The King's Realm

Art of War

2006-11-08T10:51:00.000-05:00

The Art of War, by Sun Tzu

As I thought of the subjects I will tackle since arriving home from Baghdad, I have decided that I will touch on the book, The Art of War, by Sun Tzu. The Translation I will be using is the Barnes and Noble classics, Edited with an Introduction by Dallas Galvin and Translated by Lionel Giles. The Art of War is over 2400 years old, and the lessons and advice given by Sun Tzu are as relevant today in both Warfare and Business, as it was in 500 B.C. That’s Before Christ for those of you in Paris. Before Common Era, or B.C.E. is a ridiculous concept by stupid individuals to remove the existence of Christ from mainstream usage.

The Art of War is comprised of 13 Chapters.

1. Laying Plans
2. Waging War
3. Attack by Stratagem
4. Tactical Dispositions
5. Energy
6. Weak Points and Strong
7. Maneuvering
8. Variation of Tactics
9. The Army on the March
10. Terrain
11. The Nine Situations
12. The Attack by Fire
13. The use of Spies.

In the coming weeks, I will discuss each chapter but only highlight items that interest me at the time. You can follow the link above to read the whole chapter in context, and I encourage everyone to buy their own copy. To reiterate; The Art of War is not just applicable to physical combat, but also to business, personal matters, philosophy, and any myriad of subjects. If I think of something the text might refer to other then actual combat, I will address it at the time. At any time of course, I would encourage my readers to give examples as to how the advice of Sun Tzu has applied to you in your lives.

As an example…”Jay, the part about laying plans, and the concept of Earth, applies to me every time I go mountain biking. I plan how far I will ride, what the weather is like, what I will wear, what extra gear to bring, what dangers I will face on the trail, or weather I will ride on open ground or narrow passes/trails.”

I look forward to this Study of War with you, and the journey of Discovery we are embarking on. At any time of course, the wuss French guys can skip over the good parts and just look at the pictures. The rest of us, I expect, will become enlightened, and more prepared for the coming unrest. Huh? What was that? Unrest? What is Jay Talking about? Ladies and gentleman, according to Osama Bin Laden, the third world war has started. The president of Iraq has declared his intention to build a nuclear bomb and destroy the Jewish people and the evil Western empires. The coming of the 12th Imam is being talked about as the reason for all the Muslim unrest. This study of The Art of War, will give you insight into the events happening around us. We will be able to recognize acts of war committed against us as well as our neighbors. If you have not yet read or herd about the movie “Obsession”, I encourage you to visit the website, and if possible, buy a DVD and share it with all your friends. www dot obsessionthemovie dot com. There are links that will take you to muslim websites, where you will be able to see first hand just how much of a target you are, and the war that has begun while we slept.

For your homework, either go here and pre read chapter 1, “Laying Plans”. Better yet, head to Barnes and Nobles and pick up one of the 10 variations on the Military History shelf. I encourage you to buy the most expensive version with the most translations, and most commentary. During the week, I will write my outline and opinions on “Laying Plans” and when it is posted, I hope that you will leave feedback on what you thought and how it applies to your lives.

Until peace reigns and the French are conquered,

Jaybird

Hello Everyone

2006-10-17T10:40:00.000-04:00

Yes, all my loyal fans, I have not been here for quite a while. Have no fear, the good Lord has not called me home, or at least not home in the Heavenly sense. I have been back in Virginia for the last 7 weeks.

My life as a Contract Warrior is over, and my new life as a Starbucks Bistro has begun. Yes, you read that correctly. My first day at Starbucks was yesterday. I had a wonderful time reading the "how to be a good employee" handbook. It will not pay my bills or mortgage, so I will also have to go back to the fire department part time to make ends meet.

I have been writing my book, The Infidel, for several weeks now, and I have about three of 14 chapters written. Most of what I have written so far, are dramatic memories, and in the next few months I will focus on adding details. Look for it at the military book club soon.

My second day at Starbucks will be on Thursday. Since I no longer get to share with you my experiences in Iraq, I will try and find something interesting to write about. I have not spent a long time on my future blog plans, but I am thinking of surfing some Islamic web sites and informing my readers of what I have found. A kind of Jihad watch. There are many such sites out there, but with my flare for the obvious and sardonic wit, I am sure you will find my ideas extremely satisfying.

This photo is a recent trip to the Virginia State Fair. My two boys, and a trio of daredevils that walk on one of those gerbil wheels 40' in the air. The Richmond Highland Games is 28 and 29 October, and I will most likely take many photos while there.

Ireland Photos

2006-08-14T09:00:00.000-04:00

Here are some pictures from Jay's recent trip to Ireland.

And here is a link to the album of photos at yahoo.

A little perspective

2006-07-16T08:29:00.000-04:00

Your alarm goes off, you hit the snooze and sleep for another 10 minutes.
He stays up for days on end.

You take a warm shower to help you wake up.
He goes days or weeks without running water.

You complain of a "headache", and call in sick.
He gets shot at, as others are hit, and keeps moving forward.

You put on your anti war/don't support the troops shirt, and go meet up with your friends.
He still fights for your right to wear that shirt.

You make sure you're cell phone is in your pocket.
He clutches the cross hanging on his chain next to his dog tags.

You talk trash on your "buddies" that aren't with you.
He knows he may not see some of his buddies again.

You walk down the beach, staring at all the pretty girls.
He walks the streets, searching for insurgents and terrorists.

You complain about how hot it is.
He wears his heavy gear, not daring to take off his helmet to wipe his brow.

You go out to lunch, and complain because the restaurant got your order wrong.
He does not get to eat today.

Your maid makes your bed and washes your clothes.
He wears the same things for months, but makes sure his weapons are clean.

You go to the mall and get your hair redone.
He doesn't have time to brush his teeth today.

You are angry because your class ran 5 minutes over.
He is told he will be held an extra 2 months.

You call your girlfriend and set a date for that night.
He waits for the mail to see if there is a letter from home.

You hug and kiss your girlfriend, like you do everyday.
He holds his letter close and smells his love's perfume.

You roll your eyes as a baby cries.
He gets a letter with pictures of his new child, and wonders if they'll ever meet.

You criticize your government, and say that war never solves anything.
He sees the innocent tortured and killed by their own government and remembers why he is fighting.

You hear the jokes about the war, and make fun of the men like him.
He hears the gun fire and bombs.

You see only what the media wants you to see.
He sees the bodies lying around him.

You are asked to go to the store by your parents. You don't.
He does what he is told.

You stay at home and watch TV.
He takes whatever time he is given to call and write home, sleep, and eat.

You crawl into your bed, with down pillows, and try to get comfortable.
He crawls under a tank for shade and a 5 minute nap, only to be woken by gun fire.

You sit there and judge him, saying the world is a worse place because of men like him
If only there were more men like him

Memories of Uncle Owen

2006-07-03T09:01:00.000-04:00

As I sit here, between missions, I have had a nice time reflecting on the hero’s of my youth. There were some wonderful men that inspired me and lit the fire of adventure in my eyes as a young child. Owen Quinn, Mike Sergio,Don Hall, Ray Utting, Eddie Gopel, and most of all, David King, My father. They skydived as a team in upstate N.Y. under the name the Butterfly BangGang.

When I was a young lad in the early 1970’s, my father would take us to a Drop Zone in Upstate New York on the weekends. It was one of those things where I only went a few times, but after thinking of those times over the years it seemed like so much more. My Father started skydiving in the late 60’s, and continued into the 80’s. After 1980, I really don’t think he did that many jumps, just one now and then, for a total of 1021 jumps. In the Early 70’s there were few skydivers and active Drop Zones. The sport was a bit radical back then, and it was difficult to find anyone outside the DZ that had ever made a jump. Now a days’, with the advent of Tandem jumps and the improvements in canopy technology, the sport is much larger. Grand mothers and High School students are making their first jumps.

I was fortunate enough in my youth, to be exposed to some of the pioneers of the Sport. One such pioneer, I call Uncle Owen. Uncle Owen is not my biological Uncle, but he and my father were so close, I really don’t recall ever not knowing him. Uncle Owen used to tell us ghost stories at the campfires and I would shake in my sleeping bag all night long. It was a cruel thing to do to a 5 or 7 year old. Uncle Owen would go fishing with us, and he was an avid hunter. I also remember Michael Sergio, a young good looking soap opera actor. Mike and my father were very close. At my fathers funeral, Mike pulled my brother Jeremy and I aside and told us a very, descriptive story of his adventures with my father during the 1970’s. Things I never knew about my dad. I can close my eyes now and see Mike in 1986 singing Johnny Be Good at the DZ. Now Mike is an Emmy award winner producer/director.

I know Owen J. Quinn as Uncle Owen. The world knows Uncle Owen as the first guy to jump off of the Twin Towers. On 22 July 1975, Owen and Michael made history. They disguised themselves as construction workers, and went to the top of Tower 1. Mike distracted the guard long enough for Uncle Owen to get his rig on, and just as he jumped, Mike took a photo. This was the beginning of the sport of B.A.S.E Jumping. B.A.S.E stands for Building, Antenna, Span and Earth. (Of course Mike couldn’t be outdone by Owen, and in 1986, it was Mike Sergio that dropped into game 6 of the World Series with a sign that said, “Go Mets”.)

As I was surfing the web, I ran across this link. It is an interview with Uncle Owen by a New York newspaper.
And the photo comes from this blog.

I received a letter from Uncle Owen a few months ago, and he is doing well. He is retired and has 8 grandchildren. He does a prison ministry and fishes when he can. I look forward to seeing him again when my war is over. I think of the day I can look back on the memories of my youth while visiting with one of my childhood hero’s. A man that inspired me to take risks, and dance inside the fire. My Uncle Owen.

Life’s lesson - Moving Horizontally

2006-06-11T11:48:00.000-04:00

Recently I was doing some paint ball training in real life scenarios, and during an “ambush” I turned into the attacker, fired and “killed” him, but also took a paint ball to my face. I accomplished my mission, and we “won” the scenario, but I was “dead”. What could I have done differently to both win the mission and survive the encounter? Once the gun fight has started our options are limited. Most shoot outs are fired from a distance of 5’ and an average of 5 shots between both shooters is fired. How could two men from 5 feet away (almost two meters for those of you in Europe) miss 4 times?

Unlike when we were children, pointing your hand at the target does not mean that your firearm is pointing at the target. The only way to know that your weapon is inline with the person you want to kill is to visually see the front site post on his chest. How many times in a gun fight, do you think the shooter can put his front site post on a target and shoot accurately? Not very often. Accuracy is usually replaced by quantity of rounds. Maybe some would use the term spray and pray.

The other thing we can do is to move. The next time you are at a range, notice the set up. A single target, in front of you. What I will substitute straight ahead, with vertically. Most public gun ranges will not allow you to shoot on any target other then your own. Meaning left to right, or for what I will call here, horizontally. Horizontal shooting is by far my favorite scenario. It is a skill that is not very often taught, but one of the more valuable skills. I will let you in on a little secret, please don’t tell bad guys or Ali-Babbas. The human eye does not track horizontally. Doesn’t do it. Put two hands in front of your face. Your right hand in front of your nose, your left in front of your right. Now…move your left hand to either side, left or right. Just after you move your hand, cover it again with your right hand. Not both hands at the same time, one then the other. Notice how it takes a second for your eyes to adjust to the target hand. If that were a person standing in front of you about to be shot, all they would have to do is take a step to the side, and you would miss. I guarantee it.

In the year of our Lord, 2000, Michael Biehn did a movie called, The Art of War. At the end or near the end of the movie, Michael Biehn gets into a shooting match with Wesley Snipes. (by the way, Michael Biehn would kick Wesley Snipes ass) Both shooters are running towards each other, both firing rapidly, but both shooters are moving to the side as they are shooting. Yes, it is Hollywood Land fiction, but it holds an element of truth. You will not get your front site post on a target that is moving from side to side.

In another Hollywood example, the recent television series, Battlestar Gallactica, Starbuck, played by a female tom boy, is in a room with a sexy female Cylon. Starbuck is trying to shoot the cylon, but the cylon is running around the room in a circle. Starbuck fires all the shots in her hand gun, but just cant seem to hit that rascally robot. Why? Because it is fantasy, science fiction, and that is how the writers wrote the episode. But another reason is, because the human eye cannot track horizontally.

But here is the good news. If you read my blog and the guy your shooting does not, he will stand still like in the movies, or even better, he will do that navy seal, delta, S.W.A.T bent knee duck walk thing, where the shooter bends his knees and walks straight at the target. I pray for the day that the guy I am shooting at walks in a straight line right at me. If that is how you train to shoot…your going to end up dead. A better way, is to maintain your front sight post on your target, and move to your left or right. Yes, you can still do the cool bent knee duck walk thing, as it may help maintain stability and decrease the bouncing of the front of your weapon, but more importantly, when you move horizontally your adversary will not be able to get his front sight post on you. Lets think about this. You can shoot him, but he cannot shoot you. This sounds good to me.

When you are moving from left to right, your front sight post is not! The front sight post maintains placement on the object you are shooting. There is no horizontal movement when you are moving. When you are standing still and the object you want to shoot is moving side to side, your eye wont be able to track the target.

Ok, I know a bunch of you are dying to tell me how wrong I am. Everyone has a story about the time they shot a horizontally moving deer at 300 yards with an iron sight 30/30, or the Marine Sniper that spends hundreds of hours and thousands of rounds of ammo learning how to shoot a target that is moving to the side. Yes, it can be done. This is called “Leading”. Leading is where you shoot to the left or right of the moving target, and basically the target runs into a bullet. You ask any sniper or hunter which would he rather shoot. A target standing still; a target moving toward him; or a target moving to the side? Leading your target is an educated guess. Your guessing where the target will be AFTER you pull the trigger. There are many, many more misses then hits. If the deer stops running in a straight line, or suddenly changes speed or direction, no amount of leading is going to work. The human eye does not track horizontally. Remember, the deer you shot moving to the side was not shooting back at you. The idea is to limit your misses while increasing your opponents. If you want to survive a fire fight, learn to move horizontally.

Newest Photo of Jay

2006-05-26T10:35:00.000-04:00

Not All the French

2006-05-26T10:26:00.000-04:00

I recently talked to an associate of mine of French descent, and he was upset with me for my French Bashing. I did a little self reflecting, and yes, I have been very intolerant of the French. My comments have not been accurately aimed at those that should feel shame and dishonor, and any Frenchmen reading my blog could assume that I am somehow a French Hater. So let me start here with an apology. To all the people of France and of French heritage, if I offended you or insulted you, then I humbly, and publicly apologize. Hold on, don’t get to excited, this apology comes with some provisos.

I work with some hard corps French Foreign Legion operators and I value their friendship as well as the remarkable skills they bring to the team. These men are warriors and competent soldiers. It is not any reflection on them that the FFL has never won a battle. If the military leadership that makes the decision to fight or run, chooses to run away and hide, that does not mean all French soldiers are cowards. If Politicians are telling their soldiers not to fight because of political reasons, then the military is not responsible for the dishonor, the Politicians are.

I do have an issue with the policies of France. Serving in Iraq has given me a unique perspective you can only appreciate from over here. The world was duped in the beginning of the war, when France refused to go along with the United Nations resolution to remove Saddam from power. France made it sound like they were morally against the liberation of Iraq, when in fact France was in league with Saddam. The reason Saddam thumbed his nose at the world, was because he believed France could stall or misdirect the UN. They could not. When the Multinational Force arrived in Iraq, we find evidence of Frances violation of the oil for food program, and also of violations of the embargo.

The French government will criticize America for its policies of over aggressiveness, but then we see that the bunny huggers in charge cannot quell a riot by a few Islamic extremist. And when the Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy says publicly that the rioters are "scum", Sarkozy is ridiculed and called intolerant. Why cant the French call scum, scum?

In 1968, there was a movie called, The Devils Brigade, about the USA/Canadian unit that fought in WWII. One scene that I remember, was the Canadian Major Cliff Robertson, trying to explain why the Colonel should do something different. The Majors reason was, that at the battle of Such and such, the Canadian army used a different tactic. The American Colonel played by William Holden, pointed out, that the Canadians lost the battle of such and such, and the American Colonel wasn’t going to use tactics that have proven failures, just because that was how it was always done.

In modern times, America has critics from all over the world telling her what to do. French are saying we should talk more, yet it’s citizens are burning the city down. Why would America change it’s policies to placate countries that have shown failure? The former Surgeon General under Bill Clinton, Joycelyn Elders, gave some advice on how to raise a drug free child. Unfortunately, her son was in prison for drugs. Why would anyone take advice on raising a drug free child from her? Before you criticize America, forget your intentions and look at your actions. Then shut up. Until your Countries policies lead to the prosperity and Freedom enjoyed by Americans your just blowing hot air.

If you are a Frenchmen or descendent of Frenchmen, and you feel I have slighted you unjustly, I apologize. But if you are a vocal Bush hater, Anti America protestor, or you hide in your room while the world around you collapses, then I stand firm in my criticisms. Ladies and gentlemen, shame is a powerful motivator. If someone is ashamed of their actions, they may change their behavior. But with out the feelings of remorse, negative behaviors are sure to be repeated. Maybe if the French Military and French Government stood firm and learned to fight, then we will never have a repeat of Hitler walking into France and the only challenge presented was a waiter saying, “table for 100,000?” If the people of France are ashamed that they let a few Muslim thugs, and scum, burn down their cars and homes and shops, then maybe in the future someone will go outside stand up to the terrorist and the cars and buildings will never be burned again.

Mother always said, that in order for a joke to be funny, it has to have some truth in it. Stop doing things we can laugh at, and we will stop laughing at you. BUT AGAIN, if your not one of the people that has offended anyone else with arrogance and condescending diatribes, and you are not one of the handful of French that are used in jokes because of irresponsible or dishonorable behavior, then my dislikes are not aimed at you. If you are one of the millions of wonderful French Persons in the world that has never bothered anyone and goes through life with a positive outlook, then don’t put yourself in the same category as the dregs I pick on.

Women's Rights in Iraq

2006-05-03T14:29:00.000-04:00

First off, the only way to start this post, is by saying…there are none! Today I was able to visit Kadimyiah women’s prison in Baghdad. I was able to talk to inmates, corrections officers, and American advisors assigned to the prison. The stories are horrible. For all you French people out there, and those of you that are calling President Bush names and blaming America for human rights violations…FCUK OUY.

Today, I met several young girls that were incarcerated in the prison. The 12 year old girl that spoke English very, very well, was able to tell me about her plight. This girl, was a…street urchin. She made her living selling gum to soldiers in the green zone. She most likely started when she was 9, and for the last three years has supported herself, and most likely her family. She was forced to learn English at a young age, and were she raised in America would have a wonderful and bright future. Over the last year, the Iraqi Police (IP’S) have been paying closer attention to the Oliver Twist type children that almost terrorize their neighborhoods. This girl was caught selling gum in a sting, and when the IP asked her name, she lied about who she was. For that, this beautiful little girl is in a women’s prison.

Prostitution. You would not believe how many prostitutes are in Baghdad. Hundreds of them are in prison right now. Buy you see, Islam’s definition of prostitution is not the same as ours. If a woman makes eye contact with a man that is not her husband, she is considered a prostitute. If a woman is walking alone in public, she is a prostitute. If a man wants to get rid of his wife, he goes into court, and tells the judge, “she acts like a whore” and the woman is arrested and tried. The accused woman is not allowed to speak in court and she is automatically imprisoned based on the testimony of her husband or her family.

Another horrible thing I was able to witness today, is the children of the inmates. If the woman has no family to watch her children while she is in jail, the children are imprisoned with her. There was a small boy in the prison that everyone has adopted. When the American advisors first arrived the woman was unable to feed or nourish her baby appropriately. The guards did not care, nor the Iraqi judicial system. So the baby was starving to death. American contractors and advisors took the child to a doctor to save his life, and the child gets daily gifts of food and medicine from American advisors.

The food? The food is minimal. At the prison I visited today, the food is delivered by an Iraqi company contracted to provide meals. Meals consist of a bowl of soup, and a scoop of rice. Until the Americans arrived, the food was prepared by Male inmates. The food cooked by the male inmates at the men’s prison was divvied out on a tier system. The Correctional staff ate first. Then the guards. Then the male inmates. Any food left over was sent over to the women’s prison. Which means that the women were left with a kind of broth and a few grains of rice. No meat, vegetables, dairy, or any semblance of a sustainable intake. When the American advisors saw what was going on, pressure was put on the Ministry of Justice and the prison system. The end result was, the Americans would with hold funds if this practice did not change. So now the women prisoners get meals from outside caterers. Still, complaints of rotten food, and unsafe food are common. Today, a woman told us that her bread contained glass, and that the food is so bad, she is unable to keep it down. Again, this is changing. American Contractors and advisors are putting financial pressure on the prisons and women are getting the best treatment they have ever had.

