I wanted to get away from Iraq in this week's column, but someone sent me a great link (thanks Alan) that's worth sharing. It's a short video clip, showing a Marine corporal at a nameless checkpoint, most likely in Anbar province. It's had me laughing for days. See it here on YouTube...
(Minor language warning: If you've ever mucked out a stable this guy says nothing that will shock you. Hint: Marines don't really say "stuff")
The good corporal chats up a taxi driver stopped at the checkpoint. Decked out in full battle-rattle, and carrying a monster 12-gauge Benelli, he looks menacing. But his demeanor and tone are casual, friendly even. The taxi driver prattles on too, but in Arabic, so we only get one side of the dialogue, which goes like this (with my clarifying comments):
- "Do you know any insurgents? You don't know any insurgents? Well, if you get to where you're goin', right now it's about, uh, 1600. . ." (4pm, probably after a long, dusty shift).
". . . Just, uh, let the insurgents know that Sierra Deuce is on bug, and we'll be here for about another hour if they want to come out and shoot at us. Alright?" ('Sierra Deuce' is his unit callsign, and 'bug' must be either the brevity code for that location or just tactical slang for checkpoint duty).
This seems to confuse the driver a bit -- me too, the first time I watched it -- and the witty repartee ramps up from there, with the shotgun used to amplify body language.
- "Uh, Mujahideen? Shoot? Right there, OK? So, I mean, they can come from either direction if you want, I mean. . . we don't care. Right now we just want to shoot at anything. But, uh, preferably like, within an hour, 'cause we gotta go back and sleep, and eat chow and [stuff] like that." (He's ridiculing the bad guys, daring them to fight.)
When the driver mentions Baghdad, the Marine perks up.
- "You're going to Baghdad? Oh, there's s*@%loads in there, dude! Just, like, drive through town, and tell 'em Sierra Deuce is on bugs. We'll be here for an hour. We wanna play. You guys tell 'em to quit being pussies and cowards and come out and shoot at us." (This is grade-A psyops!)
Here the taxi driver jabbers on a bit, seemingly sympathetic to the Marines' plight. And for a second it resembles a real conversation:
- Marine: "We haven't had any action since we've been out here. It's crazy.
Taxi driver: "Jabber jabber."
Marine: "I know!"
Taxi driver "Jabber jabber jabber."
Marine: "But we just wanna shoot at somethin' alright?"
Taxi driver "Jabber jabber."
Marine: "OK, you wear your seatbelt, don't run with scissors, and drink milk. Have a nice day."
Like I said, I'm still chuckling. But there's a serious side to this too.
When U.S. Marines -- our nation's shock troops -- are bored at tactical checkpoints in Iraq, it's great news. Profoundly great news. It means we've come a long way from the dark days of 2006 and early 2007. Until late 2006, many considered the "wild west" of Anbar to be a lost cause, an area that would fester for decades as the stronghold of Al-Qaida in Iraq (AQI). But today AQI is on the run, Anbar is largely at peace and the Marines of Sierra Deuce are so bored they taunt the enemy to come out and play.
And while gentler souls here at home might be aghast at such "bring-it-on" bravado, this is exactly the fighting spirit that won over the Sunni tribes and decimated AQI. Young, savvy troops like this have showed common Iraqis respect and kindness, while also demonstrating which side is the stronger horse.
God bless Sierra Deuce and the Marines!
T.T.
© 2008, WestRim Digital Arts, LLC
Classic! I love this guy's interaction with the taxi driver. What a savvy Marine.
Posted by: Mark | 24 April 2008 at 10:49 AM
My son was in Baghdad for 3 years...his home is Eagle River Alaska. He was there in August 2002. He set up all of the computers, satallite dishes for the Army in Iraq. He was based in the Green Zone.
Jan Curtis - St. George
Posted by: Jan Curtis | 24 April 2008 at 11:09 PM
Hi Jan,
Wow, that was a long tour. I assume he was a Contractor? Tours for Army soldiers in Iraq normally have been 12-18 months. And I assume he wasn't actually in Iraq until after Mar03. Prob in Kuwait, or other nearby country first.
He must have learned a lot while he was over there. BTW, having the comms infrastructure to support operations is absolutely vital. So tell him thanks.
T.T.
Posted by: tadtrueblood | 25 April 2008 at 10:20 AM