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One year later

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I have been home now for over a year and have to say I can relate much easier to some of the old " Twilight Zone " shows by a fellow paratrooper, Rod Serling of the 11th Airborne division. Although everything seems, on the surfice, to be the same it really is very diiferent. I am not in the same world I left. I talk to some of those that have "been there, done that" and they seem to agree for the most part.

I suppose the most difficult thing to understand is how so many people readily believe what they see in these " if it bleeds, it leads" so called news reports. I never get asked about what good we accomplished while in Iraq, the assumption is always the worst and I get asked constantly " will more troops do any good?" ( the answer to that is, in my personal opinion, NO) I also can't believe so many people can not see the threat to humanity by so many butchers that have only the complete destruction of Israel and the west as priority number one.

I have a very difficult time watching any of the reporting from Iraq, simply because I know it is presented as negativly as possible. Does anybody care about the willingnous of the Iraqi people to endure so much pain? Time and time again many of the bloggers that actually live and serve with the Iraqi people are ignored, when we tell of the valour of the Iraqis nobody seems to care,it's not senastional enough to make money. Instead people liston to what that disgrace of leadership "Pelosi" and "Murtha" have to say after several insightful hours in Iraq and give their "sound assesment" much more credibilty than those that spent every day of the last year of their life in Iraq living with Iraqis.

I also notice that life goes on as usual, perhaps that's the best part. Except that my friends and fellow soldiers are standing ready to sacarafice "All of their tomorrows, for their today" and those that profit the most from the carnage of war ( the practicers of free speech ) seem the least to understand the meaning of this very commitment by its military. It's not for those that now have freedom, but for those that need the help of our soldiers to secure it, and that includes Palestine and Israel.

More to follow.

6 Comments

Things that I am tired of in this war:

I am tired of Democrats saying they are patriotic and then insulting my commander in chief and the way he goes about his job.

I am tired of Democrats who tell me they support me, the soldier on the ground, and then tell me the best plan to win this war is with a "phased redeployment" (liberal-speak for retreat) out of the combat zone to someplace like Okinawa.

I am tired of the Democrats whining for months on T.V., in the New York Times, and in the House and Senate that we need more troops to win the war in Iraq, and then when my Commander in Chief plans to do just that, they say that is the wrong plan, it won't work, and we need a "new direction."

I am tired of every Battalion Sergeant Major and Command Sergeant Major I see over here being more concerned about whether or not I am wearing my uniform in the "spot on," most garrison-like manner; instead of asking me whether or not I am getting the equipment I need to win the fight, the support I need from my chain of command, or if the chow tastes good.

I am tired of junior and senior officers continually doubting the technical expertise of junior enlisted soldiers who are trained far better to do the jobs they are trained for than these officers believe.

I am tired of senior officers and commanders who fight this war with more of an eye on the media than on the enemy, who desperately needs killing.

I am tired of the decisions of Sergeants and Privates made in the heat of battle being scrutinized by lawyers who were not there and will never really know the state of mind of the young soldiers who were there and what is asked of them in order to survive.

I am tired of CNN claiming that they are showing "news," with videotape sent to them by terrorists, of my comrades being shot at by snipers, but refusing to show what happens when we build a school, pave a road, hand out food and water to children, or open a water treatment plant.

I am tired of following the enemy with drones that have cameras, and then dropping bombs that sometimes kill civilians; because we could do a better job of killing the right people by sending a man with a high powered rifle instead.

I am tired of the thousands of people in the rear who claim that they are working hard to support me when I see them with their mochas and their PX Bags walking down the street, in the middle of the day, nowhere near their workspaces.

I am tired of Code Pink, Daily Kos, Al-Jazzera, CNN, Reuters, the Associated Press, ABC, NBC, CBS, the ACLU, and CAIR thinking that they somehow get to have a vote in how we blast, shoot and kill these animals who would seek to subdue us and destroy us.

I am tired of people like Meredith Vieria from NBC asking oxygen thieves like Senator Chuck Hagel questions like "Senator, at this point, do you think we are fighting and dying for nothing?" Meredith might not get it, but soldiers do know the difference between fighting and dying for something and fighting and dying for nothing.

I am tired of hearing multiple stories from both combat theaters about snipers begging to do their jobs while commanders worry about how the media might portray the possible casualties and what might happen to their career.

I am tired of hearing that the Battalion Tactical Operations Center got a new plasma screen monitor for daily briefings, but rifle scope rings for sniper rifles, extra magazines, and necessary field gear were disapproved by the unit supply system.

I am tired of out of touch general officers, senators, congressmen and defense officials who think that giving me some more heavy body armor to wear is helping me stay alive. Speed is life in combat and wearing 55 to 90 pounds of gear for 12 to 20 hours a day puts me at a great tactical disadvantage to the idiot, mindless terrorist who is wearing no armor at all and carrying an AK-47 and a pistol.

