'Can Do' Spirit of US Troops in Baghdad
Interesting piece from a British perspective about the ground-level in Baghdad. Downloadable as an MP3 as well. For the flavor of it:
Quote:
I had always thought of the US army as an organisation that did not exactly ban creative thinking, but severely limited it at lower levels.
And there were Lieutenant Carlisle and Sergeant Perez wondering how important waving and smiling were in Arab culture or considering the value of removing your sunglasses when speaking to Iraqis.
Full article here
Wave lessons from Gen. Mattis
Gen. Mattis evidently consulted experts on the proper way to wave to Iraqis according to this LA Times article.
Quote:
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At this smuggling and farming village on the Syrian border, Mattis told Marines to be prepared to make eye contact and wave even if just moments earlier a Marine has been injured or killed by the roadside bombs and snipers that remain a daily threat.
Whenever you show anger or disgust toward civilians, it's a victory for Al Qaeda and other insurgents, Mattis told Marines in a makeshift chow hall at Camp Gannon, named for a Marine officer killed in a 2004 firefight.
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The majority of the article does not cover secret hand shakes
Steve, I didn't read anything about GEN Mattis at the link. Did you have it removed :rolleyes:
I like the maintained professional demeanor of our Marines and was a bit surprised at the opinions regarding the British Army.
Thanks for the post !
Quote:
I wondered how Iraq did not exhaust the positive energy or intellectual curiosity of a man like Dorian Perez.
You can marvel at the Americans' can-do spirit, as some British soldiers do.
You can see it in terms of America, the world's hyper power staring failure in the face and refusing to accept it.
But in the sergeant's case the will to carry on comes from a sense of responsibility towards the people of Iraq.