[Rhodes22-list] Wally's reply- not on WMD FYI

[Philip Esteban]

Unedited, direct from the Pentagon



Sent: Monday, June 06, 2005 11:22 AM
Subject: Semper Fi, Marines


Another chapter in the tradition of the Corps.


  Semper Fi, Marines:

 This is another combat report from Col Bob Chase, G-3, 2dMarDiv in Iraq.
Right from the horse's mouth!

 Was talking to Gino and he asked for some details on the MATADOR fight.
Figured, by now since many of you might have caught some of the interviews,
you'd like to hear, 'the rest of the story..."

  Matador is now officially over, supposedly, they were going to fight our
way back and destroy us - guess they missed the turn at the dairy queen.  We
are back and the final tally was Good Guys - 125+ enemy dead, many more
wounded, and 39 detainees of some significant value.  The bad guys, who talk
a real good game - 9 Killed (6 in the
 one Amtrak) and 30 wounded  (most will return to duty).  Not a bad weeks
work.

  As we have said, our intent was to make ourselves big by leveraging our
firepower and mobility. This area was a real sh*thole for AMZ criminals.  We
knew it, 1st Division knew it, but working it on a regular basis was tough.
We kept some recon there and got the timing pretty well, brought up a
bridging unit from the Army in Baghdad, then went across in the middle of
the night (that was probably the only part that didn't go on sked (the bank
gradient was poorly assessed) but we had near and far-side security already
in and a blocking position near the Syrian Border.

  The enemy figured out after about 4 hours that we were there in force.
They came down with about 100 fighters (no, scratch that - they were
TARGETS) and made the poor decision to take on a battalion in open ground.
They withdrew - we went after them into a place called Ubaydi.  Many mounted
boats and tried to escape N, we pushed Air, and the Cobras sunk a bunch of
trash barges that night. Meanwhile, we continued to push west across the
river. Our far-side units started to see pockets of insurgents move to key
areas to emplace mines/IEDs.  They came out, snipers took them out; their
friends came for the bodies; they, joined them on the deck - permanently.

  The force started getting the tanks and LAVs across later than we had
hoped; but when they did!  Our first casualties came at a high-rise where
the enemy had prepared positions; a platoon moved in under fire, 2 Marines,
a SSGT and a LCPL were first in the hatch and received a burst of MG fire.
As the unit assumed they were dead (no additional fire/no one came out),
they lit up the house and dropped it with a coupla 500-pounders.  As we
moved to recover our Marines (NONE LEFT BEHIND), we discovered that the
LCPL, though wounded was still alive (he is serious, but stable).
Unfortunately the SSGT had taken a round to the grape and had been killed by
the initial burst

  We moved on; portions of the task force moving along known rat-lines and
others working Intel developed in the cities of Ramana and Karabila.
Fighting was sporadic, intense, and one-sided in outcome.  We followed
individuals into buildings, we leveled the buildings; all night, every
night.  Marine Air had eyes up and shooters on-station - talk about a
guardian angel!  Each night we re-assessed, looked at the Intel and
developed the next target sets.  We stayed down there until a few days ago;
then shifted to a series of caves in the north.

  The caves were on an escarpment and rumors abound about whether these were
Bin-Laden like caves - answer no, mostly small caches and some protection
from about everything but a hellfire with a laser designator.  We exploited
some and closed most of them permanently.  The enemy propaganda talked a lot
about how they were going to kill us as we retreated, etc.  They showed
pictures of devastation in Al Qaim (caused by an intramural fight between
the tribes and foreign fighters, no less) and blamed the Americans.  Al
Jazeera called to speak to me and interviewed me twice on air - yes, I
called the enemy cowards, again, that hid behind women and children in the
cities and  caused their death by their cowardice.  Played well, enemy swore
they had captured/killed the enemy commander.  Went on again last night to
ridicule them for their lies and continued fear of death, told them the
destruction of AQ was evidence that, the noble tribes of Iraq also reject
those that deface their

 holy places and dishonor their dead.  We'll see if a wanted poster appears
tomorrow - bad news is,  they still didn't get pissed off enough to come out
and play.

   We went back across the river without incident, decided to poke a stick
in Ubaydi (where the big fight was), just ONE MORE TIME before we left -
NOTHING, they wanted no part of these Marines again!  We're all back at base
camps and Forward Operating Bases, maintaining, cleaning, talking sh*t, and
prepping for the next smackdown!

  NBC interviewed me again last night - good stuff, but they harped on the
casualties. I told them it was war; they wanted to know if a whole squad was
killed in the track. As I told them a squad's worth of Marines were
killed/hurt (6 KIA,14 WIA) but it was NOT the catastrophic loss of a squad
(it was a HQ track).  NBC wanted to know how to refer to them, as a squad,
company, etc.  I told them, pretty bluntly, refer to them for what they will
always be - US MARINES!