I am tired of soldiers who are stationed in places like Kuwait and who are well away from any actual combat getting Hostile Fire/Imminent Danger Pay and the Combat Zone Tax Exclusion when they live on a base that has a McDonald's, a Pizza Hut, a Subway, a Baskin Robbins, an internet café, 2 coffee shops and street lights.

I am tired of senior officers and commanders who take it out and "measure" every time they want to have a piece of the action with their helicopters or their artillery; instead of putting their egos aside and using their equipment to support the grunt on the ground.

I am tired of senior officers and commanders who are too afraid for their careers to tell the truth about what they need to win this war to their bosses so that the soldiers can get on with kicking the ass of these animals.

I am tired of Rules of Engagement being made by JAG lawyers and not Combat Commanders. We are not playing Hopscotch over here. There is no 2nd place trophy either. I think that if the enemy knew some rough treatment and some deprivation was at hand for them, instead of prayer rugs, special diets and free Korans; this might help get their terrorist minds "right."

I am tired of seeing Active Duty Army and Marine units being extended past their original redeployment dates, when there are National Guard Units that have yet to deploy to a combat zone in the last 40 years.

I am tired of hearing soldiers who are stationed in safe places talk about how hard their life is.

I am tired of seeing Infantry Soldiers conducting what amounts to "SWAT" raids and performing the US Army's version of "CSI Iraq" and doing things like filling out forms for evidence when they could be better used to hunt and kill the enemy.

I am tired of senior officers and commanders who look first in their planning for how many casualties we might take, instead of how many enemy casualties we might inflict.

I am tired of begging to be turned loose so that this war can be over.

Those of us who fight this war want to win it and go home to their families. Prolonging it with attempts to do things like collect "evidence" or present whiz bang briefings on a new plasma screen TV is wasteful and ultimately, dulls the edge of our Infantry soldiers who are trained to kill people and break things, not necessarily in that order.

We are not in Iraq and Afghanistan to build nations. We are there to kill our enemies. We make the work of the State Department easier by the results we achieve.

It is only possible to defeat an enemy who kills indiscriminately by utterly destroying him. He cannot be made to yield or surrender. He will fight to the death by the hundreds to kill only one or two of us.

And so far, all of our "games" have been "away games," and I don't know about the ignorant, treasonous Democrats and the completely insane radical leftists and their thoughts on the matter, but I would like to keep our road game schedule.

So let's get it done. Until the fight is won and there is no more fight left.


32% of Americans approve of the job George Bush is doing and 28% of Americans approve of the Iraq war. Barely one-third of service members approve of the way the president is handling the war, ac cording to the 2006 Military Times Poll.

Thank God you are in the minority.


Hey Wojo, much of the voting that was done in the military times were done in the "Rear". Be it in a nice px, cozy burger king or quiet green bean, much of those who had to face IED's were not heard. Those drivers, medics, infantryman, corpsman, marine, SEAL, Special Forces, Force Recon were to busy doing their job outside the wire. They are the minority and you are an idiot! If there were any voting, those REMFS or POGS had the say just as you did!!

As far as Americans approving or disapproving this Global War on Terrorism, the guy or gal that need to face that IED dont really give a f*ck. What matters now is that this country supports them and tell them that we will let them finish the job!!


I am a Combat Vet with a 2x purple hearts. Let our brothers and sisters finish the job. They have the desire and dedication to do so. The American people made a commitment when we sent our boys to combat. That commitment is bonding to every Soldier, Marine, Sailor, Airmen and Contractor who lost their lives. To just leave is no justice to those who gave their lives when they thought this country believed in them.


Dear Things I'm Tired Of,

Maybe it's time to put down your weapon. You have served your country to the best of your ability but you cannot win(?) this war by yourself. It sounds as if the battles being waged are within you. Get some help now before the chicken-hawk politicians who sent you to Iraq cut your veterans benefits.


“It is the soldier, not the reporter,

Who has given us freedom of the

Press,

It is the soldier, not the poet,

Who has given us freedom of

Speech,

It is the soldier, not the campus organizer,

Who has given us the freedom to

Demonstrate,

It is the Soldier,

Who salutes the flag,

Who serves beneath the flag,

And whose coffin is draped with the flag,

Who allows the protester to burn the

flag”


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About this blog...
Bonales.jpg

Elias Banales has lived in Oxnard since 1973. He has a large family with five brothers and three sisters. Banales is a 23-year military veteran with 18 years as a paratrooper.

He recently served a one-year deployment in central Iraq. Banales worked closely with the people and Army of Iraq. He writes about these experiences and the perceptions and opinions of the Iraqis he met along the way.

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About this Entry

This page contains a single entry by published on February 11, 2007 3:30 PM.

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Cowards in Congress is the next entry in this blog.

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