DIGIJOURNAL 022--13 JULY 2007

DATELINE: 13JUL07 PATROL BASE PALIWODA

PHYSICAL COURAGE
Greetings from Paliwoda. CPL C and I just returned from visiting our D Company “Dragoons” up at Patrol Base Brasfield-Mora. They are doing well and have been keeping up with all those speed bumps, also known as the 82nd Airborne Division. We had a good time, and their morale is good as we head into the final stretch of this deployment.

We experienced a little excitement on the flight up to Brasfield. Last time we flew, CPL C had a dog and then a MP barf next to him. This trip, after taking off from Paliwoda, we apparently received some gunfire directed at the Blackhawk. This I did not see, but what I did see was our door-gunner light up whoever was shooting at us. Judging from the sheer amount of ammo he poured into his target, I am pretty sure that that particular enemy fighter had a very bad day.

One of the things that I want to share with you is to describe the raw, physical courage that our troopers display on a daily basis. The best way to illustrate this is to tell you about the conditions in which they operate.

I just finished reading The Lone Survivor by Marcus Luttrell. Luttrell is a Navy Seal who, despite losing three of his closest friends in an ambush, managed to survive in the mountains of Afghanistan for five days before a group of Army Rangers rescued him. In the beginning of his book he mentions all the tortuous types of training that prospective Seals must endure before they can don the coveted trident of their branch. Time and time again he is told by his instructors that it is mental, not physical, toughness that will get them through difficult times.

Our soldiers must be mentally tough as well in order to face the environment of combat. Every day the temperature hits the low to mid 120s, and at night it only drops to 100-105. In the morning, our guys roll out in their Bradley Fighting Vehicles, carrying three crew and up to 9 dismounts in the back. These dismounts, with a full combat load of ammo, grenades, flares, aid bags, body armor, etc., carry roughly 100 lbs. of extra weight. The temperature inside the vehicles can rise to up to 200 degrees. Ice melts in 30 minutes, and the water they carry can be as hot as coffee as they drink it down.

And drink it down they must, for it takes only a few minutes for one to go from heat exhaustion to the life-threatening condition of heat stroke. In and out of the Bradleys these guys move in sector, with long foot patrols breaking up the monotony of riding in a mobile pizza oven. By the way, as they roam the battlefield, they are looking for IEDs, avoiding sniper and RPG fire, scanning for enemy, shaking hands with the locals, discerning who is friendly and who is not, passing out school supplies, and generally trying to be the warrior-diplomat that we ask them to be. After doing this all day, these guys return to the base exhausted and drained.

Throughout our history, many American fighting men have faced tougher conditions. I think of the 101st at Bastogne or First Cav in the Ia Drang Valley. However, our soldiers still must dig deep every day just to make the mission happen. I have always said that I am just an observer, a witness to what this generation can and is doing. No matter what history eventually says about this conflict, the men and women of 3/8 CAV will be able to hold their heads up when they think of what they have done and overcome.

SUPPORT SPOTLIGHT
VAUGHN HENRY
Mr. Henry is a part of the Adopt-a-Chaplain network. He has personally taken us under his wing. He usually sends 2-4 boxes every week, filled with donuts for the commo shop, drink mixes for me, and DVD movies and TV shows for our media library. All these endeavors take time and cost money, and I do not even want to think about the total amount of either that he has spent on us. It has been very much appreciated.

Gratia et Veritas,
Warhorse Archangel