The good news is, gang rapes are down. You see, a woman imprisoned for prostitution makes her open game for any man. Any Iraqi guard with a hard on, could walk into a cell and rape the woman in it, and it was applauded. “Give the whore what she wants” is the attitude. Now the women are being protected by the Americans. American advisors have established an internal affairs for the male corrections officers. The cells are now guarded by female ICO’s, and males are not allowed in the cell block. Now, do the women still get raped? I’m sure. I believe it is more an intimidation then a physical battery. Women are given special treatment for special favors. That is my guess, no evidence. One of the guards was heard bragging, “I am going to have her tonight”. Did he, or was he just talking male shit? Because of past behavior, I am sure that the guard has his own little harem, and for an extra scoop of rice, he gets unlimited blow jobs from oppressed and abused women. Tell me again why America needs to get out of Iraq? If it was not for America, these women would be raped and tortured until death, and only their fleas would mourn their deaths.

The prison is dilapidated. In America or most second world countries, the building would be demolished or condemned. The prison is literally falling apart. The septic system does not work, and raw sewage is filling the yard. Women are made to walk in the sewage to clean up after the male guards that throw garbage all over. American money is being used to rebuild prisons, but the money is being spent on MALE prisons. After all, why spend good money on whores? Feminine hygiene products are provided by Americans, Ladies, imagine being in prison for making eye contact with a man, and then during your menstruation, you have no pads or tampons, or running water. Just a dirty towel. Now imagine you are in a prison with 160 women, in a space designed for 80. With the arrival of the American Advisors, the women have running water. The prison has gotten some repairs, and women have mattresses, bunk beds, and blankets.

For those of you tree hugging hippie liberal communist faggots out there, (and of course the poof convicts that moved to France), That think we need to pull out of Iraq, because of abuses, your fools. It is the Americans that is the only protection these women have from real abuses. The only rights these women are the rights provided by Americans. Women under Islam are nothing. Women under Islam are property. Women under Islam are nothing more then ways to make babies, and the only honor is if the babies are male. For those of you obsessed with women’s rights, you should be praising God for the help and compassion President George Bush has brought to the women of Iraq. Before you throw stones at America for the “abuses” you hear reporters with no first hand account talk about, ask yourself, What have I done to make life better for the women of Iraq? And if you cant think of anything…Get off your @$$ and get yourself a big cup of SHUT THE UFKC PU.

Life’s Lesson; If it ain’t practical, it ain’t Tactical

2006-04-21T14:53:00.000-04:00

I have come to loath the word “Tactical”. Everything you see now a days has the word tactical attached to it. Tactical knives, tactical folders, tactical clothing, tactical webbing, tactical shoes and boots. Everything is tactical, and if it doesn’t say “Tactical” it is a cheap copy.

Lets take a moment to look at the American Heritage Dictionary definition of Tactical;

tac·ti·cal (tkt-kl)

adj.

1. Of, relating to, or using tactics.

2.a. Of, relating to, used in, or involving military or naval operations that are smaller, closer to base, and of less long-term significance than strategic operations.

b. Carried out in support of military or naval operations: tactical bombing.

3. Characterized by adroitness, ingenuity, or skill.

tacti·cal·ly adv.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition copyright ©2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2003. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Noun 1. adroitness - skillful performance or ability without difficulty;

Tactics, simply mean: this is what I do things. Tactical means, the way in which I do it.

In other words ladies and gentlemen, and those of you in France; Everything is “tactical” but this is where I get deep: Not everything is practical.

I work with the Special Operations community. I don’t have a badge or patch or certification, or what ever. I don’t carry a coin. I don’t know what group is attached to which region. I do have over 200 combat missions. I have thousands of kilometers on Baghdad roads. I have combat experience and I have learned what has worked for me, and what has not. So take a few pointers as I point out the difference between tactical and practical.

What makes a product “tactical”? As I surf the web, and review products, I see that some items that are tactical, are just a different color then items that are not tactical.

Take a red pair of Chuck Taylor Converse sneakers, color them coyote tan, and you can sell them as tactical. After all, Converse Chuck Taylor’s are canvas, light weight, rubber soles for good traction, and in all actuality, they would make a perfect desert warfare shoe. But they would only sell for $40. We cant have that. So, a marketing gu ru calls up a former navy seal, Says, “hey Richard, I’ll give you $1000 to wear our shoe and tell us what you think”, Richard wears the foot wear for a week, and says, yup, it’s a good shoe. Well, now the company can say “as worn by Navy Seals” or “tested by Navy Seals”. Call it a tactical boot, and charge $200 a pair. And you know what. One of you is going to buy it. I did. I bought a pair of desert color Oakley boots. MSRP was $225, but I got mine from the dealer for $100. Are they worth a hundred dollars? Nope. They look cool, and my operator friends think they are high speed, but are they worth a $100? Nope. But they look cool, and they are Oakley. Everyone knows Oakley is the best.

Ok, here is another pet peeve I want to throw your way. Tactical folders. For Malkie and his friends in France, I am talking about a pocket knife. The knives I see over here in Baghdad, are ridiculous. Titanium, extra carbon reinforced, spring assisted, tempered etc, tactical folder. These knives sell for between $40 and $100+. (my folder is a $2 Bud K special. www.budk.com When your body is in combat mode the body system in charge of survival is the Sympathetic Nervous system.

This system tells your body to fight or get the hell out of there. Now, during this time of stress, the human body works on gross motor skills. i.e. punching someone in the nose. The body looses fine motor skills, i.e. buttoning your Levi’s 501 blues. (This is why, when French guys get caught sleeping with their sisters boyfriends, they struggle to get their pants on while have no problem running away). So to say that a folding knife is a “Tactical Folder” is an oxymoron. Like French Intelligence. If you want a “tactical knife” you should have a straight edge knife, with a 7” blade, situated on your kit that is easy to grab, in a neutral position, and preferably with a partial serrated edge. It should be full tang and the sheath should be so that the knife comes out easily. Kinda sounds like your bayonet huh? Pulling a straight edge knife (like your bayonet), out of its sheath is a gross motor skill. Simplicity is practical. Practical is tactical.

Two months ago, A police officer friend of mine was given a new holster for his M-9. We reached a secured area, where all weapons needed to be cleared, and my associate tried to pull side arm from his triple retention holster, and it wouldn’t come out. The problem was, that the pistol needed to be twisted with an exaggeration to release it from the retention. It was a “tactical Holster” but for my colleague, it was not practical, and if it is not practical, it is not tactical. I myself went into a gun shop a in March of 06, and tried to buy a Kydex holster for my brothers Sig 9mm. This holster was designed so that the weapon could be drawn quickly. I could not get the weapon out of the holster. I pulled, I twisted, I yanked, (yanked is like a hard pull) and the weapon would not come out. My brother is 6’2, and 230lbs, and he couldn’t get it out. The gun shop staff had a difficult time getting the weapon out of the holster, and finally, the shop manager just about used a crow bar to remove it. Now, this was a tactical holster. Tactical. Why was it tactical? It was black. It was slim. It’s design was simple. But again, it was not practical. If a weapon needs fine motor skills to be used in a crisis situation, your dead.

My “tactical vest” is not. It has enough pockets, but they are all situated in the wrong areas. I am a right handed shooter, but all the M-4 magazines are on the right side. Now picture it. Fire fight. Magazine change. Your left hand needs to reach across your chest, grab a magazine from under your right armpit, remove it and then insert it into your weapon. Does it work for me? Sometimes. Is it practical? No, It is not. Again, I bought it, because all the operators had one. I even spent the extra money for the tactical tan one. It would be better if the magazines were on the left side and the pistol holster on the right, where…..imagine this…my right hand is. This is a design flaw, based on good intentions at the time. It looks cool, but to keep my magazine changes simple, I wear a thigh rig on my left thigh that holds 4 mags. If I have to go to my right side magazines, then I have been in the area way to long. The “tactical vests” that are being sold now, have MOLLE webbing and individual pouches for the operator to attach in a way that is practical for his individual mission. This customization makes the vest more practical, and of course, Practical is tactical.

There are many other examples I have, but it would take hours for me to write it all down and compare. Clothing, lights, helmets, ropes, what ever you can think of. Take a moment to think of what you do. Then, think of how you need to get it done. Do you really need any extra equipment, or can you accomplish your mission with what you have? Are you buying it because it is labeled “Tactical”? Don’t be fooled. If it is not practical it is not tactical.

Life’s Lesson; Fit to Survive Trauma 2: Breathing

2006-04-07T21:03:00.000-04:00

ABC’s, Airway, Breathing & Circulation. They are the fundamentals to life. Once they stop, it almost becomes impossible for me, as the medic to keep you alive.

For simplicity sake, I am going to consider Airway and Breathing the same thing. Different sides of the same coin. Breathing. Nothing is more important. Getting air into the lungs, and Carbon Dioxide out. Our lungs hold 1200 cc’s of air, but only use about 800 cc’s of air during respiration. What happens to the other 400 cc’s of air? Nothing. It is a dead space. The average person is capable of using the air reserve, but because of ineffective breathing, cheats himself.

Lets look at a common example of the body’s reaction to trauma. http://www.ochealthinfo.com/docs/emstreatguide/i45.pdf#search='trauma%20vital%20signs' Increased breathing, increased heart rate, and decreased blood pressure. If the body cannot provide the oxygen it needs nor expel the CO2 it does not want, we become hypoxic, which is a big word for light headed, or oxygen starved. Hypoxia can lead to death.

It is up to us to learn to breath before we receive a traumatic injury. There are a couple of things that I have found that seem to work well. First, is running. Running will force your heart and lungs to work more effectively. Make the muscles stronger and pump more efficiently. If you don’t like to run, then cycling, swimming, or walking fast are other options. The idea is the same, we must keep the respiratory muscles strong, so that in an emergency, they are able to work under pressure, and keep us alive longer.

Proper breathing exercises. I myself prefer a yoga style of breathing. (I took the photo from this website) http://www.trinityyoga.net/yoga-photo/photo-category/C1/P0/. Yoga teaches wonderful breathing exercises that focus on proper body mechanics and efficient ventilations. Do a key word search on Yoga Breathing, and read some of the many sites and articles on it. You will learn a great deal. I will touch on Yoga again for other posts about fitness, but for now, just on breathing. You do not have to spend thousands of dollars on Yoga classes or equipment. You can go to your local library and ask for a DVD on Yoga breathing. Find your local Yoga class, and take one class a month for three months to learn the basics and then focus on them. Using a yoga breathing pattern will make the abdomen effectively use the wasted 400 cc’s of dead air, and will also teach the body to breath, in what would be considered uncomfortable positions. Maybe like positions that you would find yourself in following a car accident or IED attack in Baghdad. Spending 60 to 120 seconds in the morning or before bed is really all you need.

I want to also mention increasing your red blood cells. You can force your body to create more. During duress, the body realizes it needs more oxygen, and to compensate, it encourages the production of red blood cells. The more red blood cells, the more oxygen is in the body at a given time to keep it alive during trauma. How do we encourage our bodies to create more RBC’s? Good question. We have to force ourselves to endure short periods of hypoxia. In the Marine Corps, we used to jog with our gas masks on, and while working as a water safety officer in Hawaii, carrying rocks underwater was another way http://www.garrettmcnamara.com/training.htm . Ever notice the chest on a Free diver http://www.sfdj.com/sand/freedive.html. ? The guys that put on three foot long fins and swim to 100’ below surface and hold their breaths for two or three minutes? The lungs are powerful, and I believe one of the reasons they can hold their breath for so long, is the amount of red blood cells the frequent states of hypoxia has created.

To conclude. To survive trauma, we must breath. Our lungs must be able to work in extreme circumstances, and to achieve this, we must condition our lungs in advance of the trauma.

1. Physical activity, i.e. Running, Swimming, biking etc.
2. Teaching our lungs to effectively use the air it already has. i.e. Yoga breathing
3. Increasing our red blood cells, by forcing the body to mild hypoxic states, i.e. holding our breath, or limiting oxygen intake for short periods of time.

When we learn to breath effectively we will be fit to survive trauma.

Dirka Dirka Mohammad Jihad.

Life's Lesson: Fit to Survive Trauma

2006-03-28T09:07:00.000-05:00

I am not sure how I am going to touch this topic, and it is one that I am sure will cause much debate and contentiousness. I will try to illustrate my point as much as possible with real life examples, but I am going to avoid getting to technical with medical terminology and physiology. I know some of my readers are in France, and I must keep it simple.

To start off, lets begin with a definition of physical fitness that applies to Jay’s world. Physical Fitness; The bodies ability to react to physical strain with little change in vital signs, i.e., Heart rate, Respirations and blood pressure. Here is a simple example. Your heart rate is 80 beats per minute, and you walk up five stairs. Your heart rate is now 110. You are not physically fit. Simple example number 2. Your heart rate is 80 beats per minute, and you walk up 6 flights of stairs. Your heart beat is now 88 beats per minute. You are physically fit.

How does Jays definition of fitness apply to combatants in a war zone and how does fitness help us to survive trauma? Good questions. The human body has very simple functions. These functions are made complicated by several other factors but the principles are simple. The heart must pump blood. Simple. Add 20 lbs of fat, a lung full of tar, a steep incline, and dehydration and now the pumping of blood is not that simple. Add a bullet wound, or a broken leg, and what are the chances of survival?

There was a video clip a couple of years ago, maybe on 20/20 or 60 minutes or some such news organization, and it showed an Afghan man getting shot in the eye with a round from an AK-47, falling down a 15’ berm, and getting up and walking prior to the trip to the hospital. He later died from his injuries, but that was not until several hours later. How did a man shot in the head survive that long? Again, no rocket science, but I am going to keep it simple. The man was fit. He was young, or at least not “old”, he is a non smoker, non alcohol drinker, (Muslim in a tobacco and alcohol free area) and he has no mechanical transportation, which means he walks up and down the mountains of Afghanistan daily. His percent body fat was most likely less then 12%, (but I have no way of knowing that). When this mans head was mortally wounded, his body was strong enough to continue functioning. How many of us could walk after being shot in the brain through our eye? I pray I never find out that I am that strong.

Recently, I had to send one friend home, and bury another. Both had similar injuries, but one lived and one died. One was a young late twenties, and another was early 60’s. One had spent 10 years in Special Forces conditioning his body for combat, and the other was a retired police detective, that spent his career eating Twinkies and smoking. Conditioning the body for combat will increase your chances of survival.

Another friend lost his leg recently after an explosion. The leg was saved by the doctors, but my friends blood pressure could not take the strain of the injuries. He lost his leg due to lack of blood flow. Why could his heart not effectively perfuse (big word, sorry French guys) why could his heart not get enough blood to his leg? Maybe it was because he was 60 lbs over weight, and he was a smoker, or maybe it was just that the injury was to severe. Several weeks later I sent home a friend with a similar injury, but in all fairness, not as severe, but he kept his leg. Yes, it was after a colostomy bag, and some removal of intestines, but he will have a full recovery and lose the bag. The second guy was a walking fitness machine. He was the same age, but 60 lbs lighter. He didn’t smoke, and had a healthy eating plan.

I will get slightly more technical, but not to much, so please, if I don’t give the exact scientific formula for Pi, don’t write a tag or reply, I am trying to keep it simple for the French guys. When the body sustains an injury, it tells the brain…I need “x” amount of help. Lets say….oxygen. The body tells the brain…I need 10 % more oxygen. A man that runs three times a week, develops more red blood cells in his system. The more red blood cells you have, the more oxygen your blood delivers. The more oxygen your body delivers in one pump, the less your heart has to pump. So if your in shape and you need more oxygen, your heart will go from 80 to 88. If you are unfit, your heart rate will go from 80 to 120 or higher. Do a check tonight. If you are a “couch potato, and have no regular exercise, sit at the bottom of a staircase for 1 minute. Check your heart rate. Walk up the flight of stairs, and as soon as you get to the top, check your heart rate again. I am not going to give you a percentage or ideal heart rate, because everyone is different, just note the number. Over the next two weeks, walk up two flights of stairs every day for five days each week, (total of ten days) and then do this test again. You should see a drop in your heart rate. Ask yourself some questions, am I winded? Does my chest hurt? Can I feel a strain in my chest? Am I sweating? If you get out of breath with a few stairs imagine what your chances of surviving a bullet wound would be, or for you non-combatants, lets keep it practical, what would your chances of surviving a car accident be? Your ability to survive a traumatic injury to your body, is directly related to your physical fitness. If you want to go home alive, you must be physically fit. Do you need to be able to bench press 225 lbs? No. Do you need to be able to run a marathon? No. Keep in mind the definition of fitness in Jay’s world. The more your body can maintain its vital signs during physical exertion with little or no change, the more fit you are. Every person will be different but every person can improve on where they are now.

Let’s say, you’re a bunny hugging poof convict French wannabe. Your in the park and a homeless guy bothers you and your woman, and maybe in front of your young child. If you don’t have the stamina or fitness to punch the guy in the eye, chances are, you wont survive a kick to the liver by a Muslim youth thug rioting in the streets because his gang member friends were arrested by the one French police man that didn’t run away.

A recent Hero of mine is a man named, oh, I don’t know…simple name, we’ll call him Jim. Jim works out maybe 4 times a week. Nothing to strenuous, and nothing to technical. He does not measure his protein or carbohydrates, and he does not keep a journal of the reps or sets he’s done, he just lifts a few weights, and runs a little. I would not call his fitness routine difficult. In fact, it is rather lame. He does not smoke, nor does he eat unhealthy. He is average. A few months ago, Jims car was blown up in an IED. Four other people in the car were killed and I believe Jim was the only survivor. His foot was partially blown off and his body was just riddled with shrapnel and burns. He exited the vehicle, gained fire superiority with his SAW, and then rescued and performed first aid on the others that were injured. “Jim” went home for a few months, and has now returned to full duty. Had Jim been out of shape, or fat, or a smoker, or French, I seriously doubt he would been able to return to duty let alone have survived.

So where am I going with all this? You must be fit to survive. You cannot be both weak and a survivor. You will not go home.

I went longer then I wanted, and left out some examples of what I wanted to get across. I will write a few more posts on some aspects of fitness, but I am not going to give advice on what to do or how to do it, I will only share examples of things that have worked in my life, and it is up to you to find what you need to make you fit to survive trauma.

Don’t be French.

My Vacation

2006-03-25T21:29:00.000-05:00

There are so many things I have been wanting to write about and so little time to write it all. I have stories and pearls of wisdom to share from Iraq, but today I just wanted to tell you about my time at home.

The primary reason I had to go home was to recertify my Paramedic. I had to take an 8 day, 72 hour class at Norfolk community college. It was both interesting and taxing on the body.

Some days were 4 hours of commuting, and in that time, I put 1500 miles on the Ninja. I bought it with 1700 miles on it. In one week I put just as many miles on the bike as the previous owner did in two years. In the cold and in the sunshine.

We had Jay-David’s 11th birthday party at the bowling alley, and there were about 10 of his friends there. His new favorite toys are the GI Joe, Sigma 6 collection, and I made sure he has all of them.

Anakin (7) did a great job, and bowled the highest with a 132. You have to love those bumpers. I also bought them a Piranha EVO EXT paintball gun from the paintball authority www.pbauthority.com in Richmond Virginia. They had a great time shooting it in the back yard, and there is a fast growing interest in the sport. Kinda makes a mercenary proud, that his children want to play with Ninja toys and swords, and learn to shoot.

Speaking of shooting, I also took them to the local gun range, and rented a mini UZI with a suppressor on it. It was fun seeing a 7, 9, and 11 year old spraying an UZI on full automatic. Brought a tear to my eye. I have some video on the web cam, and if I can find a way to make stills out of them, I will try and post it.

The Children also tested for their new Tae Kwon Do belt, and the oldest three are all Red Belts with Black stripes. Next is their Red/Black, and then their Black. I told them they could take a three month sabbatical, with only going to class one day a week, to try something new, and not get burned out on Tae Kwon Do. They have been training for four years now, and Anakin started when he was 3.

I was also able to petition the local Freemasonry lodge. I met with two gentlemen, that came over the house, and talked to me about Freemasonry, and I liked what they had to say. I would recommend that anyone that has questions about freemasonry read the book, Freemasons for Dummies. Please do not listen to rumors or gossip, or Urban legends, find out for yourselves from Masons.

