he or she can only stand tall by resting on the foundation of the sacrifices that you have made for us. Our military families should all feel a sense of pride for the service that they have rendered to our republic. We could not keep ourselves together here without you being there, back there, for us.
Lastly, I want to share some eye-witness observations of what many in the media are labeling an all out civil war in Iraq between the Shia and the Sunni. We have both groups in our area of operations. While the two are both Muslim, the overly-simplified explanation of their differences is that the Shia believe that the true succession of leadership of the Islamic community (or umma) goes through Ali and then Hussein, both direct blood descendents of Muhammad. The Sunni believe that an elected caliph from Damascus was the rightful heir to this leadership position. Over the course of centuries, both factions have developed their own customs and traditions.
I have watched as our commander, LTC Dunlop, discussed some of the tensions with local city council members, and all these leaders emphatically shared how both groups have lived beside one another, have intermarried, and have worked together for centuries. I have spoken with my counterpart, a Shia chaplain in the Iraqi Army, and he has corroborated all that the leaders have said. LTC Dunlop has surmised that the conflict has its roots in outside influences and the struggle for economic and political power. Our challenge is to work with the Iraqi leadership from both communities to ensure that these outside terrorists do not cause feelings of distrust and vengeance. While things might be dire in other parts of the country, our soldiers have done a great job of deescalating the conflict between these groups while taking the battle to the enemy.
Our leadership is asking our soldiers to crush the enemy while constructing a nation. Many have said that this cannot be done or that it is asking too much of our young men and women in uniform. Here, on the ground, our guys and gals have been up to this complicated and demanding task. No matter what you might see or hear, there is still reason for hope and optimism about the future of those communities that we protect. Our soldiers’ actions also give me reason to believe that, by modeling their behavior and professionalism, the Iraqi forces we are training and working alongside of will be able to operate on their own.
We continue to ask you for your prayers, support, love, and loyalty. I would echo what I said in previous letters that I would encourage you to forward any questions about anything to me. I will try to answer them if I can or get you the answer. We miss and love you all very much.
Gratia et Veritas,
Chaplain Kevin Wainwright
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