I wanted to submit two pictures for you from my time in Iraq. The first is a banner that we found between two houses in Al Baghdadi in early April 2004. At this time we were guarding a former Iraqi ASP between Al Asad and the train station. There was a protest in Baghdadi over the cordon being set up around Fallujah for the first operation to clear the city. This was just a few days after the contractors were burned and hung from the bridge. On the day of this picture some civilian contractors were in the wrong place at the wrong time and drove into the protest. One of the vehicles got stuck in the crowd and we left ASP Flea to try and rescue the contractors. When we arrived one of the contractors had been executed and was lying in the road. We cleared the immediate area, loaded the body, and began to clear some nearby houses we believed the insurgents had gone into. During the house clearing we found the banner. It roughly says they are protesting the surrounding of Fallujah, the city of "heroes and martyrs". From left to right is LCpl Bishop, Cpl Turner, LCpl Street, and me.
The second picture is also at ASP Flea where the QRF stayed. I put this in to let the Viet Nam guys know some things never change. That is Pvt Hill stirring the pot. Waste burning was something that wasn't very common as most FOB's had portajohns, but for some reason we had to burn our waste there.
To Mike Kunkel: the term broked-ck must have lived on because we used the term for un-anodized brass you had to polish, and for the sick, lame, and lazy. This was in the 90's.
To Joe Holt of India 3/5: I like your style, I have to admit that some of "a former hat" stories don't pass the smell test.
Also the supposed after action report for Cpl Blackburn sounded odd to me. Why would a recon team in 1968 be using a BAR? And as rough and gruff as the Viet Nam Marines are, I don't think their official statements would be laced with profanity and slang terms.
Semper Fi,
EAS
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