Why my interest in Masonry you ask? Several months ago, I met a Mason, and asked him about it. The answers I received were interesting to me. I did some key word searches, and studied a little. I bought a book or two, and talked to more Masons. One subject in particular caught my attention. The Knights Templar. For a simple explanation, the Knights Templar were Warrior monks that escorted pilgrims to the Holy land during the Crusades. Unfortunately, they were…French and as much as I really don’t want to give the French credit for anything, I must say, that the history of the Templar is a legacy of Courage. The way I see it, the Knights Templar were the first PSD teams. They left their homes, and with a belief in God, they protected those that sought something higher and worth fighting for. They were rewarded well and for men that started off poor, ended up very rich. Isn’t it amazing how God blesses a man that acts on Faith? But then again, jealous and greedy men that believed in the redistribution of wealth made false accusations against them, had them killed and confiscated their land and possessions; wait, that sounds like the modern day liberals, and the current government of France! Again, I would do the rich and courageous history of Masonry and Knights Templar a great disservice if I tried to share a spoonful of knowledge on such a large subject, so I recommend to you all, that you visit pro Masonic web sites, or visit your local lodge.

Then, to end my visit home, I flew into Amsterdam. I had a 12 hour lay over, and was able to visit some of the sights. I took a canal ride around the city, but did not in any way shape or form, eat brownies or participate in the sharing of body fluids with hookers in windows.

Was there more to my journey and time home? Of course there was. If I wrote about everything, it would be long and boring, I was able to see my Brother, and his family, I was able to be with my cousins from New Jersey, I was able to watch movies, and go to malls, and all the other things a man does when he is home after being away for so long. Then, after 20ish days away from the land of sand and blood, I am back. Refreshed, and ready to continue the mission and work toward bringing some civility back to a land that has not known it for a very long time.

Be fearless, not French.

Mercenary Kilt

2006-03-17T21:23:00.000-05:00

Several months ago, I was surfing my kilt wearers support group xmarksthescot and read an interesting post about a man that had a tartan designed. I did some research, some web surfing and found out that anyone can design and register a tartan. A little light went off, and I thought to myself, "Self, wouldn't it be great if the mercenaries in Iraq had their own tartan?"

I contacted Matt Newsome at the Scottish Tartan Museum and shared with him my idea. Matt was wonderful, he really worked with me to design a tartan appropriate for our mission and our teams. Matt gave me some great advice and some very helpfull suggestions. He really went out of his way to make sure this project was nothing less then remarkable.

This week, Matt has registered our tartan with the Scottish Tartan Authority in Scotland. I sent out several emails to friends and friends of friends, explaining my idea. The response was amazing. Private Military Contractors from all over the world wanted in on the commissioning of this tartan. We all chipped in $57, and Matt went to work. Each member that participated will be able to receive a certificate from Scotland showing the registration of the tartan and the tartan description will include all of our names. I am going to post a copy of the description and a swatch that will be similiar to what the tartan will look like. (computer imaging and actual colors will differ slightly) Full names were left out of this post, for operational security and safety. You do not have to be a private military contractor to buy the cloth or wear the kilt. Although I stated in the description the tartan is authorized for members, direct support and immediate family, I would in no way take offense to anyone that wanted to contact Matt, order their own yards and wear our colors proudly.(and also, As long as your not a white flag raising poof, convict, wannabe french guy, no cowards please.)

Operation Iraqi Freedom; PSD tartan:

This tartan, designed by Matthew Newsome, was commissioned by "The Baghdad 12" (listed below) in January of 2006, to commemorate the service of the Private Military Contractors serving as Personal Security Detail during Operation Iraqi Freedom. The colors in this tartan were chosen for their particular symbolism to the PSD members: Brown and tan represent the Iraqi desert we served in; green is for the new Iraq we strive to create; the red is the blood we shed; and the black is the life of our friends laid down for our mission. PSD members, direct support staff, and immediate family are authorized to wear this tartan.

PSD Tartan participants: "The Baghdad Twelve".

Jason Thomas King, PSD Medic, Staten Island, New York;

William, PSD Team Leader, Oregon;

Ian, PSD Operator, Scotland;

Tommy, Weapons Specialist, Texas;

Robert, PSD Team Leader, Idaho;

James, PSD well gunner;

Pennie, Security;

Michael, Iraq;

Paul, PSD Medic, Texas;

Jason, PSD Team Leader, Tennessee;

Maaka, PSD Specialist, Baghdad Iraq;

Roger, PSD Medic, South Africa;

Life's Lesson; Recognizing Blackwater Fever

2006-02-28T06:23:00.000-05:00

BLACKWATER FEVER; A common disease among Private Military Contractors working in Iraq, Afghanistan and various other 3rd world hellholes. Frequently attacks young men with only 1 war or enlistment under their belt, State Dept agents, Former LEOs, anyone associated with an Ambassadors detail and occasional posers.

Blackwater Fever has many symptoms; if you have the following you may be infected:

-Large amount of primping, i.e. mousse in your hair despite the fact you live in a war zone.
-Your forearms break out in tattoos, often tribal or USMC related
-All your shirts are skintight "Under Armor" T-shirts
-Have used, currently using or consider using steroids www.decadurabolin.com
-Refer to yourself as a "Shooter" or "Operator" for Blackwater
-Look down upon all other PSD teams that are NOT on the Ambassadors Detail, to include other Blackwater employees.
-Grow a beard to blend in with the locals, even though you are a 6ft tall blonde with a "Death before Dishonor" tattoo.
-Think the Palace pool is a good place to pickup chicks
-Are arrogant and condescending to people with more experience, training and who make more money than you.
-Forget that doing a mission that has been performed in the past by Tier 1 assets does not make you a Tier 1 asset.
-Truly believe you look good in a Speedo
-Despite the fact there are laundry facilities available you insist on wearing a dirty brown T-shirt with your blood type in black magic marker to work.
-You wear a shemagh as an ascot to fit in with the locals
-Because you are a "High Speed-Low Drag" PSD guy you think long hair and an unkempt beard looks professional.
-You are familiar with doing "high threat PSD with CAT team and Air assets".
-Look puzzled when someone refers to the pool as a "Sausage Fest"
-You carry a drop-leg holster, wear a Federal Agent Badge, flash bangs, 5 or more pistol mags, asp, handcuffs, surefire light, leatherman, on your belt and a Gerber mark II strapped to the outside of your boot, in the embassy complex.
-Thursday night is your favorite night of the week.
-You have excellent kit.
-When your advance goes out to the Red Zone, Army MPs secure your perimeter.
-Believe by running Iraqis off the road you are winning their "hearts & minds".
-Despite earning a six figure income you wear a filthy, ragged ball cap that has not ever been washed
-Your 9 man PSD team consists of 34 men, 6 armored SUVs, 2 Army Stryker vehicles, an MP company, 2 "little birds" and 2
AH-64 gunships. With an AC-130 on call!
-Your entire wardrobe can be purchased at Brigade Quartermasters.www.actiongear.com
-You have a Blackhawk credit card.
-You refer to Myock as "The Farm"
-You know what color the boathouse at Hereford is.
-The girls talk to you because you "make the big bucks"
-You have a Bear paw tattoo
-The most dangerous thing you have ever done is: PSD!
-You blouse you Royal Robins 5.11 pants into your boots
-Often email pictures of yourself in body armor, weapons and kit to all your friends, family and anybody that you have their email address.
-Believe people really give a shit about seeing multiple pictures of you in your body armor, weapons and kit.
-If you have ever gotten drunk and pointed loaded weapon at your best friend and thought it" was FUN!"
-You demonstrated your "quick draw" technique to your girlfriend.
-You have been seen wearing a black boonie hat, black shirt, black pants, black boots, black body armor, black ammo pouches and a MP-5, in a desert environment when its 110 degrees
-Despite having tons of assets-you have not left the Green Zone since July.
-As it has gotten colder instead of wearing a long sleeve shirt, you wear long underwear with a short sleeve golf shirt. But the golf shirt has your company logo on it.
-You spray paint your M-4 into a desert camo pattern, though you only operate in a urban envoirment
-A MP-5 is your primary weapon
-All your T-shirts have a police, military, weapon, or SWAT school logo on them
-Chasing Palace girls is more important than your job performance
-A chap from CRG has had to give you a lesson in manners, after you pushed him out of your principles way. Even though the lad had already stepped aside.

Life's Lesson; You know you've been in Iraq too long if:

2006-02-25T08:40:00.000-05:00

General
? You start to think "it's not so bad here".
? You say "this place sort of grows on you".
? You say, "it feels cooler today" and find out that the temperature is 110.
? The term "trailer trash" is a term of endearment.
? You call your tent (trailer if you're lucky) 'home'.
? You get excited at the idea of ICE.
? Apaches excite you much more than Blackhawks or Kiowas

Armaments
? You don't jump when a door slams or someone drops something.
? You aren't alarmed when every second person you see has a gun . . . or two . . . or three.
? You kick the M-16 on the floor aside without a second thought when you sit down to eat in the Dining Facility.
? A Glock or 9 mm on a lady's hip is considered sexy.
? Mortars and rockets sounds are "okay" compared to car bombs and IED's.
? You can measure distances based on explosion sounds.
? When a "Red Alert" sounds and you're leaving a DFAC, you rather go back in and have more coffee instead of seeking shelter in a bunker somewhere.
? You know the difference in sound between "incoming" and "outgoing"

Entertainment
? You get excited at the prospect of seeing the latest gun camera videos
? $5 for a DVD is a little pricey...especially if there is only one movie on it.
? If you can't find a new movie a day after it is released in theatres state side you are disappointed.
? Sitting around with your coworkers talking about different ways to be killed is considered normal.

Travel
? You are soothed by the sounds of helicopters flying six feet over your hotel.
? Bullet holes in cars are no longer alarming.
? Car selections consist of "hard" or "soft", not Cadillac or Mercedes.
? Road trips consist of 4 vehicles and large caliber weapons.
? Driving on the sidewalk is normal.
? Driving on the wrong side of a divided four lane street is normal.
? Hit-and-run fender benders are treated as mere warnings.
? You get upset that you don't get C-130 Frequent Flyer Miles.
? Your carry-on luggage includes a flack jacket and helmet.
? Driving through the traffic circle of death has lost its thrill.
? If they had had one, you would have paid every dollar you had in your wallet for a bottle of frozen water one very long day at BIAP.

Hygiene
? You enjoy waiting 45 minutes for the toilets to refill.
? It's ok to brush your teeth with the brown water that comes out of the faucets.
? KBR buzz cuts begin to look stylish (even on girls...and MAN are they SEXY!.
? Flies don't even hang around the truck drivers
? You have your own roll of toilet paper stashed in your tent/office and car.
? You are not surprised to see someone performing morning ablutions in the office restroom
? A shower with water that is neither too cold nor too hot and contains no mosquitoes is a priceless unattainable luxury.

Surroundings
? "Texas Barriers" are something other than a device to keep Texans out.
? "Jersey Barriers" are something other than fences to keep Holsteins away from Jerseys.
? You begin to believe that project construction being blown up only twice a week is progress.
? You get excited with the presence of clouds.
? You know ten times as many South Africans as you've ever known before. (is that a good thing?) HA!
? The security guards are Gurkha or South African.

Dining
? You look forward to Mohammad's Mango ice cream as the treat for the day.
? Powdered eggs taste ok.
? You consider plastic ware the Palace China.

? Having to separate plastic plates causes you undue stress.
? Lettuce for your salad becomes a luxury.
? You believe that bacon and ham should be grey in color.
? No matter what animal you are eating, it will be flavored with curry.
? Scamming a 3rd can of soda makes you feel like you got even with someone. Especially at the Al Sadeer!!
? You are putting on weight because the Saddam's Revenge Diet no longer works.
? Going to another mess hall is an adventure, if you get to go at all!
? Putting Thousand Islands on your hamburger bun instead of mayo/mustard/catsup is normal.
? You automatically pick up two plastic forks whenever beef is on the menu at the DFAC
? You accept the fact that fajitas do not require tortillas
? Sliced hot dogs on a pizza served in a Chinese restaurant is good eats.
? You have ever considered leaving for a brownie and some milk during a mortar attack at the palace.

Fashion
? You think desert combat boots look great with shorts.
? Sand between your thong sandals actually feels good. AND sometimes in your thong panties!
? The color white is no longer an option.
? Speedos for security guards seem right. (Here are the s. Africans again!!
? You can recognize 12 different camouflage patterns.
? You've given up on shoe polish.
? T-shirt sizes at the PX are: M, L, XL, XXL & KBR

Living Conditions
? You get a big smile when you see your pressed clothes at the laundry.
? You get a bigger smile knowing they didn't lose your laundry.
? You get the biggest smile when you get back someone else's laundry and now you have more underwear then before.
? You think the bullet holes in the roof of your trailer is just another form of ventilation.
? You get upset because the post office won't ship your looted artifacts.
? You haven't had water from anything other than a bottle for months on end.
? You consider broken sandbags just a new beach expansion.
? The idea of a double wide is only for the fortunate or very powerful.
? Forgetting your ID makes you feel naked...but pants are optional.
? A bootleg of the new stateside release is not available at the PX 2 days later.
? "Only one rocket has hit the camp" is excellent news.
? Cardboard boxes have become substantial pieces of furniture.

Communications
? Stars & Stripes seems to be a liberal newspaper. (Which it IS!!)
? Acronyms become the acceptable language.
? It feels normal to have to run outside to make a cell phone call.
? You call your coworkers as soon as new T-shirt patterns arrive at the PX.
? "Can you hear me" takes up 50% of your cellular telephone conversations. Ain't that the truth, especially with IRAQNA!
? You realize it is Saturday or Sunday because no one from Houston phones.
? Your conversations with co-workers are sprinkled with "Roger that" and "Good copy"

Life’s Lesson; Every story has a moral to it.

2006-02-17T06:27:00.000-05:00

My 6 year old son, Anakin, had a substitute teacher the other day and she gave the class an assignment to tell a story with a moral to it.

Little Nicole told of the time that she found a wallet with some money in it and returned it. The man was so grateful that his credit cards had not been used or that he did not have to wait on line at the illegal immigrant id card line, aka, the DMV, that he gave Nicole the money that was in the wallet. The moral to the story was that if you do nice things for people, people will do nice things for you.

Taylor shared with the class the time that he and his boy scout troop cleaned up a park in their neighborhood. Although the troop received no money, for the project, the hard work and pride received from making their neighborhood a better place was worth it.

Anakin was next up and had to think for a while. A story with a moral? The teacher told Anakin that the moral is anything someone learns from the experience. Anakin stood up and told his substitute teacher about his dad, the Mercenary in Iraq. The substitute teacher does not know about me or what I do, so it was a bit of a surprise. Anakin began to tell the class about a mission of mine to Camp Taji. “The military is not allowed to drink alcohol in Iraq, so dad buys rum at a local shop and uses it to trade the military for supplies that he needs. One day, on the road to Taji, the convoy was ambushed. The lead car was hit by an IED and three of dad’s friends were killed. The rest of the convoy jumped out of the cars and began to fight, but dad took a few seconds to get in the game. Dad reached over the seat, grabbed the bottle of rum and popped the tab on a warm coke. He guzzled as much as he could in 15 seconds, put the cap back on the bottle, grabbed his M-4 and jumped out of the armored Tahoe. Dad saw three Hajji’s and killed all three with his first clip. Heads exploded, bodies were torn up, and screaming was all over the place. While reloading, two more rag heads jumped out from behind the HESCOS. Dad grabbed his bayonet and began chopping and stabbing them. The bayonet stuck in the ribs of the last guy, and with all the blood on the knife, his hands were slipping and he couldn’t remove it from the terrorist’s body. When Dad saw a third guy running away, dad grabbed him with his bare hands. Dad gave Hizmom a knee strike to the hummus, and strangled the life out of him. The team got back in the good vehicles, and the mission to Taji was completed.”

There was silence in the classroom. Little Nicole was crying, and Taylor had wet himself. The substitute teacher was in shock. She knew she had to regain control of the class, and forced herself to ask Anakin the question…”Good God Anakin, what is the moral to that story?” Now Anakin was puzzled as he thought it was obvious. “Mam, you don’t F%$^ with Dad when he’s drunk.”

Every story has a moral to it.

Don’t be French.

Life’s Lesson; What is a Patriot?

2006-02-01T08:46:00.000-05:00

I received an email tonight from a long time friend, and her daughter is looking for an example of patriotism for a class assignment. I was honored that she asked me for assistance. I guess we can first go to a dictionary example and then build on the definition from there.

pa·tri·ot (ptr-t, -t) n. One who loves, supports, and defends one's country.

The reading of this definition does not really say who qualifies as a patriot. We could say that a civil rights lawyer fits this definition, but in Jay’s world I would not really put a lawyer in the category of Patriot. Ok, then a Soldier is a Patriot? Well, I have known some pretty bad Soldiers and I would not label them Patriot either. Samuel Johnson wrote that “Patriotism is the last resort of scoundrels”, yet we cannot say that scoundrels are patriots. As I write this, I have changed many paragraphs and sentences and will bounce around a little between what is and what is not a patriot, before I can give a definition that will be suitable for Jay’s world.

Mel Gibson did a wonderful movie a couple of years ago, and it was aptly named, The Patriot. It was the story of a father that did not want to fight in The Revolutionary War, nor let his children fight, but when the fight came to his door, he fought to defend his family and ultimately his country. I remember reading an interview that the character Mel Gibson played was loosely based on 5 actual individuals of the American Revolution including Francis Marion a man called, “The Swamp Fox”.

I don’t believe a patriot is a talker. A patriot is definitely a doer. A man that sits on his porch and defends his country verbally is not a Patriot in Jay’s world. I apologize for offending any of my readers, but I don’t believe ideas alone make a man a patriot. To fall into the category takes some personal sacrifice. Ok, then how much sacrifice? What must a man be willing to give, to fit into the category of Patriot? The dictionary says “to defend ones country”, and that means a fight. OK, so a patriot must be willing to fight. Now we have a quagmire. What is a patriotic fight, and what is a street brawl? Is a political battle acceptable, or does it need to be a battlefield engagement? Let me give a crude example. Recently, my 6 year old, was in a fight in school. On the first day, a boy punched him in his belly and my son fearing expulsion from school, did not hit back. My daughter on the other hand, told the boy to leave her brother alone, and the boy walked away but only after calling some names. I had to have a talk with my son about not acting like a Frenchman, and letting him know it is ok to defend himself and his sister. On the second day, my son told the boy that the boy should apologize for calling his sister names and when the boy did not, my son gave the boy a knee strike to the belly and a punch to the head. I guess that 4K dollars for a Black Belt in Tae kwon do paid off. On day 3, the other boys father must have had a similar talk with his son, and came back for more. Only this time, when the boy started hitting my boy, instead of my daughter telling him to stop, she jumped in and helped my son hit the other boy. Now, allow me to tie this together and connect it to a metaphor for patriotism. When it was just about Anakin (my six year old), he didn’t feel he needed to fight. When it became about his sister and his family, he did. Looking at my Daughters example, she did not fight right away. Words alone were enough to stop the fight, but when the boy returned words were not enough. Fair was not an issue, stopping the fight was. She was defending her little brother and force was valid.

A Patriot is not a man that jumps into a fight just for the sake of fighting. A Patriot does not fight for his country just because he has the opportunity to fight. A Patriot has to believe in his country and believe in the fight. I know many men that joined the National Guard so that they could have their college paid for by their respective States. Some men join the military in hopes they will win ribbons or to advance in a career. Some men join so that they can travel the world in a kind of paid for pleasure cruise. These men’s motives are selfish. To some, the military is nothing more then a job training program. The war is an inconvenience for these types, and they do not want to fight. I would not call them Patriots just because they are serving in the military. Again, this is not disrespect towards our servicemen, but rather to distinguish between a Patriot and an opportunist.

Let’s look at a man that I truly believe is a Patriot and what he did to earn that title with me. Pat Tillman was a very successfully football player. He could have made millions of dollars running around a grass stadium and doing Nike commercials, but he didn’t. Mr. Tillman instead, joined the Army, became a Ranger, and went to Afghanistan to fight against the terrorist that struck at our nation. He died fighting for his family and for America. Pat Tillman was a Patriot. He did not join the army to pay for college. He did not join the army to learn a trade or travel the world to have sex with exotic hookers. He saw his country attacked, and his countrymen killed. His way of life and his family were threatened, and he gave up all he had to defend what was most important to him. In the dictionary, when you look up “Patriot”, Pat Tillman’s photo should be there.

During World War two, America had men like, Ernest Borgnine, Lee Marvin, Audie Murphy, Mr. Rogers and Bob Keeshan the guy that played Captain Kangaroo. These men left all they had, joined the military, went over seas and fought in the war. Later they returned home and continued to make America a better place with positive American stories and wholesome entertainment. Today in Hollywood, we have Alec Baldwin, George Clooney, Tim Robbins, Martin Sheen, Sean Penn and Jeanine Geroffalo types, insulting America, spreading hate and anti American propaganda. They make speeches and movies for personal gain and all on the blood of Americans that fought for what they believe in. It’s easy for flag raising French guys, or their resident wannabes, to sit back and bad mouth America, but it takes a Patriot to stand up for what is right; to sacrifice for their beliefs, and fight for what they believe in. If you don’t mind a little crude humor, ok, a lot of crude humor, the movie Team America: World Police is actually a decent movie in its portrayal of Anti American Actors.