 They continued to push (I was starting to become a bit agitated) - they
wanted to know how we considered this a success with the deaths (I nearly
lost it), and how would we remember them, would there be a ceremony?  You
know what happens when I get into this mode - thought you might appreciate
the answer:

  We can never replace a fellow Marine or best friend but I can attest that
he died doing what we all hope to be doing as Marines, they were advancing,
leading, and setting the example - they were being MARINES!  It may not
matter in the grand scheme of things to anyone but us, but we are singularly
proud that we have and know Marines that fought and died like these.  We
remember and memorialize them and keep them alive every single time we put
on this uniform -- we are just honored to wear the same eagle, globe, and
anchor as these warrior/heroes.  We don't make policy, we don't decide on
the fight, but we do fight and win.  And when we win, it is because every
one of these Marines fight with us in sprit - and we will not, we cannot let
them down.  To we Marines, Semper Fidelis is more than a motto - it was to
them, and to us who were privileged to fight with them, a way of life.

   Not sure that will get on the tube.  Unfortunate, because I think we
should all be such Marines when our time comes.

  S/F, Bob

-----Original Message-----
From: rhodes22-list-bounces at rhodes22.org
[mailto:rhodes22-list-bounces at rhodes22.org]On Behalf Of Wally Buck
Sent: Thursday, June 09, 2005 8:04 PM
To: rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org
Subject: RE: [Rhodes22-list] Wally's reply- not on WMD


Brad,

My nephew emails me every month or so with updates from Iraq. It does seem
we are making progress. In the end history will be the judge.

