Originally published by the New York Times on April 25th, 2006
It seems to me, in this chaotic enterprise we call Operation Iraqi Freedom, that we’re providing a service to the entire planet. There’s a simple formula to prove this. The fewer terrorists there are planning and carrying out attacks on civilians — and for that matter, the fewer terrorists left alive — the better our world must exponentially become. By that barometer alone, we are doing a wonderful service to all those opposed to terrorism.
As an army, we are trained to be merciful but relentless. We do not enter mosques unless we absolutely have to. We try to respect Muslim holy days (Friday) and other religious holidays. We provide security so the citizens of Iraq can vote. We do our best to keep non-combatants safe. We understand that it is better to let an insurgent get away than to harm an innocent civilian. We form up in lines and walk patrols, or we load up in vehicles and drive in. We know the rules of war, engagement, and the escalation of force. We understand the Geneva conventions. We try to live by Army values: loyalty, duty, respect, selfless service, honor, integrity, and personal courage. We provide medical care to enemy wounded just as we treat our own. Our actions are constantly being analyzed, modified and improved, to ensure we only kill those who would do us harm.
We don’t run and hide. We are prepared for a fight and are not shy about it. We understand that war is a nasty business, but we are willing to fight the enemy face to face. These insurgents, on the other hand, set up explosive devices that can be remotely detonated, after which they run and hide like teenagers throwing eggs at a house. They fly airplanes into buildings full of civilians. They blow themselves up in the middle of busy markets or mosques in an attempt to spur sectarian violence. They shoot and run like cowards. How would the world react if America simply attacked the citizens of another nation with a suicide bomber, openly declared that we hated them because they did not have the same beliefs that we do, and then went into hiding? If we then set up car bombs and paid unemployed, homeless, or fanatic people to drive them into churches, wouldn’t the world community take issue with us?
Why don’t these people who hate Americans so much gather together with their weapons and their beliefs? They could organize and fight honorably as soldiers, knowing that even if they perished, at least they had the courage to look their enemy in the eyes and engage them in combat. If they hate us so much that they are willing to blow themselves up, then why not die on the battlefield facing us, rather than killing innocent civilians? They could take pride as they massed their force in the desert, yelled their war cries, and fought us face to face.
They started this fight. And we have reacted by bringing our soldiers to a part of the world that harbored and funded terrorists. The Middle East, including Iraq, is a nucleus of terrorism. They don’t have to travel to America to kill Americans now — they can simply fight us here in their own backyard. Our enemy is the coward of the world, the ugly face of men who will murder innocent civilians, cut off heads, and leave dead bodies in the streets after shooting them execution-style. I have read Islamic terrorist training literature. It said, among other things, that “doctors and chaplains should be fair targets.”
It is so very saddening to see Americans, or anyone for that matter, displayed as statistics – or abbreviations like K.I.A. or W.I.A. But this is war. It took a war to create the United States of America. It took many wars to maintain its way of life. And I believe it took this war to begin systematically ridding the world of terrorism. It’s a long road, this, but an important one. War is like love – it hurts sometimes but you have to believe it’s worth it.
The practice of firing three volleys over the grave of a soldier originated in the old custom of halting the fighting to remove the dead from the battlefield. Once each army had cleared its dead, it would fire three volleys to indicate that the dead had been cared for and that they were ready to go back to the fight. This is what we might call a battlefield courtesy. The soldiers had chosen their sides, and were willing to fight on its behalf, but they still respected each other, to some degree, as human beings caught up in the entropic currents of nations.
We have lost nearly 2,400 Americans in the last three years of fighting. Out here, we fire three volleys at memorial services, within sight of the fallen warrior’s boots, rifle, helmet and dog tags. That is at least 7,000 shots echoing across this desert landscape in their honor, in the presence of their fellow soldiers. The soldiers I work with don’t view these fired volleys as the symbols of wasted lives, but rather as a tribute to men and women who died honorably fighting for something bigger than themselves, on behalf of the greatest nation in the world. And as those shots are fired, the terrorists smirk. They hate us, yet we accept Muslims unconditionally into our own country and way of life.
Perfection is difficult, if not impossible, to achieve. Individuals are not perfect, and neither are countries, armies or political leaders. The United States military, then, can not expect to be perfect. But we strive rigorously for excellence. We try to fight with the perfect mix of compassion and aggression. It’s a difficult task. When I think about the attack on our homeland, and the brave men and women whom I work with out here, I am apt to get angry at those who say our cause is not just.
But I have to temper my attitude; I can’t possibly view this thing objectively. I’ve seen the aftermath of a suicide bombing. I’ve attended the memorial service of a friend. I’ve felt the tears come as the three volleys were fired. And I’m still here in the sandbox. So, like all things, my opinion will most certainly morph and fluctuate as I finish my work and move on in my life beyond this war. But I personally believe that history will show how nefarious and dishonorable our enemy was, and that regardless of the outcome, our efforts on behalf of America and the world at large are something to be very proud of. Yes, I think the generations that follow will see that we fought honorably, but that the same could never be said of our enemy.
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I have just read Fighting With Honor. It is not just that I have
assimilated this on Memorial Day week-end that my eyes are filled with
tears and my heart with pride. I am by nature a deeply patriotic person so
that when I read anything about our military mission, I am moved. This, Lt
K, goes so far beyond a statement of mission. It is the most comprehensive
personal and national assessment of mission that I can ever recall reading.
It spells out so eloquently our national character and the character of our
enemy.