To be a Patriot, is to be proud of your county. You cannot be a patriot and be ashamed of your country, talk bad about her, or insult her to others. Imagine me having a disagreement with my wife and then talking bad about her to someone outside my home. Insulting her or airing out dirty laundry in public. How long do you think I would remain married? A house divided against itself cannot stand, and anyone that bad mouths or insults his country to other countries can automatically be taken off the list of Patriot.

So, using my Hollywood example, my real life example, and a little of my own family examples, I have painted a picture of what a Patriot is not, and what a Patriot should be. Now, I need to come up with a practical definition. Patriot: A man that consciously and willingly takes up the fight, to defend his family and his Country against her enemies. It is a selfless act of sacrifice and servitude performed with pride.

This is a working definition but I think it reflects my views appropriately. Are there other definitions? Of course there are. Can people other then warriors fit this definition? Of course they can. Can the fight be a non military fight? Yes it can. Although we have flexibility in our label of patriot, keep it simple. Pride, sacrifice, and battle, are terms that should be applied to any definition of Patriot and any person being spoken about in that context.

Don’t be French!

Life's Lesson : A short history of Abu Ghraib prison.

2006-01-25T06:44:00.000-05:00

I was recently afforded the opportunity to visit Abu Ghraib prison, given a guided tour of “the hard site” and take some photographs. During recent days I received a post from a person concerned about American atrocities in Iraq and specifically Abu Ghraib prison. I am not an expert on the prison, and I have no first hand account of the information I can share with you, only that my information comes from current guards, former guards, and prison wardens. There are three time frames in the prisons history that I would like to address. The prison as it was under Saddam; the prison under the Coalition Provisional Authority; and the prison today, under Iraqi corrections.

Abu Ghraib prison was built between 1962 and 1964 by the British. It was the primary prison for all of Iraq. The prison compound consisted of five main buildings and at it’s hight between the 1980’s and 1990’s the prison housed 35,000 prisoners. The famous cell block of Abu Ghraib prison, called “the hard site” was designed to hold 2,035 inmates for 25 sq ft per prisoner.
Under Saddam Hussein, the hard site held 8,000. It was standing room only as there was only 3 sq ft per prisoner, forcing the inmates to sleep in shifts. As a comparison, American inmates are required to have 80 sq ft per prisoner. The upstairs of the hard site was a 100 x 6 meter hallway and had no bathrooms. At one time, there were 4,000 prisoners standing shoulder to shoulder. When the American military arrived, the inmates were standing in 1 ft of excrement. There was also a motor pool that is now referred to as “Cooters Garage” that is 20’ X 50’ housing 600 prisoners.

The prisoners under Saddam were primarily political although petty criminals and felons were also residents. Abu Ghraib was known as Oday Hussain’s playground. The warden at the time, Mr. Abu Schawb (by best estimates, I may be wrong) complained that there were too many prisoners and the over crowding was to severer. Saddam sent his son Oday to the prison, where he lined up the inmates, and shot every third one. It is also reported by the prison guards, that Oday and his brother Kusay (my spellings might be incorrect) used the prisoners as food for their pet lions. We also know of a story that the loving siblings wanted the goods and products of local merchants, but rather then pay for them, 42 Baghdad businessmen were sent to Abu Ghraib prison and killed by firing squad. The businesses were then plundered by the Hussein family.

During the 1990’s the correctional staff was made up of several thousand guards, but the prison was run by 35 of Saddam’s secret police. Akram Hussein, a Kurd, was a prisoner of Abu Ghraib at that time (1986-1992), and he recounts being tied to a metal rod and hoisted in the air, in a crucifix position. Electrodes were then attached to his scrotum and shocked. Akram could vividly recall the screams of the inmates, and the smell of burning and rotting flesh that surrounded Abu Ghraib prison.

By best estimates, Abu Ghraib prison has executed from 20,000 to 100,000 prisoners. Not mentioned in those numbers are the tens of thousands of prisoners that died from starvation, disease, or pleasure killings by the guards. The prison provided no amenities for the inmates. Food, clothing, medicine etc had to be brought in by the families. Although we know that the prison had kitchen facilities to feed the inmates, when the CPA took over the prison, the kitchens were practically brand new. This information is given to us by the current deputy warden who was a captain at the time. The deputy Warden also recounts how on one day, a prisoner killed 18 other inmates before he could be stopped. We do know from Abu Ghraib records that in August of 2002, 4,000 prisoners were killed. The water table at Abu Ghraib prison is too high to bury bodies, so there has to be another way to dispose of them. Families from the surrounding area inform us that truck loads of bodies were being driven out of the prison to be buried in mass graves in the Anbar province. Americans first taking over the prison found 55 gallon drums filled with acid that the guards say was for disposing of bodies.

Khadum is a shift manager that has worked at Abu Ghraib for 35 years. He tells us about on the job training for new guards. Every guard going through basic was assigned an inmate used to learn the proper way to torture. The guards learned two methods during basic training but were not limited to those two. The first method is a form of cobbling. The feet are tied to a rack and the bottoms of the feet are beaten with a rod. The second form of basic torture 101, is handcuffing an inmate behind the back, tying a rope to the chain between the cuffs and hoisting the inmate into the air. This dislocates the shoulders causing great pain. Then the legs are beaten with rods and all this is done in the cell block in front of other inmates to “teach a lesson”. Some of the guards also liked to use mental torture on the prisoners. One way to get a laugh was to execute three or four prisoners, allow everyone to hear the doors clanging, and then bring in a dupe. Some inmate, after hearing everyone else die, was brought into the gallows, a noose put over his head, given a last prayer or request, and then the opposite door was opened. The guards would laugh at the look on the guys face and return him to his cell.

Abu Ghraib was a death camp. It was widely known that if you went to Abu Ghraib you were not coming out. Although, there was at one time a way to escape. You could bribe the guards. If given enough money, the secret police would go to a local insane asylum, and switch the special needs person with the inmate. The mentally challenged person was taken to Abu Ghraib prison and executed. The death row inmates name was recorded, and the inmate escaping death was allowed to exile himself to Syria or Jordan. This worked until 1995 when a chief of the secret police went to the insane asylum to visit his brother. When he could not find his brother, the scam was uncovered, and the chief executed 6 of the secret police involved in the death of his brother. After that, there were no more substitutions.

There were two main methods of execution. One of the ways was by firing squad. The wall behind the prison had to be rebuilt in 2003 because of all the bullet holes in it. The second method was by hanging. Hanging is broken down into three categories. First, is to be hung with piano wire. The inmate stood on the trap door, and when it was opened there was a loud clang that could be herd through out the entire prison. The inmate was quickly decapitated. One guard remembers the doors clanging 125 times in one day. Two doors on the gallows = 250 inmates. The second way to hang was with a slack rope. The doors opened and the neck was broken. The third way was to have a towel wrapped around the neck and then the noose put over the head. The inmates noose was taught so as to strangle slowly. The gallows trap door was opened and the inmate, now dangling in the air, was lowered into a furnace below. To this day, the Iraqi Correctional Officers (ICO’s) will not go near the hard site, as they believe it is haunted.

In 2003, just prior to the Coalition arriving in Baghdad, Saddam Hussein released 20,000 hardened criminals with the hopes that they would take up arms against the American liberators. They did not. They escaped into the community where till this day, some of them are still kidnapping for ransom, robbing and murdering. When the Coalitional Provisional Authority (CPA) took over Abu Ghraib prison in 2003, the residents of Abu Ghraib city and Khandar Village, the two towns surrounding the prison, raided Abu Ghraib, breaking windows, smashing walls, and ransacking the buildings. What was the reason? I believe it is because the residents of these towns were just as much victims as the inmates that lived there. Imagine growing up with the sounds of men screaming, firing squads, and the smell of death. The CPA also made mistakes. Some mistake made early on was allowing soldiers that just came out of the field to look after the inmates that were the same terrorist killing their friends a week before. Some of the “abuses” noted were allowing dogs on leashes to bark at the inmates. Iraqi people in general have a fear of dogs. Dogs are looked at, I would say, the way Americans look at large rats. Dirty, infested, diseased. Some Iraqis have realized the value of having dogs in the home, and take advantage of the early warning detection they provide and the deterrence that the dogs provide to burglars. There are no reports that I know of where the dogs were allowed to bite the prisoners but the barking alone and the paranoia associated with dogs was enough for the desired affect. The inmates fear. There were no “beatings or torture”, by the military, but there were a few incidents of guards burning the backs of prisoners hands with cigarettes. Those guards were arrested, and prosecuted. And of course, lets not leave out the infamous photos showing the Iraqi terrorist playing a game of naked twister, and wearing women’s underwear on their heads. The outrage of these incidents, from what I am told by the locals, was not the fact that the prisoners were humiliated, but that it was done at Abu Ghraib. The stigma of Abu Ghraib goes through out the entire Arab community. The Coalition came in to make Iraq a better place, and the first thing they do is open Abu Ghraib for business. The insult was not so much the underwear as it was where the insult took place.

Today, Abu Ghraib is completely run by Iraqi’s with Americans acting as highly paid consultants. Abuses still take place, but now the inmates have a voice. Americans provide lawyers to the prisoners, and any accusations of abuse are forwarded up the Internal Affairs line, and also reported to the Human Rights commission of the international Red Cross. There are 562 prisoners being held at the hard site, with about 50 convicted terrorist. These Terrorist are Saudi’s, Syrians, Iranians as well as former Saddam supporters. There are several camps with in Abu Ghraib but they are NOT Abu Ghraib. Two camps inside the walls are Camp Redemption and Camp Remembrance. There are 4,000 prisoners being housed in tents (soft site) they are given three meals a day, religious materials, doctors, clothing and family visits and as I already mentioned, meetings with lawyers.

Abu Ghraib Prison is a black spot in Iraqi history. From it’s inception until 2004, Abu Ghraib was a death house and a metaphor for pain and suffering. There is not just a fear of the prison but the ground it is built on. There are no longer any executions done at Abu Ghraib. All executions are done off site at an undisclosed classified location. The Coalition is currently using the prison, but from reliable sources I understand that plans are being made to demolish the prison itself. When that will happen, who knows? There is no comparison in the torture of Iraqi prisoners by Saddam vs. the humiliation by a handful of the military guards. Outrage is expressed over the Americans “abuses” but I don’t hear any indignation over Iraqi abuses. It must be easy for opponents of the American liberation to cast stones but the revelation of the truth will squelch any dissent. The truth is, Iraqi inmates are treated with dignity, even though they are the same people that chop off the arms of the daughters of men that drive trucks for Coalition supplies. The same Iraqi inmates that torture, rape and murder innocent people go to prison, and are treated better then any inmate in Iraq ever was. The good news is, the Iraqi justice system is swift. The accused is given a trial, sentenced, and executed in 30 days.

You will have noted the photos I posted, and I will try to explain some of them. The photo with the drawing of the ant is calling Saddam a coward. Apparently the Ant is a sign of cowardice. I think my friend Malkie has an ant tattoo on his penis. The photo of me holding a piece of paper is some art work by an unknown inmate. The translator or the person who was with me that spoke a little English says that it is a scripture from the Koran. I now have those two items in my scrapbook. That is correct. I plundered Iraqi treasures with deep historical value. I have the photo to prove where I got them and being the capitalist that I am, I will most likely sell them on Ebay. The metal pipes in the blackened room are the furnace controls where the inmates were burned after hanging. The photo of me with the shovel is the kitchen area where the rice and bread are made. While I was visiting, the Saudi inmates were on a hunger strike. You will see the food in bags by the doors. The Saudis demanded that one of their inmates be released from his cell to prepare the food for the others. This request was denied, and the hunger strike began. Two days later, they decided food prepared by Iraqis is sufficient. One photo shows 65 hash marks on the wall. We know that some lucky person lasted at least 65 days at Abu Ghraib. And the photo of the long hall way is the famous cell block where the game of naked twister was photographed.

I hope I was able to bring some of you a little insight into a very profound part of Iraqi history. The story of Abu Ghraib is longer and more complex, but again, I am neither an expert nor an historian. I am merely a man that was given a tour and history lesson by those that have first hand knowledge. If you have specific questions, please leave them in a comment or on the tag board and I will ask my colleagues at the prison for what ever information they have on your subject.

Fight the good fight. Fight with Honor, Fight to win.

Jaybird

Life’s Lesson; Just because you saw what happened, does not mean you know what happened

2006-01-19T10:48:00.000-05:00

I remember an episode of Kung Fu, where the child known as grasshopper, was relaying to his master what he and two other children had seen that day. Although all three children were present at the same time and place, all three had a different account of what had occurred. All three were correct, but the information processed through three different minds gave an account from a different point of view. Looking at a real life example of this phenomenon, we can look at the Rodney King riots. Everyone in the world saw what happened on the video, yet the police officers were acquitted. Why? Because the jury was informed of what happened from all points of view, while the American public only had a few seconds of video tape.

Now, let me make this personal. Who do we think has a better understanding of what is going on in Iraq, Jay, at TheKingsRealm, or Malcolm Lambe at Welcometowallyworld? If Jay, who lives and works and fights in Iraq informs his readers that the Iraqi people enjoy the Americans company and feel safer with them present, and Malcolm who lives in France, says that Jay is brainwashed, and the Iraqis do not want Americans here, who should have more credibility?

I am going to mention some of the differences that I noticed right away. First, I do not use vulgarity. There is no need for it. If I cannot express my thoughts with words that come from the English dictionary, then I doubt using expletives will make my lessons more clear. I also inform you of my mistakes and things that I have done in the past that have not worked, and based on my experience, give solutions to how myself or anyone else can make better decisions in the future. I do not get political. In my book review, I did mention that I thought the author leaned a little to the left, but I did not discount his political views, only his accuracy in reporting. I use quotes from the Holy Bible to illustrate a point, but I also use comparisons to Hollywood wisdom which holds no true value at all. I do not judge others, and I am very reserved about the labels I put on people. Yes, I have called people stupid, and evil, and slutty….But, I never mention any names, I only share with you the feelings I had at the time and under the circumstances.

Now, lets look at Malcolm Lamb’s Blog. Vulgarity. Name calling. Hateful talk based on emotions with no factual claims behind them. He admits to driving recklessly, 200KPH (what is that 130mph) at night with no lights on, on country roads, and brags about his hiking nude. In America, we put people in jail for that. I guess that is why he moved to France. He calls me “Killer” and other names, yet when his masculinity is questioned, he alludes to his illustrious Vietnam experience. Malcolm gives instructions on how to put money in his paypal account on his blog. Interesting concept. Some would call that begging. Just remind me, have I ever posted that you should send me money? I have spent over ten years of my life giving to the people around me. I have saved hundreds of lives in my career, and Iraq is just the latest adventure. Malcolm describes himself as an “idiot”, (his words, not mine and he knows himself better then I do, so why should I argue with him?) His stories are about promiscuity and drug use. He says I know nothing about him, yet he feels it is acceptable to label me a lapdog, and brainwashed, because I left my wife and children and all I had to come to Iraq and serve the people that work and live here. I realize I could be doing more with my life. I could be an assistant bee keeper. I could bring joy to all the people in the world that crave the taste of Honey Nut Cheerios. But alas, at that I am a failure.

Ladies and gentleman don’t get me wrong; I am not a nice guy. I am a mercenary. I get paid a very good salary to make someone else’s life miserable. “But if I show up at your door, it is because you did something to bring me there”. (a little John Cusak for you, from Gross Point Blank) My primary function on the team is as a medic. I treat any wounded, no matter what side of the x they are on and I am very good at what I do. I have never called myself a hero, yet others use that word to describe me. Malcolm Lambe seems to think it is a curse word, and uses it to belittle my efforts. I am sure, that in Malcolms many years as a:

“builders laborer, plumbers laborer, silkscreen printer, beekeeper's assistant, factory hand, peanut roaster, bar useful, darkroom assistant for nude photographer, kitchen salesman, Boy Scout Shop assistant, house painter, fencer, boatshed worker, house cleaner, advertising copywriter, tick collector, zucchini gatherer, car salesman, magazine writer, marketing manager, builder, high-rise swinging-stage worker, cook, graphic designer, barman, Sales Rep., radio copywriter & gag writer”.

…he has become an expert on all matters of foreign affairs (in his own mind). Ladies and gentleman, I will remind you once again…that just because he saw what happened in a video clip on CNN, does not mean he knows what happened in Iraq. If you want to know about Iraq, ask me. If you want to know about being an assistant for a nude photographer, Malcolm is your man.

Lastly, I encourage you to visit his site for yourself. welcometowallyworld. Surf around. Look at his writings. Maybe read what he has to say about America, or ask him why he moved to France. Let him know what you think of his personal attacks on me. Don’t be vulgar. Don’t be rude. Yes, I did respond to Malcolm in a defensive way. He called my mission illegal and foolish. Many of my friends have died for this mission, and I will not take lightly, statements that demean the sacrifices these brave men and women have made. Although I responded to Mr. Lambe with some harshness, I ask you to kindly respect my wish that you do not. Do not make any personal attacks. If you criticize, please criticize with compassion, or if you agree with Malcolm, be uplifting and supportive. But please, don’t be crass. My readers are better then that and most of you should know by now, that I don’t need help in a fight. Not with someone like Malcolm.

Be Fearless.

Life’s Lesson; Fulfilling My Purpose

2006-01-07T08:49:00.000-05:00

Several years ago, I bought the book, Purpose Driven Life. It is a great book and I have bought it for several of my friends that at the time had questions about their purpose in life. The book takes you step by step to understanding what we are as people and our responsibilities as Christians. If you have not read it yet, I highly recommend it. For those of you who have read my past Life’s Lessons, you know that this has been a bad week for me. Then, to top it off, my wife IM’s me to tell me about some things going on at home. I began to question my purpose. I started to have doubt. I began to bargain with God, and try to convince him that my purpose here in Iraq was done and that I needed to get home for my purpose as a father. The Bible tells us not to make rash decisions and to seek the counsel of our leaders and the wise. I know of one man that fits both criteria, and I sent him an email explaining what was going through my mind. For operational security, I will not give his name, and after you read his reply to me, I will make a last comment.

My friend,

When our wives were girls, they played with dolls, looking forward to the defining ultimate moment in a woman's life: child birth/child-rearing. As teenagers, they giggle and talk about boys in anticipation of mating and their ultimate defining moment as women: child birth and child-rearing. Later, they give birth and raise children, as their defining ultimate moments on earth. As old women, as the families gather for Christmas feasts, the old women sit together and talk about their defining ultimate focus: their kids and grandkids.

Meanwhile, as boys, we played army and shot each other with toy guns while hiding in the forest, as we prepare for a man's ultimate and defining moment: Combat. Later, we played football and wrestled as, again, we prepared for our ultimate and defining moment as men: Combat. Finally, some of us face that ultimate and defining moment: Combat. And it changes us forever and makes us part of a special fraternity of men. No one can ever take that away from us. As old men, when we gather with families at Christmas feasts, we will sit with the old men on the porch and strip our sleeves, show our scars and tell stories about the defining moments in our lives: Combat.

I know how well you have performed as a combat medic here. You have met with your defining moment. You have earned your place in the fraternity.

If the lure of your hearth and kin pulls you home to continue your role as man of the house, then go. Fulfill your last duty by ensuring that your replacement is trained and your men taken care of... then go home.

I do, however, challenge your dream of serving coffee; you are a warrior life-saver. I, too, yearn sometimes for a mundane life serving coffee or painting pictures, but, alas, I have come to terms with God's purpose for my life.... and it isn’t serving coffee. It is leading warriors; lowering myself into the darkest pit, drenching myself with the toxic poison that is man's hatred and violence, and doing my best to be God's light, and to save His sheep from the many ferocious wolves in that dark place. But that is my purpose. Still, I suspect that if you pray about it, God will reveal His purpose for your life. Maybe it’s serving coffee, but... I happen to know that He needs battle-hardened studs who know how to roll up their sleeves and get bloody in the screaming, writhing goo that was once their friend and bring peace and safety to frightened, hurt people. Maybe He needs coffee servers too. I dunno.

But when you finally die, two things will be remembered: Your service in battle and your service as a father to your kids. You have earned your right to belong to that special fraternity of bloodied warriors, and your right to rotate out of this hell-hole. But I warn you: You will never really be free of this place; part of you will remain here for the rest of your life. And part of you will remain forever in my memory, your clothes bloodied and your eyes aglow.

You will be missed, my friend. Go with God.