How about your boy Ford. It sure doesn't take much to buy a TN politician.
:-0

Wally

>From: brad haslett <flybrad at yahoo.com>
>Reply-To: The Rhodes 22 mail list <rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org>
>To: The Rhodes 22 mail list <rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org>
>Subject: RE: [Rhodes22-list] Wally's reply-  not on WMD
>Date: Thu, 9 Jun 2005 09:36:59 -0700 (PDT)
>
>Wally,
>
>Yesterday I got the opportunity to "de-brief" a
>helicopter pilot just returned from Iraq.  I had a
>jumpseater on my flight from DC to Memphis who was
>meeting a former co-worker for a "meet&greet" with our
>chief pilot to get on the short list for a pilot job
>interview.  The jumpseater introduced me to his friend
>who belonged to a Guard unit from NY that had been
>activated.  She was home on medical leave because of a
>broken foot (not combat related).
>
>Here was her take on Iraq.  A lot of positive progress
>is being made that isn't being reported by the MSM.
>The military is putting a great deal of efforts
>turning the Iraqi kids to our side, schools, soccer
>fields, etc.  She felt most of the adults were happy
>we were there and more than happy that Saddam is gone,
>but, many are wary and cautious after 30 years of
>oppression.  Insurgency is a huge problem and the bad
>guys are difficult to identify because people are
>scared to turn them in, not that the average Iraqi
>supports the insurgents.  Here, we'd call the cops if
>we thought our neighbor was engaged in illegal
>activity.  There, they and their family are killed if
>they rat the bad guys out.  Most are not Iraqi's but
>jihadists from other countries.  It will continue to
>be a problem for some time.  She felt good about her
>duty there and supported the war but expressed that
>morale was fading amongst the troops because of the
>long and extended deployments.  I asked her
>specifically what her take was on WMD and she gave me
>this question and answer.  "Captain, haven't you ever
>made a decision in the jet based on the information
>you had at the time and realized later there were
>other options? Bush made a decision on the intel he
>was given, the CIA and everybody got it wrong".  For
>the most part, she was upbeat and proud of her service
>and thought she and her unit were having a positive
>impact.
>
>Some people don't support the war because they just
>don't like war.  Who does?  Most of the non-supporters
>just hate W.  Regardless, we're stuck with this thing
>and it would be a horrible tragedy for the Iraqi
>people for us to abandon them at this point.  We did
>that once. We've had a huge military presence in the
>Middle East and Europe for a long time and now those
>assets will continue to move to Iraq. W is a lameduck
>now and I've lost interest in the WMD issue, just as I
>have with where Slick Willy went with his pecker. No
>matter who the next President is (my current money is
>on Hillary) we're in this for a good long while.
>
>Brad
>
>--- Wally Buck <tnrhodey at hotmail.com> wrote:
>
> > Ed,
> >
> > Thanks for changing the sugject line but my post was
> > not about "WMDs".
> > Perhaps you should have changed it to "Cuba is not
> > Iraq".
> >
> > The funny thing is I have never questioned that Iraq
> > had "WMDs". I have
> > questioned what level of threat Iraq was to our
> > National Security and our
> > motives for attacking when we did. This is very hard
> > for many to understand.
> >
> > You are correct that the nukes were not in Cuba. I
> > apologize for the error.
> > The USSR was building the missle pads and facilities
> > to store and launch
> > Russian nukes in Cuba. The Soviets also had bombers
> > based in Cuba. There was
> > a real threat to our National Security. Also note
> > that this was settled with
> > out a war. This was my point. Not much to compare
> > with Iraq.
> >
> > I do understand that WMDs involve gas, biological,
> > and other means. I am
> > quite sure that stuff is missing as you say. This
> > problem is not limited to
> > Iraq. Again this was not the point of my post. The
> > situation in Cuba then
> > and Iraq now is quite different. To say differently
> > is to ignore history.
> >
> > Wally
> >
> >
> > >From: "ed kroposki" <ekroposki at charter.net>
> > >Reply-To: The Rhodes 22 mail list
> > <rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org>
> > >To: "'The Rhodes 22 mail list'"
> > <rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org>
> > >Subject: [Rhodes22-list] Wally's reply on WMD
> > >Date: Wed, 8 Jun 2005 11:18:21 -0400
> > >
> > >Wally,
> > >	WMD's not only include nuc's but other things,
> > such as gas, bio, et
> > >al.  The issue was preventing them getting nuc's,
> > not that they already had
> > >them.  The same issue now next door in Iran.
> > Furthermore, nuclear is not
> > >limited to bomb explosives but also bomb results,
> > ie, dirty explosives that
> > >contaminate.
> > >	There was a complaint issued by the U.N.
> > inspectors recently about
> > >missing nuclear stuff in Iraq that has gone missing
> > since the start of the
> > >war.  If there was not problem, why are the U.N.
> > inspectors complaining
> > >about missing nuclear stuff now?
> > >	I really do not want to be stirring Steve up, but
> > your last comment
> > >was not accurate. Humpf.
> > >
> > >Ed K
> > >
> > >-----Original Message-----
> > >From: rhodes22-list-bounces at rhodes22.org
> > >[mailto:rhodes22-list-bounces at rhodes22.org] On
> > Behalf Of Wally Buck
> > >Sent: Wednesday, June 08, 2005 8:02 AM
> > >To: rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org
> > >Subject: RE: [Rhodes22-list] Sappy Comment on D-Day
> > >
> > >Mark,
> > >
> > >Steve is forgetting that there were actually nukes
> > in Cuba and we had the
> > >pictures to prove it. To compare this to the
> > situation Iraq is simply not
> > >logical. Ignoring facts is a problem for some!
> > >
> > >Wally
> > >
> > > >From: "Mark Kaynor" <mkaynor at gmail.com>
> > > >Reply-To: The Rhodes 22 mail list
> > <rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org>
> > > >To: "'The Rhodes 22 mail list'"
> > <rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org>
> > > >Subject: RE: [Rhodes22-list] Sappy Comment on
> > D-Day
> > > >Date: Tue, 7 Jun 2005 16:08:04 -0400
> > > >
> > > >Hey Steve,
> > > >Didn't you just love it when JFK had an affair
> > with Marilyn Monroe?:-)
> > > >Being unfaithful to his wife in the White
> > House!!!  I have never heard of
> > > >such an abuse of power:-) Mark
> > > >
> > > >-----Original Message-----
> > > >From: rhodes22-list-bounces at rhodes22.org
> > > >[mailto:rhodes22-list-bounces at rhodes22.org] On
> > Behalf Of Steve
> > > >Sent: Tuesday, June 07, 2005 3:55 PM
> > > >To: The Rhodes 22 mail list
> > > >Subject: Re: [Rhodes22-list] Sappy Comment on
> > D-Day
> > > >
> > > >Hey Slim
> > > >Didn't you just love it when JFK nearly took us
> > to war over nukes in
> > > >Cuba:-)
> > > >Taking this country to war over something like
> > weapon of mass
> > > >distruction!!!
> > > >I have never heard of such an abuse of power:-)
> > Steve
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >--- Steve <rhodes2282 at yahoo.com> wrote:
> > > >
> > > > > I was wondering if someone would notice
> > that:-) Steve
> > > > >
> > > > > PS- Slim - this is top secret so don't tell
> > anyone but there are a few
> > > > > Dems I like:-)
> > > > >
> > > > > --- Slim <salm at mn.rr.com> wrote:
> > > > >
> > > > > > It is not what the
> > > > > > > government can do for you but what you can
> > do
> > > > > for
> > > > > > your
> > > > > > > country and your fellow man!!!!!!!!
> > > > > > > Steve
> > > > > >
> > > > > > Those are (almost) the exact words of a
> > famous
> > > > > quote
> > > > > > by a famous Democrat
> > > > > > named John F. Kennedy.  I believe it went
> > like
> > > > > this:
> > > > > >
> > > > > > "Osk (NE accent) not what your country can
> > do for you, but what you
> > > > > > can do for your country."
> > > > > >
> > > > > >
> > __________________________________________________
> > > > > > Use Rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org, Help?
> > > > > > www.rhodes22.org/list
> > > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > >
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>=== message truncated ===
>
>
>
>
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