I had just sat down at my desk to type my letter of resignation when I read this. I felt ashamed. I know that I am here in Iraq, because God has a purpose for me. The Bible says that “all things work together for good to those that serve the Lord, and are called according to his purpose”. I began to question God’s will and my purpose. I tried to make decisions based on what I thought my purpose should be, and I know that if I had left my mission here in Iraq, things would not work together for good. So I will continue the fight. I will stay the course. I will finish my tour and bring what ever aid and comfort I can to the injured and dying. If God sees fit to call me home while I am here in Iraq, I trust in him to take care of my family and will wait on them at the doorstep of Valhalla, where the brave shall live forever.

Life’s Lesson; Any Training Matters

2006-01-04T17:55:00.000-05:00

I was reading Rainbow Six a couple of years ago and there was a part in the book where one of the operators did something spectacular, like jumping over a desk and shooting three terrorist. The team leader made a comment, something like…”we never did that in training”

Training….lets see if I can come up with a Jayism…The ability to practice for a desired result. Practice…I don’t like that word, let me try it again….Repetitive movements encouraging a programmed response…..Hmmm, I want to add something that mentions the ability to adapt. Let me see…practiced movements used to enhance the results of a desired response. Ok, for time sake, I will just go with that. I’m sure Webster has an ok definition, but this isn’t his blog, is it?

About 19 years ago, my friend Jimmy Garrity and I were helping my Dad hang a drop ceiling or something like that, in the basement. Jimmy was in a Karate class for a couple of years and when a piece of the ceiling fell on him, he put his arm up in an upper block and stopped himself from getting bonked in the noodle. Now he never trained to block pieces of falling ceiling, but when the time came, the same basic practiced movements helped him for a situation for which he never anticipated or trained for.

While in the Marine Corps, in 1988, (God Bless the Corps and God Bless Chesty Puller) it was the end of the fiscal year, and there was not much money to spend on training. We had to train with limited resources, which amounted to a game of kids walking around the woods saying, “Pow, Pow, I got you first.” One day, we had to pretend to exit a fighting vehicle and set up our 360’s. I remember like it was yesterday, saying how stupid it was to run around with metal pipes for rifles and pretending that a big iron box with a ramp was a fighting vehicle over and over again, all day long. 18 years later, I remember being grateful, that I am still alive because I was able to get out of my Chevy Tahoe in a hurry and form up with my team in a 360 allowing us to gain fire superiority. The Marine Corps (GBTCAGBCP) did not train me to unass a Chevy Tahoe. They did not teach me to form a 360 on the streets of Baghdad, trying to shoot terrorist while avoiding civilians. The Marine Corps (GBTCAGBCP) did not teach me many things. But the practicing of the basic essentials over and over and over again has stayed with me for many years.

How do we utilize simple training exercises that will give us a solid foundation of the Basics? Some companies do not pay for training, and we fall into the thinking that if someone else does not train me, I don’t need it. Some individuals take a CPR class once a year, while others have to take 72 hours of CEU’s every two years. Some go to the rifle range once a year, some go every week. Push ups in the morning is a good foundation of the basics of fitness and some find pleasure in Yoga classes five times a week. Your training should be goal oriented, yet focused on your current demands. [pausing to think] I know of a fire department that has an intubation dummy at the door of the station house, and every day when the fire fighters get to work, they have to intubate the dummy twice. The paramedics will someday have to intubate someone that is not breathing and this introduction of repetitive basic skills will one day save someone’s life. The fire department does not require the fire fighters to practice their typing skills even though they are responsible for daily or weekly reports, because the main focus of the fire fighter, is on saving lives, not writing reports. Does that mean the Fire fighter should not practice his typing? Of course not. Legible and easy to understand reports are a need also, but just because the chief does not make the fire fighters practice, does not mean they cannot do it on their own. There is nothing wrong with skipping the reruns of Emergency to put in a typing program on the computer and doing some basic keyboarding for five minutes a day. My rule of thumb, (and please no feminist comments on the origin of rule of thumb) Decide what it is you do the most, and find a training activity that allows you to work on it’s basics for several minutes daily. Find two other things that you do infrequently, and work on those one day a week. Keep it simple. Basic, repetitive movements. When the time comes to intubate a drunk in an upside down car, you may not have practiced that, but your training will allow for you to enhance your chances of receiving your desired result. A living breathing drunk that will one day wreck his car yet again, giving you job security, heroism awards, and the admiration of your community for being brave and caring. And when you are done, you can type a neat report about it.

Life’s Lesson; It’s not the medals we’ve won along the way…

2005-12-31T16:56:00.000-05:00

It is 0100 hours and this idea for a post came to mind and I had to write about it. I was surfing one of my favorite websites at xmarksthescot and came across a thread discussing the appropriateness of wearing a kilt with a military tartan. Some viewers left posts explaining that they do not appreciate those that have not served in the military wearing a kilt that has a military tartan. I wanted to take a moment to share a differing opinion. I realize that there are quite a few of my blog readers that are military and law enforcement and I mean no disrespect. The other persons view is not wrong, it is just different then mine.

Starting off with a real simple illustration….If I do not play for the New Jersey Devils, yet I wear a New Jersey Devil’s Hockey jersey, am I some how dishonoring all the men that have earned the right to wear the jersey? No, I don’t think so. I actually believe it is considered an honor that I would support my team by wearing their colors.

What then, is the reason that wearing a set of woodland MARPAT to go turkey hunting is acceptable, but wearing a tie clasp with an Eagle, Globe and Anchor (God Bless the Corps and God Bless Chesty Puller) is disrespectful? I do not think it is. Now I am going to get real deep here, so bear with me…..

The American fighting man does not die for chevrons. The American fighting man does not die for ribbons. The American fighting man does not die for a uniform. The American fighting man lays down his life for his ideals. He dies for Freedom. What good is it to demand a Constitutional amendment to ban flag burning, if we are not willing to show up at the poles and vote? The American fighting man did not die for a flag, he died for a right to vote. Which is more important, the symbol or the right it represents? A Marine (God bless the Corps and God Bless Chesty Puller) does not Die for the Eagle, Globe and Anchor; he dies for the Marine next to him. Why then would we be outraged that someone is wearing a kilt with a Marine Corps Tartan (God Bless the Corps and God Bless Chesty Puller) yet we do not volunteer at the local VA helping young Marines just home from the war with out their arms or legs?

A patch is just a few pieces of string woven together. It is just a patch. The Marine Corps hymn (God Bless the Corps and God bless Chesty Puller) says “we are proud to claim the title, of United States Marine”. It does not say, we are proud to wear a patch, or a shirt or a hat or a kilt. Those are material objects and if revered to the point of anger, I would dare say idols. It is our actions that show our character, not our ribbons; and it is our character that defines who we are. When we see someone wearing something they did not earn, we should not be easily upset or angered by it; we should instead be humbled. This person that wears our emblems is not showing contempt for our sacrifice, but in his way, showing support of it. Material objects are fleeting, Honor is forever.

Please take a moment to understand my point, and if you need me to clarify, I would gladly do a follow up post. I myself, would not be offended by the social deviant that would spit on the Eagle, Globe and Anchor in public; But God help the mortal soul of the person I see spitting on a Marine. (God bless the Corps and God Bless Chesty Puller) For it is not the colors, the emblems, the uniforms, or the medals we’ve won along the way…..it is the blood we’ve shed that makes us hero’s. For he who sheds his blood with me is my brother, and I could give a rat’s ass what patch he was wearing at the time.

Life’s Lesson; I’m alive

2005-12-22T17:03:00.000-05:00

Today I want to say good bye to another warrior. I know I don’t usually give the names of my fallen comrades, but today, I want to honor Kyle Kazynski. I owe this man my life. Today, I am writing to you because Kyle gave his life for me. I don’t usually post photos(photos removed by request) and I will not get in the habit of doing so, but my weekly stats show that I had over two hundred visitors to my site last week, and I want you all to honor the man that died in my place. I do not have a photo of Kyle but when I get one, I will post it. As always, I will not go into detail. You do not need to know what happened today, only that the halls of Valhalla are singing and rejoicing that a man of courage has come home. I will post a photo of a friend of mine that was an important part in keeping my team alive. I also owe him and his courage a great deal.

Right now, I have a bottle of Malibu rum and diet Pepsi in me. I am not myself, nor will I be for some time. I can only thank the good lord Jesus for sparing me today, and I thank him for the brave men that gave their lives for freedom in a sick and demonic world.

Kyle was not the only friend I lost today. I will not give out the names or actions of the men I lost in battle, I only mention Kyle, because he was in my seat. Today, as a last minute change, Kyle and I switched seats. His blood was shed in my place and I can never repay him nor thank him for sacrificing himself for me. Intentional or not does not matter. Tonight I will talk to my children like nothing happened, and his two year old daughter will not understand why her daddy is not coming home.

Do not confuse my grief for frustration. I am as dedicated as I was yesterday, and I believe in my mission more firmly now then ever before. Kyle’s sacrifice will not have been in vein, and I will continue to do good, and do my part for the kind and gentle people of Iraq that want me here. That need me here. The people that will be tortured and killed or raped and destroyed were it not for me. I will remain. I will continue to fight until the evil is destroyed, or God feels that I have a bigger purpose in Heaven.

Tonight, when you say your prayers, say one for the family of Kyle Kazynski, and know that your freedom was won with the price of his blood.

Semper Fi,

Jay

Book Review: Contract Warriors by Fred Rosen

2005-12-05T11:51:00.000-05:00

Today, I am going to try something new; I am going to review a book. I was reading an issue of Soldier of Fortune magazine a few months ago. (Imagine that, me reading a mercenary periodical) and I came across an advertisement for a book. Contract Warriors by Fred Rosen. A history on mercenaries. I was intrigued, and I ordered it. On the 14 hour plane ride from the states to somewhere in the middle east, I read the entire book.

The hired soldier industry in it’s current form, is relatively new, and there is not much out there in the way of reference material, History, or information. Yes there are maybe a dozen books on the shelf or in a military book clubs, but think about it; the Soldier for hire is a thousands of year old profession, and there are 12 books on it. I would believe there are more books about Xbox 360, and that just came out.

The book starts off with a short introduction to some modern day key players and pioneers in the Contractor movement. Then, Mr. Rosen takes us on a tour of armies, battles, and individuals that have been obscured or not addressed as soldiers for hire, but in actuality, pretty much fit the description. Since I am not really a book critic, I don’t want to risk plagiarizing his book, so I am going to be ambiguous about some of the information he presents.

I will start with my likes of the book. For someone who is not a soldier, he presents the information well. Mr. Rosen does not come across as some poser, trying to pretend he is a Rambo type sharing black op secrets. Many military authors write books with much embellishment in order to intrigue us. I can tell you first hand, that a true operator’s life is 95% boring. The author simply takes facts about individuals and events and categorizes them in an exciting way. The author also takes some time to explain the current situation in South Africa, that has lead to that country providing some of the worlds best contractors. I know, I work with them, and Mr. Rosen does a fine job in giving them credit where credit is due.

My dislikes; Mr. Rosen actually did well in keeping a non-overt political posture, but some of the information shared had an obvious liberal or left slant view. He spent entirely to much time on Regan and the Iran/Contra scandal, and shared information that was inappropriate for a book about contractors. He also mentioned to many times someone’s family political views or someone’s social standing that really did not need to be addressed. If a Navy SeAL’s father is a Republican,,,so what? Why can’t we just say that he grew up in a nuclear family, and joined the navy? The short facts on different Mercenary events ran together with out a proper format or separation. I would have liked to see bullets in between paragraphs that separated the events, say Egypt from Rome. The run on paragraphs give the impression that he is talking with out catching his breath. I also disagreed with Mr. Rosen on the French Foreign Legion. Mr. Rosen portrayed the FFL as a Mercenary army, yet I see them more of a National Guard militia. While Mr. Rosen mentioned the conflicts the FFL participated in, I dare you to do a google search on the FFL and come up with a battle they have won. Now don’t get me wrong, a couple of my operators are former FFL, I have seen them in action and fought along side them, and they are top notch. But my opinion on Mr. Rosens telling, is that he gave the unit an inappropriate label as mercenary, to much information on a unit that is not what I would consider Contractors, and then gave them to much credit.

In the authors summation of the book, Mr. Rosen added web sites of companies that are current employers of Civilian Contractors, and some simple information on how to start your search for employment. Very simple. On a scale of 1-5, I give Contract Warriors a 4. If you are a military enthusiast, it is worth buying and reading, (just skip over the hippie liberal stuff)

As a bonus….I will post some recent photos of me while on vacation. Granted they are not as exciting as the photos of me skydiving or shooting, but they have their own aesthetic value. Also, I lost another four friends on 14 September. Not all the information is in, but when I have it, I will post a memorial to my friends. I would not like you to think that my review of this book is more important then the honoring of my friends, but with out all the information, I would dishonor them printing information that is not current or true.

Be Fearless.

A Jay Action Figure

2005-11-06T10:38:00.000-05:00

Jay is home on vacation visiting the family and taking some classes to update his licenses(professional that is, not drivers). This is something he sent to me a while back and I kept forgetting to post it.

Later,, Pineapple.

Hello everyone;

Not much of a lesson today, but wanted to let you know, that there is an action figure of Jay on the market. It is highly detailed and a pretty good representation of what we wear and carry "down range". If you would like your very own mercenary action figure, you can key word search 5.11 Alpha mission. I have mine poised and ready for action on the mantle piece of my fire place. The children know that it is mine, and it is for show, not rescuing Barbi from Terrorist. Then again, why shouldn't Barbi be kicking it with Ubersexual Jay, rather then gay Ken? Maybe I will buy the boys a couple!

Life’s Lesson. Avoiding Accidental Discharges.

2005-10-29T14:39:00.000-04:00

George Clooney did a horrible movie several years back, (I know that does not narrow it down) where he played a bank robber that falls for a police officer. (Whatever). Anyway, there is a group of thugs in a mansion, looking for hidden diamonds. Some big lug goes running up the stairs with a pistol in his hand, trips on a stair, falls, and shoots himself in the head. That is what we call, an AD, or accidental discharge. Some members of the firearms clique are using the term ND, or Negligent discharge. Either or, the outcome is the same. The unwanted discharge of your fire arm.

Since I try to explain my concerns based on my own experiences, I want to take you back to 1991. A very loose and promiscuous woman I had the misfortune of calling an acquaintance, had a little American Arms .22 derringer, that she wanted to get some instruction on. Since I was a US Marine, she had asked me about loading it, handling it, firing it, etc. Rather then tell her to run up the stairs with her finger on the trigger (which is what I should have done) I tried to show her the simplicity of its operation. Well:
1. I did not unload the pistol. Very dumb.
2. I cocked the hammer to show her the first step in operating a single action pistol. Much more dumb.
3. I put my thumb on the hammer and squeezed the trigger intending to let the hammer down slowly, as to make the weapon safe. Dumb, Dumb, Dumb.
Not as dumb as thinking the whore was a decent girl, but still dumb. Well, after I put an unwanted hole in the tramps wall, I realized all the things I did, I shouldn’t have done. Needless to say, I never did that again.

Several months ago, one of our guys was killed by an AK-47. Not from an enemy attack, but from a weapon that was dropped. The AK was in the back of a Tahoe, and the team was unloading gear. The report says, that the AK was loaded and off safe. During the unloading of the equipment, the AK fell over, and spent off a round. The round found its way to my guys back, and killed him.

More recently, a close associate, who is not a philandering trollop, was handling a shot gun that he was unfamiliar with. The person is a veteran Police officer, with many years experience in handling fire arms, teaching fire arms safety, as well as a Tier 1 certified operator. As a rule, all weapons must be cleared prior to being brought into the compound. Logically, if there is a weapon in the compound, it is unloaded. Right? When the operator was handed the weapon, he mistakenly thought it was cleared. While handling the pump action of the shot gun, a round was sent into the ceiling of the lobby. No one was hurt, but his pride was a little damaged.

Last week, another operator was doing weapons manipulation on a 240B. (Belt fed machine gun) and he was not as sure about the function of the weapon. Our M4 rifles fire from the closed bolt position, (bolt on top of the bullet) but the belt fed machine gun fires from the open bolt, (bullet in front of chamber, bolt in the rear). His mistake was kind of like mine. He kept is hand on the charging handle, and tried to lower the bolt onto the bullet (like his M4), and it fired the weapon. The round went down range, in a safe direction, during training, so all was good. If you are going to learn from a mistake, training on the range is the place to learn it.

Accidental discharges happen in a variety of ways, and I have given you four. Finger on the trigger, mishandling of the weapon (dropping it) manipulating the weapon, and improper use from being unfamiliar with the weapon. I believe the main reason for having an AD, is because your finger is on the trigger when it shouldn’t have been there. In the movie Black Hawk Down, Captain Hard ass was giving the Delta guy a lecture about having a hot weapon in the dining hall. Captain says “you need to safe that weapon” and the Delta guy puts his index finger in the air and says “this is my safe”. He is correct to an extent. Although it is plausible that a weapon could fire for other reasons, I believe that, as long as your finger remains off the trigger, you should never have an AD.

So my friends, remember; Keep your finger off the trigger until you are ready to kill what ever you are aiming at. If you are not familiar with the weapon, leave it alone! When you are ready to try a new fire arm, take it to the gun range, and ask the shop owner to give you a quick class on the new weapons proper use and correct manipulation, and lets never have another Accidental Discharge.

Be fearless.

Life’s Lesson - The Benefits of pain.

2005-10-13T13:48:00.000-04:00

Definition for "pain" from the American Heritage® Dictionary
Pain: NOUN: 1. An unpleasant sensation occurring in varying degrees of severity as a consequence of injury, disease, or emotional disorder.

This is just one definition of pain, and each of us has their own. I want to touch today on a personal feeling of pain, and what it means to me. When we say the word “pain” there are few among us that are pleased by the principle. I am not some sicko that likes to be tied and whipped, but I am going to try and make my point that pain is not all that bad. Bear with me.

There was a movie a few years back that I wont go into large detail about, but it had a scene where a woman was about to be killed by a crazy man with a sword. The man asks her, “would you like it quick and painless”? The woman replies “no, I want it to be long, and drawn out, so that I will carry my pain into the afterlife to remind me what it was like to be alive”. Hollywood wisdom at it’s best, I know, but several months ago, I had a friend that was arrested and thrown into an Iraqi prison. Before we could “secure his release” he was beaten badly. Nose broken, skull fractured, ribs bruised/fractured etc. As I talked to him afterwards, he told me that he enjoyed the pain. The pain brought him comfort. As long as he felt the pain, he knew he was still alive.

I will never forget my first skydive. I was so excited. I was jumping a T-10, a round parachute, and because of my size, I fell a little faster then I thought I would. I hit the ground like a sack of flour, and as the pain coursed through my body I could hear the jump master over the radio say, “ow, that hurt” but I was alive! Then, on jump 17, I had a bad landing under my reserve canopy, and again, I hit the ground hard. I couldn’t move my legs and I was scared. I was a little off from the hanger, and the crew did not reach me right away, so I started to do a self check. My arms worked, and I started to feel around for injuries. I checked my pecker, and there was no priapism(look it up and I was happy. I was lying there unable to move my legs, because of the pain, and I was happy… because I knew that it was just pain and not a paralyzing injury. After a few minutes, I was able to wiggle my toes, then move and eventually stand on my legs. I refused to ride back to the hanger in the truck and walked off the drop zone. The next day, I was back to work at the fire department even though I couldn’t walk, sleep or sit right for several months. (A future x ray showed some breaks). At the time, I was sucking down Aleve like tic-tacs, but I was happy to go to work in pain, because the alternative was to be home in bed, unable to walk.

I had a drill instructor in boot camp named Sgt. Baker. He was a hard Corps Marine (God bless the Corps and Chesty Puller) from Seaside Heights New Jersey. Baker told me one day, “King, nothing motivates a man like pain”. The Marine Corps, (God bless the Corps and Chesty Puller) came out with a slogan a few years back, that said, “Pain is weakness leaving the body”. I watched a movie on, I believe it was Tomas de Torquemada, a Spanish inquisitioner around 1478 AD, that was teaching his subjects how to inflict the most pain. He told them to wait a few seconds in between lashes, because after the first few, the body goes numb, and the person being tortured is desensitized to the skin tearing. In other words, weakness has left the body. Our bodies learn from pain. Any child that touches a stove will only do so once.

Pain should be embraced. Not in some sick fetish way, but as a learning tool to do things right the next time. Some might say that pain is telling you to stop what you are doing. Me? I think listening to your pain will teach you a better way to accomplish what you were trying to do. Realization of pain will remind you that alternatives are worse. Acceptance of pain will make you stronger. It is up to us, not to be intimidated by the possibility of pain, but to be motivated by the benefits pain produces.

Life’s Lesson - Saying Goodbye, After You Are Gone

2005-09-28T10:54:00.000-04:00

For the past week, I have been trying to decide what Life’s Lesson I have experienced, that would be both informative and insightful. I brainstormed, but my choices were limited. Today, I came up with something personal that I would not normally share, but has been a hot topic and worth touching on. The Death Letter.

For those of you that do not know what a Death Letter is; it is a letter, written by a combatant before he goes into battle. It is entrusted to a friend, to be delivered to the letters recipient. Some view it as an honored tradition, others as a bad omen. I almost describe it to be similar to a suicide note, but not quite. A Death Letter is written by a man that did not want to die but new he could. It is an Honorable way of saying good bye. I feel, a suicide note is more of an apology and a bunch of excuses from someone that takes their own life, which is both unnatural, and weak. The Death Letter differs from your Last Will. Your Last Will should be well known as well as what to do in the event of your death. Your personal wishes should have been talked about long before your death.

So, what is the controversy over the letter? I have a friend that is a psychologist, and he informs me that a Death Letter is not a good idea. I have asked him questions on personal ideas, and for advice on dealing with my children while I am absent, and he has been 100% correct every time. His issue with the Death Letter, if I remember, was that it takes away closure, and prolongs the healing process. Like that scene in the movie “The sixth sense” Where Bruce Willis’s wife sits around drinking watching old movies. His opinion is to thank your mother now for breast feeding you until you were ten, or tell your ex-girlfriend now about sleeping with her sister. Things that are worth saying are worth saying while you are alive.

I almost agree with that. Why would I not listen to good advice? It is an emotional reason and slightly complicated (as most emotional reasoning is). There is a Country song that was popular a couple of years ago, I don’t recall the name, but it was about a guy that goes away for a while, and while he is gone, he sends home a post card. Before he gets back home, the man is killed. While the wife is grieving, she receives the post card, and it says some pretty things about missing her, and being together soon, etc. I have come to the conclusion, that were anything to happen to someone I love, I would like a letter that said, “I may be gone now, but I am in a better place, and wanted to remind you that I love you, and I will see you soon”

I will share with you, that I have two death letters. One that will go to my wife, and one that will go to Pineapple to post on The Kings Realm. Why should I wait for someone to say something nice about me, when I can say nice things about myself? I pray that the letter turns yellow and rots in a shoe box; but when the time comes that Jesus feels I can do no more good on Earth, I should like the opportunity to say good bye my way.

So my lesson is this; If it is worth saying, say it while your alive. If you feel that you may not return from the next mission, or next plane ride, or the next trip to the Piggly Wiggly; Why not leave a note telling a special someone how much you love them, and have a chance to say good bye, after you are gone?

Life Lesson: Go before you leave.

2005-09-18T13:24:00.000-04:00

As a child, I grew up in the New York public school system. There were several days, when I really had to cut school. It was not to enjoy the beautiful weather, or visit my girl friend, or any of the hundred reasons children cut school; it was because I refused to use the public school’s boys bathroom.

I am going to delve into a subject I really don’t like. I have a difficult time talking about certain body functions, and terms like, “dropping the kids off at the pool” or “seeing a man about a horse” are quite annoying to me. If you must excuse yourself, all you have to say is, “I will be right back” or “which way is the bathroom?” I have no desire to know exactly what you are going to do in there. However……I feel compelled to at least talk about the proper time to go.

Since I like using movie analogies, I will mention Christian Slater’s movie, “Kuffs”. What a good movie. Anyway, Christian Slater wants to get away from his police officer partner. To do this, he tells the Cop, “I am going to the toilie”. While he is away, he picks up a bunch of sleeping pills, puts them in the cops coffee, and returns to administer the drug. The Cop partner is quite perturbed and tells Kuff’s “first you %#!^, then you clock in” What a valuable piece of Hollywood wisdom. You take care of personal matters before you leave the house.

When you are in a truck convoy, wearing 60+ lbs of body armor, and carrying a rifle, that is not the time to go. When you are in a perspective girlfriends home for the first time, that is not the time to go. When you are setting out for a several hour car ride, that is not the time to go. The best time to go, is right before you leave the house. If you use the bathroom before you leave your home, you will not have to pull over or be waited on while traveling. If you use the bathroom before you leave the home, you will not offend your host at the place you are visiting. If you use the bathroom before you leave your home, you will not find yourself in some unsanitary public bathroom in the middle of nowhere.

I have been all over the world, and the nicest bathroom I have ever used, was my own. Putting ourselves aside for a moment….and not to sound like a tree hugging liberal, but, we send our children to public school. We make them brush their teeth before they leave, and we make sure they made their beds and took their homework, but then we send them to school to use the public bathroom, where one episode of over heard flatulence will have their name shouted up one hallway and down the other with shouts of “Jay cut the cheese, Jay cut the cheese” and a nick name of cheese will follow them the rest of their lives. Note to self. The best bathroom to use, is your own. Even if you don’t have to go….Go before you leave.

Life Lesson: The 5 stages of grief

2005-09-13T10:39:00.000-04:00

Recently, I received a tag from “anonymous” explaining to me either the reason for, or one of the reasons for a blog. Something to do with healing or closure or some such. While I don’t disagree with Anonymous, my blog is for instructional purposes. I have learned many things over the years that have kept me alive, either in ambushes, firefights, car bombings, or just entering a crack house to provide treatment to an addict or gangster that has over dosed on heroine or suffered from acute lead poisoning (bullets get it?). Anyway, I learned not from doing it right, but from doing it wrong, or from someone else’s mistakes. My blog is to share my mistakes with you, so that you won’t go through the same turmoil’s I did. My favorite quote, although I do not know who said it, goes something like; Good judgment comes from experience. Experience comes from bad judgment. I am not here to heal, or find closure or even forgiveness for me or others. Mr./Mrs. Anonymous, again, I am not disagreeing with you, or saying your wrong;( and I would have left your tag on the blog if it didn’t have the web address for the dating service). That is just not the purpose of my blog.
There are some times I may vary from my posting of things to learn from. Examples being the deaths of my friends. There are some lessons to be learned in those instances, but unfortunately, it is not information I can readily share, and the insight you would gain would be of no practical use to 99% of you. The most I can do is talk about their impact on my life, and what I thought of them. I did a key word search a few months ago, when dealing with the death of a friend, and I saved a webpage from a cancer survivors group. I had intended to post a life’s lesson from the information, but ended up putting it off because of other events. Since Anonymous mentioned the healing after a tragedy, now may be a good time for me to share a little grieving. The text below is taken from the cancer survivor web site, and the book it was taken from is credited. Please take a moment to look over the five stages of grief.
Probably the most well-known of these might be from Elizabeth Kubler-Ross' book, "On Death and Dying." In it, she identified five stages that a dying patient experiences when informed of their terminal prognosis.
The stages Kubler-Ross identified are:

Denial (this isn't happening to me!)
Anger (why is this happening to me?)
Bargaining (I promise I'll be a better person if...)
Depression (I don't care anymore)
Acceptance (I'm ready for whatever comes)

Many people believe that these stages of grief are also experienced by others when they have lost a loved one.

I understand the text refers to the death of someone dying from cancer, but the principles of grief apply to all areas of loss. In order for someone who is traumatized by a life changing event( weather it be death, divorce, a pet running away, loss of a job, etc,) to move on, they must go through the five stages of grief. MUST! (As a side note, this is where I have a problem with medication, because it slows down the process or indefinitely prolongs it). No stage is more important then another, although some may be more painful. No stage can be skipped, although some may be very quick. We, God’s creation, must go through each of the five steps before we can be “healed” or have “closure” or “move on” what ever. The length of each step will vary for each person depending on the event, and the personal attachment of the grieving person. A man who’s wife totaled a car he has owned for 30 years, may take longer getting through the process then an eight year old boy who’s pet frog has died. Also, the man may spend more time in anger, while the boy spends more time in bargaining. The concern is not how long each person spends in each stage, but that they go through each stage.
I could maybe write for another hour on the subject, but those of you that visit my blog are intelligent enough to have understood my meaning by now. Anger, is a part of healing. And if I choose to vent my anger, (or my depression, or my acceptance), on TheKingsRealm, but not talk about my Denial or bargaining, I have done no disservice to the healing process. I have only mentioned the stage I am in right now, and that is neither wrong, nor inappropriate.
In summary; Do not be afraid of your stages. Embrace them; For unless you face your pain, sadness, anger, and depression, you will be enslaved by them.

Be Fearless
Jay

Life Lessons: If it’s worth having, it’s worth securing to your person.

2005-09-09T17:44:00.000-04:00

I remember in the 80’s when some of the rocker kids starting wearing leather wallets chained to their jeans. If they had more then $5.00 in their wallets I would have been amazed. So I never understood why they would chain their wallet to their belts. It had to be just for show. Lately, I am beginning to understand. Although it had no value to me, the wallet had value to them, and because they valued it, they tied it to their person.

Let me fast forward 20 years. It was only a couple of months ago that one of our operators was ambushed up near Mosul. His vehicle was hit with a belt fed machine gun, while the diaper head with the RPG set up. “Ignatious” realized he was in for a world of pooh and needed to get away from the vehicle, it was drawing to much fire. So he grabbed his E&E bag (Escape and Evasion, or “runaway” bag) and got away from the vehicle but not before he took a round to the leg, and the vehicle was hit with the RPG. After a short firefight, Ignatious took off into the desert. Once he had escaped, he stopped to examine his situation and evaluate his resources and options. Ignatious happened to have a small bottle of adult beverages in his E&E kit, and used that for antiseptic. (I am sure he took a swig). What he didn’t have, was his GPS. That was on the dashboard of the Tahoe. He also realized that his MP-5 was also still in the Tahoe. His Satellite phone was also in the Tahoe. Ignatious soon came to realize, that he didn’t have much of anything except one good leg, his M-4, and a long walk. He hid out in the desert for several hours, and then, under cover of darkness, leap frogged the road until he found a safe point.

Recently, a friend of mine was in and IED attack. His vehicle sustained some serious damage and there were multiple wounded. A second after the attack, my friend lifted his M-4, and began to scan the area for secondary threats. He soon realized that he was not holding his M-4. Being the hard corps operator that he is, he began a self check to make sure he had all his hands and arms. He did. The initial explosion had knocked the weapon out of his hands and the momentary confusion did not allow him to realize this. He soon found his weapon, rescued another person, and escaped the area.

I am sure most of you will get my meaning by now, but let me emphasize it. If you carry something that is worth having, then it is worth you securing it to your person. Look at the photo of my rig. Notice that my M-4 is secured to my dominant shoulder with a tactical loop. My Radio is secured to the pouch with a clip, but also to the rig with some 550 cord. My pistol is secured to my belt with a pistol leash, and even my ear plugs are secured to my rigs zipper, which sits about sternum high when fitted properly.

Remember the show “Get Smart”? There was always some spy with his hand hand cuffed to a brief case. Not many of you are spies or mercenaries, but principles still apply. Do you carry a concealed weapon? it needs to be on a leash. How about wearing your house key on your necklace when you go out drinking, or putting your duffel bag across your chest instead of across one shoulder or carrying it in one hand? I have even seen nurses put a syringe of meds in their scrub pocket and then tape it to their Scrubs. If it is something you really need, or something you don’t want someone else to have, it needs to be secured to your person.

Another Loss

2005-09-07T11:05:00.000-04:00

On 02 September 2005, America lost another hero.

It is entirely too soon for me to be writing another one of these. I am somewhat at a loss for words. There is so much more to be told, but unfortunately, at this time, I cannot. Once again, I do not wish to give his name nor what he was doing at the time he was called home, but again I am going to print a passage from his memorial service, and blank out parts that are not needed.

XXX XXXX served in law enforcement for 18 years in the state of South Carolina.

Among his other assignments within the Spartanburg Public Safety Department, Officer XXXX served as a tactical team sergeant with the Metro Narcotics Unit, FBI Liaison Officer, and Housing Authority Liaison Officer. Additionally, Officer XXX was one of the original Spartanburg Motorcycle Police Unit.

Officer XXXX was also a distinguished member of the Gold Wing Road Riders Association. Through this association and his certification as a Motorcycle Police Officer, he was respected as an authority on motorcycle safety,. Rules, and regulations, which he taught to citizens of the Spartanburg community in his personal time.

Officer XXXX held an associate’s degree in criminal justice and certificates in Defensive Tactics, Firearms and High Risk Event Planning.

We are blessed for having had the opportunity to know him for this brief period, and we shall never forget him.

There is a saying I have heard in the past, but I am not exactly sure how it goes. I will paraphrase it, and anyone that knows the quote or where it comes from, please feel free to place it on the tag board. I believe it goes something like:

“The true measure of a man can be determined by who his enemies are”

Great men inspire greatness. I believe it was the man who invented penicillin that said, “if I see far, it is because I sit on the shoulders of giants”(if you know the whole quote, feel free to leave it on the tag board) The man that we lost this week had great enemies. Men so full of hate and anger, that for months they planned, and schemed, and risked their lives, and utilized all their resources, to kill one man. It’s as if the entire insurgent force was out to get one man. This hero of freedom gave everything he had to bring peace and stability to a nation that has never known it. Jesus teaches us that the greatest gift a man can give is to lay down his life for a friend. Because of our fallen hero, many other people are alive today. Many children have full bellies when they go to sleep; there are no Iraqi women in rape rooms; or torture chambers full of men that said no to a spreading evil. Today, many people can see far, because they sit on the shoulders of my friend, a giant.

Because it is fitting, I will leave the Viking prayer that I posted at my last memorial. It was from a movie called The 13th Warrior, with Antonio Bandaras. While not the greatest movies of all time, it was a good Viking tale with some good lines. One of the more memorable lines was a Viking prayer that is suitable for a man that has earned his place in the halls of heros. The website I pulled the poem and the photo from requested that I ask for permission before I use them. I tried, but the email address is no longer current. So, I will include the website and I ask that you please visit at least once in an effort to thank this person.
Lo, there do I see my father.
Lo, there do I see my mother.
Lo, there do I see my sisters and my brothers.
I see the line of my people back to the beginning.
They do call to me to take my place in the halls of Valhalla where the brave may live forever.

The 13th Warrior

New Photo

2005-09-07T10:14:00.000-04:00

Thanks to Jeff at Pittsburgh Kilts

Hizmom missed

2005-09-01T10:26:00.000-04:00

Life Lesson: There are stupid questions

2005-08-31T16:47:00.000-04:00

It has come to my attention that some of you believe there is no such thing as stupid questions. Well, you are wrong. The majority of Stupid questions begin with either What if or Why? Now, I am going to get pretty deep here, so try to hold on for a second. What if, is not, I repeat, not the same as What? What is a valid question that addresses the here and now. “What” is the question we use to formulate a hypothesis (an educated guess for those of you in Palm Beach). I will give you some examples.

What if someone is hit by lightning? This is a stupid question. It does not involve any thinking on the part of the person asking the question, and the answers are open ended and non specific.

What is the pathophysiology of lighting when it comes into contact with a human being, and what means or treatments should I have at my disposal to examine and treat such a patient? This is an educated question. It is a question that has evolved from thought and a specific concern.

Now, to my favorite question, Why? Why is not a problem solving question. Why is a confrontational question. Why does not elicit an answer, it elicits an attitude.

Just imagine you walk into an office, approach a receptionist and she says “why are you here?” In Jay’s world, I would say something like “Because I lost your mothers phone number and wanted to return her dirty underwear”. Why causes us to become defensive. Why encourages hostility. When you ask a patient, “Why did you wait so long to call?” They become defensive and hostile. When you ask the patient, what happened between the time you first felt the pain and the time you called?” Your concern puts the patient at ease and they open up to you.

Now, the same receptionist asks you, “What can I do for you today?” My name is Jay, and I have an appointment with Mr. Smith at 2:00. “What” elicits an answer.

Why did she leave me for another guy? (I love that one) Who cares?????? Maybe it was because you snore, maybe it was because you have a tiny pecker, maybe it was because she couldn’t stand being around a guy that sits around saying “why” She’s gone. The question you should be asking is What? What effect is her being gone going to have on my tax status? What can I do with all the stuff she left behind? What can I do to mess with her credit? What is the possibility of getting her back? (stay away from that one, it’s just an example) What are my options for dating other women? (much better)

One more example to make sure you understand my meaning and then I will move on. If I am inside the compound, and there is a group of people outside wanting to get in and kill me. I am not going to ask - Why do they want to kill me. Why are they attacking? Why does this happen to me? Why are they throwing bottles? Why can't we all just get along? Why is a question that solves nothing. Now, If I were to ask - What is their troop strength? What kind of weapons do they have? What direction are they coming from? With the answers to "What" questions, I can formulate a plan and fight back effectively.

The conclusion to Jays comparison of What and Why; Why is a question that relates to the past or future. It is a philosophical question not conducive to problem solving, only personal enlightenment.

What is a question that deals with the present. What is the question used when problems need to be solved and plans formulated. What is the beginning of an idea and the first step to an answer.

Stay tuned to the next entry when Jay discusses the difference between Confidence and Arrogance. I promise it will be much shorter.

Hey all, it's Tara. Just wanted to add something. Jay asked me to place a picture of the latest issue of Golf Magazine in this post. Go find yourself a copy and turn to page 21. You'll see Jay there. Check it out.

Viking Prayer

2005-08-29T09:23:00.000-04:00

On 23 August 2005, America lost a hero.

While it is my intention to honor this brave warrior, for security reasons, I do not wish to give his name nor what he was doing at the time he was called home. I am going to print a passage from his memorial service, and blank out parts that are not needed.

XXXX XXXX served in law enforcement for 16 years in the state of Oklahoma.

Officer XXXX, a Vietnam veteran and college graduate with a degree in criminal justice, served in the U.S. Army’s 82nd Airborne Division from 1967 to 1969, and one of his sons recently returned from a tour of duty in Iraq with the U.S. Military.

Officer XXXX also was a former Cherokee Nation Marshal and was given the Cherokee Nation Patriot Medal.

Officer XXXX has also attended numerous other special schools, including the U.S. Army Ranger Course and the Drug Investigator Course which was sponsored by the Oklahoma Bureau of Dangerous Drugs and Narcotics.

Officer XXXX previously completed two XXXXX missions, XXXXXXXXXXXX

We are blessed for having had the opportunity to know him for this brief period, and we shall never forget him.

I will not be able to put into words, and in such a short blog entry, the impact this man has had on so many lives. He was born a warrior, and spent his life fighting evil in many forms. In his final moments he earned the right to enter Valhalla with honor, and his inspiration has made the enemy tremble.

Several years ago, there was a movie called The 13th Warrior, with Antonio Bandaras. While not the greatest movies of all time, it was a good Viking tale with some good lines. One of the more memorable lines was a Viking prayer that is suitable for a man that has earned his place in the halls of heros. The website I pulled the poem and the photo from requested that I ask for permission before I use them. I tried, but the email address is no longer current. So, I will include the website and I ask that you please visit at least once in an effort to thank this person.

Lo, there do I see my father.
Lo, there do I see my mother.
Lo, there do I see my sisters and my brothers.
I see the line of my people back to the beginning.
They do call to me to take my place in the halls of Valhalla where the brave may live forever.

The 13th Warrior

Although I mourn the loss of this hero, I have an assignment concerning my next blog for those of you that visit regularly. I want you to take a moment and think to yourself, “Self, what is the difference between arrogance and confidence?” I would also like you to think of the difference between the questions WHAT and WHY. Please don’t write in your answers, or post them to the tag board. In several days, I will be posting my comparisons of the two and it will give you the opportunity to compare your definitions with mine and see how close you are to living in Jay’s World. There is no such thing as cheating, and visits to websites or dictionaries are quite acceptable. I only ask that if you get inspiration from somewhere else, that you take a moment to think about the answers from your point of view and make them personal.

Remain Fearless

Jay’s Life’s Lesson: Eating on Mission

2005-08-13T17:15:00.000-04:00

What a wonderful vacation I have been having. Swimming in the ocean, riding the horses, cutting up on the wave runners, and sleeping late. I feel fresh and renewed. I will be returning to Baghdad soon, and wanted to talk about my recent understanding of proper eating.

I remember reading a book about a Marine sniper several years ago. The book mentioned that he would be out in the bush for days or weeks eating “John Wayne” crackers. I didn’t understand it at the time, but I am beginning to.

Every nutritionist will have their own idea of proper eating and over the years I have herd many stories about the correct way to eat. One method for weight control I have heard of is, in the morning eat like a King; at noon eat like a Queen; and in the evening eat like a pauper. A weight lifter I know eats a certain amount of food every two hours. I have been having a difficult time figuring out a meal schedule that works for me during combat missions. Once on a mission to Al-Kut, I began to feel sleepy and light headed. I had found up till then, that if I eat a proper breakfast and while wearing 60lbs + of gear and armor, and sitting in cramped quarters, I felt bloated and uncomfortable for several hours. But if I skip meals, I become tired after a few hours. I remembered the story of the Marine Sniper and decided to try something similar with my weight lifter friends idea of eating. In the morning I eat a piece of fruit and a glass of tea or juice. Then, during missions I eat a small portion of something every 20-30 minutes. Crackers, bread, a small piece of beef jerkey, whatever. Since beginning this regimen I have no longer felt bloated while on the road, and no longer get fatigued or drowsy while out with the team. Now, will eating like this be appropriate for everyone? I doubt it. The idea to my life’s lesson, is that there is no “correct” way to eat. Just like what weapon you carry will depend on what kind of mission you are on, how you eat will be determined by what your goals of the day are.

Reflections

2005-06-24T13:50:00.000-04:00

As we approach July it marks the end of my contract. I will have been in Iraq for a year and have learned much from my time down range. How do I put a years worth of memories into one blog entry?

In 12 months I have seen the worst of human cruelty and the suffering. I have also worked with the bravest and most honorable men in the world. I will not reflect too much on the horrors of Iraq, as my wife does not know all that I do over here, so maybe I will mention some of the fun things I have been able to do and some semi private feelings.

Jim Seaton teaching me to drive in the red zone, with one hand on the steering wheel, and one hand on my pistol. Driving and shooting at the same time on Saduun street will go down in history as some of my fondest memories.

I remember 4 wheeling on the Tigris river in my Tahoe, and repelling off the roof of the Baghdad Hotel. Hitting Golf Balls off the banks of the river while Black Hawk helicopters fire flares over our tee. Hanging out at the embassy pool, and a medevac to South Africa.

Teaching 12 Iraqis to shoot an AK-47, each with 30 rounds of ammo, and at the end of the string only 8 holes in 12 targets out of 360 bullets. Weapons qual was cool, and flying on a c-130 with General Bolger was a good time. Medical trips up to Balad on Black Hawks. Ambushes, car bombs and fire fights. Good friends that never made it home. Crying during a funeral for Gavin Holtzhausin, a warrior. Eating dinner with Jose, another medic, and 12 hours later he was killed. Smoking the Hookah pipe with Paul Brand for the first time, and a shooting competition with Jimmy DiMartino.

Wearing my Kilt to Evelyns going away party, and buying a pistol on the black market for “ahmed” and the next day using it to shoot his way out of a kidnapping. Cigar night at the 86th CSH, and Andy Herbst explaining to me what “The Shocker” was. (don’t ask). A bomb that destroyed our hotel, injured 41, destroyed 70 vehicles and not a single death. (except the two idiots that were in the car when they blew it). Watching the final episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer on a TV with no reception. Sitting there like a twit, looking between the fuzzy lines on the TV to try and figure out what was going on.

Dave Howard mooning the Blackwater guys helicopter. Troy Billson hitting the local with the Tahoe during driver training. Trying to ride the motorcycle back to camp through the red zone. Getting mortared while taking photos with Ouday Husseins Jaguar. Syd Sloat breaking her hand punching a cop in the head during hand to hand training. Driving home at midnight with no security, after a bar-b-que with the Apollo team from Edinburgh Risk.

There is so much more. So many reflections. So many moments worth remembering the rest of my life. How do I go back to being a fire fighter in Virginia? I will do another year. I have to. It’s not over for me yet, and I can still make a difference.

Life’s Lesson of the Day: Proper Camouflage

2005-06-08T14:41:00.000-04:00

There was a recent tragedy in Baghdad. Three men from a different company, were killed in an ambush. I knew some of these men, and it hurts me to say that it may have been their own fault. It is one thing to go to Valhalla because another man was a better warrior and it is another to go because you were stupid.

I don’t want to tell you all the things that went wrong with the team that was ambushed, because that goes into op sec; instead I want to focus on Camouflage.

Camouflage: In Jays’ world, means, having the ability to blend into your environment. There are two parts to camouflage. They are, Looks and Behavior. In order to blend effectively into your surroundings, you need both. The traditional concept of camouflage, is the focus on colors and patterns. Every military in the world has a unique form of camouflage and a different camouflage for every environment. But the color and pattern is only the first part of camouflage.

Today, I want to talk about behavior. If a Muslim man walked into a Pentecostal church, with a tambourine and jumped up and down, no one would know he was Muslim. If a burglar hears a dog barking inside a house, but cannot see it, he has no idea if it is a pit bull or an Irish setter. It is not the looks of something that fools us, but it’s behavior.

I am not going to talk about my tactics for driving or give away any operational security, but suffice it to say, that when I drive in an armored Suburban, I drive differently then when I am driving in a soft skin car. If I am going low profile, I try to blend in with traffic. I don’t speed, I don’t cut people off. I don’t let my rifle hang out the window. Why? Because sometimes looks are not as important as behavior. When we try to blend into our environment, we may dress differently, comb our hair differently, shave or grow a beard, but what about our behavior? Our behavior must reflect the surrounding we are in or it would be just the same as wearing our birthday suit in a room full of Nuns. If everyone else is driving reckless, guess what? We should also. If everyone else is laughing, then guess what? We should also. If everyone else walks in a single file, we should also. Camouflage is more then the ability to blend into our surroundings. We cannot just look like a duck. We also need to quack like the duck and walk like the duck.

Life's Lessons - Rookie Mistakes

2005-06-03T11:00:00.000-04:00

We have all had them. No matter how much experience you have, no matter how long you have been at it, at some point we goof and we goof like an amateur. A couple of weeks ago, I had such a moment.

Night before an operation, I did all my checks. Weapons, magazines, ammo, pins on grenades, grenades taped, comms checks, spare batteries for my radio, GPS, full charge on my phone, and on my satellite phone, escape & evasion kit, pens and paper. There was more, much more, but you get the point. I did a full weapons and gear check the night before, and prior to the mission brief. Then, while out on the road, one of the other operators asked to check out my optic. I give him my rifle and turn on my reflex sight so he can bead the reticule. He tells me, “How do you turn it on?” I am befuddled. It is on, I told him, just look in the center, and you will see the cross hair. Nope, no cross hair. He hands me the weapon, and I look through my optic, and sure enough, nothing. I had checked this optic twice prior to mission, and now…..nothing. And, of course, my spare battery is in Mosul, from my last assignment. Good thing my sight mount has a see through window for my iron sights, or I would not have been able to get an accurate sight picture.

I have a couple of options now. I just bought ten extra batteries, but me thinks with my current state of knowledge, I will invest the extra $400 on a non-battery using sight. What a rookie mistake. Any first year operator will tell you, two is one. One battery is useless. Just when you need it, your battery will fail, and you can only rely on your back up. I had two batteries for my radio, two phones fully charged, two packets of Gatorade mix in my E&E kit, two separate ammo pouches, two medical kits, etc. I carry extra gear for all circumstances,,,,,, but not my battery charged optic. What a rookie mistake. My iron sights still acted as my second form of sights, and that is the reason I installed the see through mount, but that is no excuse for not having back up batteries. I felt like a monkey having intercourse with a football. Thankfully, I found it prior to any firefights.

Life’s lesson of the day? No matter how much experience we have, we all make rookie mistakes. Shit happens. We can’t stop it. We can minimize it by planning and preparation, but at some point the defecation is going to come in contact with the rotating oscillator. We deal with it. We make adjustments. We move on.

Life Lesson : Everyone Drops

2005-05-05T22:37:00.000-04:00

I was looking at the Marine Corps reading list a couple of years ago, and one of the first novels in there(for enlisted ranks anyway) was Robert Heinlein’s Starship Troopers which was written in 1959. I thought, ok, I liked the movie, so I will give it a shot. My goal at the time was to read the entire Marine Corps list, but I only finished about 6 books. Four children get in the way of recreational reading. Most of my reading time is now spent reading about Tiggers problems with Piglet. Anyway, I can honestly say, that this book is one of the best books I have ever read. There is a nice web site dedicated to the book that will tell you all about it, but I wanted to touch on one part.

The soldier is trying to express what it is like going into combat as a team. The term used for going from the ship to the target is “dropping”. The way it is described I imagine it to be like being shot out of a torpedo from a submarine. As Robert Heinlein’s character describes the process, he explains it by say that Everyone Drops. The author goes on to say that the cooks, and the mechanics, etc. they all drop. If the cook gets killed someone else becomes the cook, but again Everyone Drops.

This one concept of a fictional work really impressed me. The idea is that everyone fights. Everyone pulls their weight. Not like communism or Marxism, because everyone is not “equal” or “entitled” but it’s everyone’s job to defend. If a General orders someone into Battle, then they (the General) have to be willing to go into battle. If the General dies, then someone else becomes the General. Also in the book, in order to run for office you had to be a veteran. Concept being, you can’t order a soldier to do something if you had never been a soldier, you can’t understand asking someone else to sacrifice if you had never been willing to sacrifice.

Now, getting back to, Everyone Drops. I read this book several years ago, and have always thought it to be special. I think the adage “never ask someone else to do something your not willing to do” is not quite the same. By asking them to do it, you remove yourself from the equation. Just because you did it once 5 years ago, does not mean you don’t have to do it now. There in lies true leadership. Not leading by example, but by leading.

When I was a young medic, I found a woman who had fallen and could not get up. (No jokes please) This poor woman was sitting on the floor for two days. I could have wrapped her in sheets and took her to the hospital. But instead (with her permission of course) I helped her into the shower and began the long process of cleaning two and a half days worth of feces and urine off of her. I cleaned her, helped her put powder and lotion on, and fixed her hair. We put on clean clothes, and went to the hospital. Well, later on, the family sued everyone. For everything and for any reason. But the woman refused to let the family bring me into it. They loved me for all the care I gave.

Fast forward a couple of years and now I am a Lieutenant. I pick up a homeless guy with bandages on his legs. We get him to the hospital and the nurses remove the bandages. If I try to explain to you the smell and the maggots crawling over this mans body, it would not touch the reality. The nurse threw up. I took the man into the shower, removed his clothes, and helped him wash. I cleaned off every maggot and every patch of filth. My job had been done when I brought him into to hospital. I picked the patient up from the street and delivered him to the hospital. I didn’t have to help at all. Not only did I not have to help, but being a Lieutenant I definitely didn’t have to help him shower. But my rank does not excuse me from the dirty work. It may give me more money or more responsibility, but it does not excuse me from labor. In Jay’s world, Everyone Drops.

Life’s Lesson: Thinking Outside the Box

2005-04-09T14:00:00.000-04:00

I wanted to express my strong belief in the ability to adapt to a situation to accomplish desired results.

That may be a simple explanation, but I also came up with another. Thinking outside the box. Utilizing an unconventional answer to meet the needs of a unique circumstance.
Another way to put it; Coming up with a solution that some are not willing to come up with, to a problem that most will never face. (pay attention, you will see this again later)

Before I go on about my own personal experience, I thought I would use a bit of Hollywood wisdom as an example. In the movie Speed, Keanu Reeves was forced to come up with a solution to his friend being held hostage. The answer he came up with was “shoot the hostage” If you take the hostage out of the equation by shooting him, then you can focus on the real problem, which in this case was the bad guy. This is a perfect example of thinking outside the box. No police agency in the world is going to advocate shooting hostages. (Well, maybe in China) But, it got the job done. It was an unconventional answer to a unique circumstance. Had Keanu Reeves not been able to think outside the box, his partner would have been killed, and the bad guy would have gotten away. Come to think of it, the bad guy did get away and the partner was killed anyway.

Being a mercenary lends itself to some very interesting circumstances. Being a medic on my team makes it harder. I find that my team is willing to sacrifice themselves for the mission, or for me. If someone is willing to die for me, then there is nothing I can’t do for them. One of the medics told me not to long ago “you cant do that, you will lose your license.” I cannot describe in words how angry that made me. The soldier can die for me, but I can't lose my license for him? I had someone else tell me today, “I am not going to do that, my license is on the line.” Well, the operators I work with know that. And when it comes time to go to work, I know my team is going to do everything they can to keep me alive, but I feel sorry for the other medics. I know that they will get pushed out of the vehicle to make it lighter so we can drive faster. Now, am I going to tell all of you what I do in Baghdad? No, don’t be silly. At least I am not going to put it on my website. On the other hand, I will share an experience that I think is appropriate but would not recommend for others. Several years ago, I was called to a woman’s home for belly pain. After talking to her, I determined that it was most likely a ruptured ovarian cyst. The amount of pain this woman was in was tremendous. Unfortunately, in undiagnosed abdominal pain, morphine is not allowed. I could have called for orders from the doctor, but I knew that no doc is going to give orders to a paramedic for belly pain over the phone. I weighed the options. I thought to myself….self, if this were your wife, what would you want someone to do. So, I gave her the morphine. Not only did I give her the morphine, but since I knew I was going to get fired and never practice medicine again, I gave her a lot of it. When I arrived at the hospital, the first thing the doctor did was chew me out. Asked for my supervisors name, yada yada yada. I called my Clinical dept and told them what happened, and took full responsibility for what I did. Didn’t play stupid, I told them what I did, what I thought, and why I acted. A half hour later the girl was diagnosed with an ovarian cyst rupture, given 6mg of morphine (by the doctor) and rushed to surgery. I was never fired, and the subject never came up again. Thinking outside the box also entails coming up with a solution that some are not willing to come up with, to a problem that most will never face.

Because most people cannot think outside the box, those who can are scrutinized as “cowboys” or “freelancers” or “irresponsible” or any number of labels cowards put on us for not being able to be problem solvers themselves. Thinking outside the box can do either of two things. You will become a leader, or a scape goat. Risk takers are just that, at higher risk. But the rewards are amazing. I guess that is why I do so well in Baghdad and others just die. There’s nothing like a good box.

Life’s Lesson of the Day: My reality has ruined my childhood

2005-03-14T00:06:00.000-05:00

Growing up in the 80’s was fun. There were so many new and exciting things. Thunder Cats, Transformers, Monte Carlo SS’s, and my favorite…GI JOE. Oh the hours I spent reading the comic books and then watching the cartoons. Did you know that GI JOE was the first comic book advertised on television? There were so many favorites. I have even started buying the comic books now for my children. Of course their favorite and mine are the same, the commando Snake Eyes. He was a modern day soldier without a face or name. His actions were all he needed to get his point across. One of my favorites was the issue that had no words in it. What a great comic. I know I have it somewhere. Snake eyes was the epitome of cool. He lived in a cabin on a mountain, his best friend was a wolf. He carried an Uzi, and a really cool sword. He was a Caucasian Ninja, and could kick anyone’s butt.

Now, 20 years later, I am sad. I can carry just about what ever I want now, and you know what I carry? It isn’t a sword. I carry more bullets. I have a bayonet that fits on the end of my M-4, but if I am going to carry another 5 lbs, it’s going to be five lbs of ammo. I must carry 60 lbs in gear. I have ammo, and more ammo. I have grenades, and oh yeah, ammo. I carry an escape and evasion kit with local clothing, power bars, maps, GPS and a Satellite phone. Oh, and three magazines with ammo. I have the latest dragon scale armor that will stop a rifle round from any angle, but I just couldn’t find a spot for my sword. When jumping out of the car for my 360, it kept getting snagged on something. And the really cool visor? It wouldn’t fit under my Kevlar helmet.

What a great childhood I had. The dreams I had of a comic book soldier’s life. As a child I thought I wanted to be on a GI JOE team, but now? Now I laugh at the guys with the swords. I look in amazement at the guys that spend hundreds of dollars on a knife. I feel sorry for the guys that go into combat with high speed glasses and no helmet. I scratch my head when I see a man dressed entirely in Black. You know something? I am a lot cooler then Snake Eyes ever was. I may not have a pet wolf named Timber, but I know that its ammo that keeps me alive and knowing is half the battle. Yo Joe.

Life’s Lesson of the Day: Striking back is not Revenge

2005-03-06T22:28:00.000-05:00

More often then I care to think of, people ask me, “Why do you do it?” And it’s not a complicated answer. It needs to be done. Then of course the next question is always, “But why you?” Again, the answer is not complicated. It’s because I can.

There have always been those that talk, and those that do. I remember one year I organized a 20 person introduction to skydiving. I felt for sure at least half would show up. For weeks everyone was talking about it. “Oh, I’ve always wanted to do that” or “This is going to be so awesome.” On the day of the jump, I was the only one that showed up.

On 9/11, I thought I lost my best friend, Detective Steven Fisco. The ache in my heart until I found out he was ok, was tremendous. Sadly though, I lost another friend, Robert Curatolo, and my friend Melissa’s dad, Chief Charles Kasper.

Many people seem to have forgotten the outrage and anger that day. We went from, “It’s time to kick some @$$” to, “Well, let’s wait for the United Nations to come up with a proposal.” I knew that I had to do something. Why? Because I am able to. If I didn’t do something, I would be just like all those people that never showed up at the jump center. A talker.

There are many scriptures in the Bible that warn of revenge. Many proverbs, wise sayings, and Haiku’s. None of them ever say Revenge is a good thing. Revenge comes from hate, anger, and frustration. Ultimately Revenge will lead to our own fall. But striking back is not Revenge. I don’t do what I do for payback. (Ok, you caught me in a fib. Every Ali Babba I send to Allah gets a little,“this one’s for you Rob”). But I do it, to protect the friends I still have with me. Dad always told me, that if you punch a bully in the nose, he won’t pick on you anymore. Well, I have punched a lot of noses, and as far as I know, I have not lost anymore friends to a terrorist. I am never going to go to another friend’s funeral, and say, “I wish there was something I could have done.” I’m doing it. Protecting my country is not Revenge. And just because I really like what I do, doesn’t make it wrong. It’s not my fault I am worse then anything they have over here, they shouldn’t have woken the sleeping giant.

Life Lesson : Dressing your rifle up

2005-03-02T08:49:00.000-05:00

I was talking to a retired Army Col. the other day, and he was telling me that his eyes were not what they used to be. This man always has been and always will be an operator and an inspiration to other operators. One of the things I noticed was that his rifle had no optics on it. I brought this to his attention, and said sir, we could easily attach a reflex sight to your rails and then you just look through the window, and shoot. The Col. looked at me, and with total sincerity in his voice said…..”Where is the skill in that? That’s not marksmanship, that’s a video game.”

I am not a competition shooter. I am not looking for a trophy. I am a mercenary, and my trophy is my life. If at the end of the day I still have mine and my enemy no longer has his, then I win. To an extent, and don’t read too much into the next statement… but Skill is not my concern. Survival is.

I would like to spend a few paragraphs talking about accessories. Nothing we buy comes designed for us as individuals, (see previous life’s lesson) but is a basic package intended for us to improve on, to meet our individual needs. We as Americans are so caught up with image, that we overlook performance. How many people will spend $2000 on chrome rims for their car, but not $200 on a chip for a better fuel mix and more power? If you commute to work 2 or more hours a day, why would you spend $600 on the radio system, and not $400 on a more comfortable seat? Sadly, this lack of insight carries over into our rifle. I have said before, and I cannot emphasize it enough, that your rifle is not an accessory. Your rifle is your life. Its sole purpose is to kill the man trying to kill you. Any advantage you can come up with, you should come up with.

Optics: The first accessory you should attach to your rifle is some kind of optic. Nothing will get you on target faster then a holo-sight, or reflex type sight. I can tell you from first hand experience, that the operators with the highest number of kills all had optics on their rifles. Don’t focus on the numbers. It’s not 1 kill or 10 kills, it’s the person at that moment trying to kill you, and the only way to kill him first it to get your sights on him before he gets his sights on you. If you spent $200 on a shooting mat, and are still using iron sights, you’re an idiot. If you have a Bose wave radio in your house with the surround sound system, but you don’t have a $300 sight and mount system, you’re a fool. Its not about your entertainment, it’s about your life. If you carry a firearm, and it is right out of the box, I don’t want you watching my back. I won’t trust you in a firefight. I will make you ride in the armored vehicle. (that is where we put all the people we don’t trust to shoot) In Jay’s world, there is a difference between an optic and a scope. Unless you are a hunter or a sniper, stay away from scopes. They diminish your field of view and take too long to find your target. Optics will assist you in putting your muzzle on the enemy without loosing area awareness. Find them, shoot them, find the next one.

Grips: Depending on the type of firearm, there are hundreds of choices available. The main thing is to find a custom grip that allows you to maintain better control of your weapon. If you have a smaller then average hand or a larger then average hand, you will need to change up. Since I carry an M-4, I will stick with that as my example, but principles apply to all weapons. There are many grips available to replace that cheap plastic square grip on your AR15/M-4. Most people will spend $50 on a pair of shooting gloves, but not $50 on a custom grip that will allow you to better maintain control of your weapon in a firefight. To maximize your control, you should also have a system in the front of your rifle. A broomstick handle on a weaver rail mounted to the bottom hand guard. I know people that have spent over a $100 on a sling that is useless in a firefight, but won’t spend the $60 for a weaver rail and a fore grip handle. Again, if you went out drinking with your friends and spent $50 on rum and coke, but you don’t have a system in place that allows you to control your field of fire….you deserve to be the first casualty.

Laser systems: Again, all information is from my point of view living in Jay’s world. If you don’t agree, keep it to yourself. I was on a mission one day, going past a building that we have been ambushed from before. I am a right handed shooter, but to cover this zone I had to shoot lefty. From my position in the vehicle, I was not able to effectively get my sights on the target area. I remember thinking, if a guy with an RPG pops his head out of there, how am I going to target him? I remember wishing for a laser. Not every situation requires a laser, and in fact, in most situations a laser is a hazard. It may draw a line right to your position, and tell ali babba’s where you are. Not a good thing. But going through that gauntlet, I was wishing I had one. Better to have it and not need it, then to get killed because your friend told you it was just an expensive cat toy.

Flash Lights: I was out with a Force Recon buddy of mine, and we were inspecting a spider hole we had come across. The entrance was not big enough to go through with the weapon at the ready and holding the light. I went first, covered the room. Took my flashlight out and tried to hold the light and keep my weapon focused on the light. When my second entered the room it was very difficult focusing on our zones because of lack of light, and Night vision. I remember wishing at that time, that I had a light on my weapon. To be fair, the light can blind an enemy just as well as it can alert him to your presence. It can help you determine a friendly from a hostile, but it can also say “I am here, shoot me in the head.” Just because you carry it, doesn’t mean you have to use it. But won’t you be glad when it’s there when you need it?

Clothing: Yes, clothing is an accessory. If you are wearing a sidearm with a bulky jacket and body armor, can you effectively draw your weapon and fire while being fired on? Can you draw your weapon from multiple positions with out your clothing getting in the way? What environment are you in? Are you dressed for it? Have you practiced shooting with those clothes on? What about gloves? Is it cold out? Have you checked to see if the gloves you wear will allow your trigger finger into the trigger guard? If you’re going out into the desert, are the gloves light weight enough that you won’t get too hot and take them off? I mention this as a lead up to a short lesson I learned the hard way. I went to the range one day and I was doing some practical drills. We all decided to shoot with what we wear in combat. Usually we just do shooting drills or go for points. Boys never outgrow competition. So, I put my body armor on and did some pistol drills. My M-4 is my primary weapon, so most of my training is with that. Doing this drill, I realized this, because of the shape of my body armor, I could not get into my normal stance and was shooting horribly. If I had to draw my back up during a fire fight, (besides having a pistol in a rifle fight), I would have been at a severe disadvantage. There is no way I am giving up my body armor for a better pistol stance. So, what do I need to do. I need to spend more time firing with full gear. Dress for the weapon you will be carrying. Practice your drills with those clothes. You’re not dressing for success, you’re dressing for survival.

What accessories you need will be determined by what kind of weapon you use, and what you use it for. If you would like some personal advice, you’re more then welcome to leave a tag, and I don’t mind sharing my ideas. But let’s focus on the life’s lesson of the day. The accessories are not there as a status symbol. You don’t win cool points for having the rifle with the most gear. You win cool points when you come back from an Op alive. Don’t waste your money on entertainment or things. Invest in your life. You’re worth it.

A picture and a reminder

2005-02-22T14:29:00.000-05:00

Jay sent this picture to me today for the site, so here it is folks. Scroll down for today's edition of Life Lesson's and remember that on March 1st we will be changing the addy here to www.thekingsrealm.blogspot.com,, thanks all!

Life Lesson: This is my Rifle

2005-02-22T11:21:00.000-05:00

As a follow up to the last lesson "Honoring your rifle." I would like to talk about what makes it MY Rifle. As the Author of "The Riflemans Creed" starts off......"This is my rifle, there are many like it, but this one is mine". Please click on the link and take a few minutes to get familiar with the creed. Read it at least twice. Riflemans Creed click here

I could talk for hours on this subject and I have many stories and can make many references to its use, but I will try to keep it short and still try to get my point across. I am here to tell you right now... it is not your rifle. Outside of a young Marine right out of boot camp, how many of you know the serial number of your rifle? You will say,, this is my rifle but really, do you even know her name?

A man walks into a local sporting goods store and buys a rifle. He takes it home and tells all his friends...this is my rifle. That rifle is not his. Possession alone does not make it "your rifle". There are 30,000 rifles just like that one, and a receipt does not mean "and this one is mine". So how does one make a rifle "MY rifle"?

I want to focus today on customizing a rifle after you purchase it. All rifles are built on a bell curve. The rifle is manufactured for the the largest number of consumers. those out side of the bell curve, either small females, children, very large males, or those with special needs, and left handed shooters are extreme examples of outside the bell curve consumers. Even those within the bell curve that the rifle is designed for are still very different. Identical twin brothers that buy the same rifle will need to customize the rifle differently if one lives in the mountains of Idaho and the other in the salt flats of Utah.

Before you buy the rifle you should have spent days or weeks to figure out which rifle you wanted. What am I going to be using it for? Which caliber is the best for me? What kind of ammunition is available for my rifle and my needs? There is no right or wrong answer just information. You finally decide on a rifle and for all the right reasons. You like the caliber for what you will be using it for, you like the finish on the barrel, you like the weight of the rifle, you like the action, etc. This is the rifle for you. You buy it, and you say..this is my rifle?

Okay, lets look at it a little differently. You go on the computer and you tell some dating service what you are looking for. You answer a thousand questions and the dating service finds you a match. She is perfect. Her breasts are the right size, her hips, her hair. She is educated, comes from a good family, has a little money, drives the right car, likes the same music(Heck, since were fantasizing, we'll say she has never been with another man). You contact the dating service and tell them she's perfect, and skip everything else, you're just going to meet her in Vegas to get married. Your standing on the alter, all is going well, you said,"I do", and she says,"I do". But when she says,"I do", she sounds like Mickey Mouse on helium. Before you can say anything, the preacher dressed like Elvis says...I now pronounce you man and wife.... You just married a strung out mousekateer.

Just because the rifle fits your basic criteria doesn't mean your done. Now you take the rifle to your local gun smith. He polishes the bore, adjusts the trigger pull, shaves an inch off the stock, cuts an inch off the barrel and puts a crown on it. He changes the factory sites to custom sights and with a moa windage and elevation. Now...its your rifle...or is it?

Not a problem, you take your wife to a throat surgeon and she undergoes a voice box repair. (we're just imagining, please no emails from physicians) after a few days, she has a voice like an angel. and all is well. Until the first time she goes down on you (remember, never with another guy) she uses teeth. She actually tries to blow. She just about inhales the boys, ping and pong, and causes immediate pain. Not a problem, you just have to teach her what you like.

Not a problem. You buy twelve different types of ammunition. You go to the range and you shoot one type of ammo at a time. You use a clean target for each string. You clean the rifle after each type of ammo, and let the rifle cool to get an accurate comparison. after 12 hours on the range and comparing all twelve targets you know what ammo shoots best in your rifle. Even better, you purchase reloading equipment, research your rifles specs and buy different types of bullet's and powders. You spend every Saturday for 4-8 weeks finding a formula that will put one round into the previous rounds hole at 300 yards.

You have taken time to learn your rifle. You have given up your free time to build a relationship and form a bond with this rifle. You have spent large sums of money on this rifle, maybe even more then the rifle cost to begin with. You have learned this rifles parts, its actions, its likes and dislikes. You even know what air temperature the rifle shoots the best in, and you learn to read the wind. You take Yoga classes to improve your breathing and performance while shooting, and you keep a shooting log and practice at the range often. You clean the rifle even when you have not shot it. You keep the parts oiled, and after so many rounds you take it to the gun smith for tuning. When I ask you one day, what is the serial number on your rifle is and you can tell me with out thinking......then this your rifle.

The King's Realm

2005-02-21T09:26:00.000-05:00

This is official notice that the site is going to change in one week. As of March 1st the site is going to move to www.thekingsrealm.blogspot.com and also be known as "The King's Realm" ,, we just wanted to let the dozen or so people that check us out regularly to know about this. So change your blogmarks and favorite links so you don't miss any installments of Life's Lessons!!

Life Lesson : Honoring your rifle.

2005-02-19T00:31:00.000-05:00

After a firefight the other day, one of the operators looked at me and smiled, and said "now you have to clean your rifle" at first I had a frown. I thought of the long hours of disassembly, cleaning, and reassembly. The oil, the carbon, the cleaning patches, the rod and brushes. They all brought an image of tedious scrubbing.

Then I began to feel guilty. This rifle just saved my life. It saved my life because I took care of it. I cleaned it, I dusted it, I tuned it. This rifle saved my life, and I was upset because I had to clean it. How ashamed of myself I am. This Rifle is more then a trinket, more than an accessory. It is not an object of adornment. I dont carry it to look good. I carry it to kill those who would kill me. It can be seen as a tool of war, but in Jay's world it is a tool of peace. In my hands it will spread fear in the hearts of evil men that oppose me, and bring comfort to those that have been tortured and oppressed. My rifle is an instrument of liberation, and freedom. My rifle is the hope of millions of people.

My rifle is to be cherished. My rifle is to be respected. My rifle is to be honored. The caring of my rifle is not a chore. The cleaning of my rifle is not a menial task. The maintenance of my rifle is and always will be an honor.

The next couple of Life's Lessons will be about what my rifle means to me. I am including a link to the Riflemans Creed as a baseline. A rifle is a man's 2nd most valuable posession. (First being his Bible, but that is a different lesson) And because it is the reason for his life and his freedom, a rifles care should never be seen as a task, but as his reason for being.

Click HERE for the Riflemans Creed.

A note to our readers....

2005-02-17T00:49:00.000-05:00

All five of you,, okay there may be more. Just to let you all know,, Jay writes all the installments of Life Lesson's. I simply write the opening and closing lines,, if any. He is in Iraq as we speak, well as this hula gal types and he then emails me the installments. If there is any topic you want to ask about or question him about feel free to email me at Taraparks@gmail.com

For those that have left comments and tagboard messages,, Thank You Much,, both Jay and I appreciate it! Stay tuned for more.

Life Lesson: Remedial Action

2005-02-16T00:30:00.000-05:00

Any Marine might be able to tell you the difference between Immediate action, and Remedial Action, but since some of you may not be Marines, a simple explanation is.....Immediate action is loading, chambering, and firing your weapon. Remedial Action is, in the event of a malfunction, the steps you take to clear the malfunction and get back in the fight.

Immediate action is easy. Like John Wayne said in the Green Berets: "Getting them to jump out of a plane the first time isn't the hard part, it's getting them to jump a second time". That of course is paraphrased, so please, no John Wayne experts correcting me. The concept is the same. Immediate action is easy. The start of the task is not the hard part, it's the completion of the task after a glitch in our plans that is the hard part. In a fire fight it is easy to get men to start shooting, but have a malfunction, and all of a sudden they freeze. Men will stare at a weapon, they will "clickity Clack" it a dozen times, but they wont find cover, lock the bolt to the rear, drop the magazine, finger the magazine well, pull the charging handle three times, insert a fresh source of ammo, chamber a round and get back in the fight.

I had a skydiving accident last year. My fault. Immediate action was easy. after a two way, and some docking drills, I turned, tracked, and pulled around 5,000'. After my canopy opened, I started to go through my immediate action. Pull my toggles, check my canopy. Is it there, is it square, is it flyable? Right around that time, I realize I am spinning. My end cell on the right side was not inflated and it caused a pretty bad spin. I was still at 4,000' and had another few minutes to correct the problem. After several attempts, I decided to get rid of the canopy and pull my reserve. "Getting them to do it a second time is the hard part." It was my first time flying a reserve, and it was my first time flying a 7 cell. (main canopy is a 9 cell) Because it was two cells less it looked smaller. (even though it was 30 sq. ft. bigger) I had a brand new canopy at 3,000 ft. that gave me a long time to learn how to fly this canopy. All I had to do was go through my remedial action. But I didn't. I was so concerned about the malfunction, that I did not pay attention to the here and now. If I did, I would have been able to fly and land the canopy without a problem. I didn't realize that on a 7 cell you have to pull your lines a little further down to turn, and I didnt do a practice flair (practice landing the canopy in the air). So when it came time to land, I landed down wind, on my ass, with no flair. Bystanders said I bounced two feet in the air, most likely traveling at 20 mph. Why did I land on my ass? It was my fault. With all the time in the world, instead of focusing on my needs, I was focusing on the problem. The problem was over, it was time to move on, but with my shortsightedness, I never folowed through. The result? A broken tail bone, and three months of sucking down Aleve like tic tacs. I never did go to the hospital, or get medical attention, so if I pick you up on the Ambulance, and you say your back hurts.........dont expect sympathy.

Remedial Actions are there to help us complete our goals. Does not matter what the task is, there is a Remedial Action for it. After you intubate, you listen for breath sounds. If the tube is not in, you try again. Smaller tube, different laryngescope blade, Crich pressure, etc. If something is causing a problem in your marriage, stop, take step back, assess the situation and advance with logic. Remedial action is a learned skill. anyone can take the first step. It is the professional that can succeed in adversity. In what ever task you undertake, assess the situation, anticipate poor outcomes, and practice the responses to those outcomes. Why wait until the tire is flat to practice changing it? Why wait until you have a malfunction to practice deploying your reserve? Why wait until your marriage is on the rocks to learn her birthday and what kind of flowers she likes?

Immediate Action will get us out of the gate, Remedial Action will get us accross the finish line.

Family Portrait

2005-02-14T17:19:00.000-05:00

This is a King Family photo from their recent trip to Scotland, how proud am I of my friend. Just look at this gorgeous family of his.

Life's Lesson of the Day: Hesitation Kills

2005-02-10T11:22:00.000-05:00

Here's another life lesson from Jay:

Hesitation. I wonder what the dictionary definition of hesitation is? Jay's definition? Hmmm.. the inability to do what needs to be done when it needs to be done. Not to be confused with procrastination. What makes Hesitation different then procrastination in Jay's world? In Jay's world, if you hesitate.....someone dies.

As a paramedic it can be seen all the time...You hesitate on a nasal intubation for some one in Congestive Heart Failure, and before you know it, they are spitting pink frothy lung butter. At that point their chances of surviving are dramatically decreased. Hesitation causes death.

A couple of months ago I lost some friends in a car bomb. turns out later that someone saw the car bomber but instead of shooting him, they just watched to see what he would do. Well, he sped up and rammed our Tahoe and lots of people died. I don't like "what ifs", they are not productive for learning only for placing blame, but I told myself...I don't want to be the person that hesitates. I don't want to let Raven Team 1 down, because I second guessed myself.

Why bring this up. Today I stopped a potential car bomber. Nothing heroic, just cautious. But why did I shoot him....because two other people didn't. The man was told by two operators to stop, and when he didn't the medic stopped him. I shot him, because two other people hesitated. I'm alive, and so is my team.

So what is life's lesson of the day? Don't hesitate. You are where you are because that is where you should be. You are who you are and second guessing your instincts will only lead to disaster. If you are a Paramedic and you think the rhythm needs to be paced...Pace him!!! If you are a cop, and you need to shoot someone...shoot him. If you are a nurse and a doctor gets fresh..slap him. Your actions will save more lives then inaction. If it needs to get done, do it. Weather its your job or not. Your a professional, and you are where you are because your opinion is trusted. If you hesitate, you violate that trust, and someone will die. People die, we cant change that, but if someone is to die, they should die on our terms, not because we were incompetent.

The definition: Hesitation - indecision in speech or action; a certain degree of unwillingness; the act of pausing uncertainly.

A quick "Thank You" to Pete from Staten Island

2005-02-10T11:12:00.000-05:00

I have a habit of checking the Site counter at least once a day and check to see who has been reading my blogs. The other day I noticed that someone from the Staten Island Advance had a referral link to Erasmus and a King. I quickly checked to see what it was about. Since Jay and I grew up in Staten Island and I had mentioned it here at the site, a staff member from the newspaper there, somehow came across this blog and mentioned it at the paper's website. Thought that was very interesting. Especially since this blog is so new. So thanks go out to Pete at the Staten Island Advance,, you can visit his page at the Staten Island Advance by clicking here. He talks about Island news that you can find through Blogs. Okay back to our regularly scheduled Jay and Ernest talk.

Life Lesson of the day...

2005-02-05T00:44:00.000-05:00

This is an idea that Jay has come up with, a regular theme here at Erasmus and a King,,, Life Lessons. This is straight from Jay's email:

During an ambush, one of our operators was caught in an explosion. he had second and third degree burns around the face and neck. He was awake and talking. A & O X 4. Focus was on the airway, burn dressings applied. there was some weakness on the left side, and he had a small cut on his right forehead. After the firefight and triage I transported him to the Combat Support Hospital, where after initial assessment he became unconscious. CT showed shrapnel in the brain with gross blood. Remember......any break in the skin is a penetrating trauma until it is ruled out. At least in my environment, but not a bad rule of thumb in any EMS field. Just like unwitnessed unresponsive patients are trauma until ruled out.

Life lessons,, the things that we learn from,, the things that we remember and clearly call upon to make different choices in the future.

Back in Baghdad

2005-02-04T16:49:00.000-05:00

In today's news, well yesterdays actually but I worked a double shift so I couldn't get online to update here. BUT, Jay is back in Baghdad fresh off of a London vacation with his wife and kiddies. It took a few days longer than originally thought to return to Baghdad due to flight restrictions and such after Election Day in Iraq. But now he returns to Badhdad and the two friends now have an assignment to continue to tell me how they are doing and send me pictures to share with you all. Below is a picture of Jays "Iraq formal wear", all suited up and ready for another day on the job driving through Baghdad's Red Zone. Jay has also sent me a link to his skydiving website (well not "his" but the place where he skydives). Ernest told me that he really likes Yamaha Motorcycles especially the YZF R1, I created a link in the sidebar along with with Jay's for you all to check out. By the way my Blog link is there as well, visit me at Pineapple's Post. Mentioning motorcycles reminds me of my dad. He road a motorcycle. It was a Kawasaki touring bike,, with side bags and I loved to go for rides with him. That was back in the 80's before he became ill.

King's side of the story

2005-02-03T00:30:00.000-05:00

What I know about Jay. I know he is going to be 35 years old in February,, 24th if I am remembering correctly. I have known him since we were 15 wait,,16,, no 15. We met in high school, Curtis High School in Staten Island, New York. We also lived in the same neighborhood, Rosebank, Staten Island. He was Captain of the swim team senior year, he has 5 tattoos, one wife (like ya get to have more than one), 4 kids(2 boys 10yr old and 6yr old and 2 girls 8yr old and 3yr old). He is a Star Wars and Lord of the Rings fan, oh wait, Harry Potter, too, he took his family to London on a Harry Potter adventure,, lucky kiddies! I tend to think he is a brave person, he explains it as fear,, hmm, two sides of a coin I guess. I take full credit for his hair, maybe if he let's me, I'll tell you all why I think that sometime. He loves to skydive about 18 jumps I think and I can remember the first time he was going,, I was too chicken to even go and watch him but I regret not going now that I look back. He also enjoys rock climbing and loves to chat with me about 80's music and movies,, yeah for me! He was a Marine, he has lived in Hawaii, California, North Carolina and Virginia. There may be more, he's a wanderer, my adventurous friend. The family is back in Virginia while he is working in Iraq. He and Ernest work as Combat Medic's in Baghdad right now. But both are Paramedics back in their respective homelands. Can't think if what else to write about my fabulous friend right now,, but since this is going to be about him and Ernest I have forever to fill in the blanks.

Ernest,, a new friend for me

2005-01-26T01:38:00.000-05:00

So just what do I know about this new friend of mine. He is from South Africa,, has an accent,, I love accents! He is 39 years old and single. He is a South African Paratrooper and has over 1,000 jumps. I can't imagine even doing one so I give him a ton of credit for over a 1,000. He is humble and has thanked me a dozen times for chatting and sharing time with him online. He lives near the sea in South Africa and enjoys diving. He keeps in shape with exercising, tennis and also likes to rock/mountain climb. Hmm, he and Jay have a lot of interests in common, good thing they are partners they have lots to talk about. What does he do for a living?? He is a paramedic like Jay,, were these two separated at birth, no I know they're not, they are not the same age, just being silly. He described himself as liking adventure and new situations in life and meeting people. He likes all kinds of music, variety is always good, he enjoys reading when he has the time for it and is a spiritual fellow. One of the last emails he sent me today stated that he likes to spoil a gal when he gets the chance,, hmm, now I have the challenge of finding a single lady for him that isn't already spoiled and will not take advantage of my new friend. No spoiled brats allowed to email me about my friend! A guy always needs someone willing to spoil him as well,, it's a two way street folks.