JB2D out of a job!?!

Ever since I've gotten back from Iraq, I've had a zero tolerance for bullsh!t.

This does sit well with my current employer.

I might be looking for a new source of income in the not too distant future.

So if anyone has a lead for a Master Control Operator who has been to Baghdad, want to drop me a line?

Thanks.

JB2D out.

Memorial Day 2007

Today I remember SGT Bryan "B-Free" Freeman. Killed in Sadr City on 8 November 2004 by a Chechen sniper. He was squared away. Now he's sitting on/in Cloud Nine watching us as we get ready for another go round in Iraq.
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U.S. Army Special Operations Command Public Affairs Office FORT BRAGG, N.C. (USASOC News Service, Nov. 9, 2004)

— An Army Reserve civil affairs Soldier died Nov. 8 in Baghdad, Iraq, from wounds sustained earlier that day when he came under small arms fire while conducting a vehicle search.

SPC Bryan L. Freeman, 31, of Lumberton, N.J., was a civil affairs specialist assigned to the 443rd Civil Affairs Battalion, an Army Reserve special operations unit based in Warwick, R.I.

The 443rd CA Bn mobilized in August 2004 and deployed to Iraq in September 2004 to support Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Civil affairs units support military operations in combat and during peacetime by serving as a bridge between the civilian populace and the military commander. Civil affairs Soldiers help to reduce civilian interference with military operations, restore public safety and order and return societies to normal function.

Freeman entered the Army in 1993 and served as a cannon crew member with Battery E, 7th Field Artillery, Fort Drum, N.Y. He left active duty in 1997 and joined the New Jersey Army National Guard and served with Battery D, 112th Field Artillery, Cherry Hill, N.J.He joined the 404th Civil Affairs Battalion, Fort Dix, N.J., in 2003 and trained to be a civil affairs specialist. He was transferred to the 443rd CA Bn. prior to the unit’s deployment.

His military training includes the Survival, Escape, Resistance and Evasion Course, Air Assault Course, Combat Lifesaver Course and Nuclear, Biological and Chemical Protection Course.

His awards and decorations include the Purple Heart, Good Conduct Medal, Army Commendation Medal, Army Achievement Medal, Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, National Defense Service Medal and Army Service Ribbon.

In his civilian life, he worked as a clinical case manager with Family Service of Burlington County in New Jersey.He graduated from Rowan University in Glassboro, N.J., in 2001 with a degree in law enforcement. He graduated from Rancocas Valley Regional High School in Mount Holly, N.J., in 1991.He is survived by his mother, Darlene Freeman; his father, Bryan Freeman; and his fiancee, Jackie De Carlo.
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Not a day goes by that I don't think of him. We miss you B-Free.

JB2D out.

A thought on the troop funding / withdrawl bill.

Nobody asked me.

I'm the one who will leave my wife and two children a second time. I'm the one you all claim to be supporting, but you are going out of your way to stop me from doing my job.

Nobody asked ME if I want to leave.

Because I don't.

In fact, I'd like to go back to Baghdad as soon as possible. And for as loong as it takes.

But you will never know that, because they won't ask me. They don't want you to know that we (soldiers) are not only the best at what we do, but we believe in what we're doing. We want to be there.

Believing in us means you also believe in our mission. You cannot have one without the other. It is the nature of the military.

There is no light without dark.

Without war there would be no warriors to stand up and keep you safe when the threat arises.

You all claim to believe in us and support us and all that jibber jabber. But the bottom line is your actions are speaking louder than your weak words.

Don't bring me home yet, I'm not done. I've looked into the eyes of countless Iraqi children. I've talked with them and spent countless hours out in the blistering sun trying to give them the quality of life that they deserve.

There is more to this amazing world beyond our own borders. And we owe it to our children and their children to do everything in our power to make tomorrow the best it possibly can be.

Please, don't bring me home just yet, I'm working over here. So you and your children won't have to.

So please, be patient. Let's do this once, the right way.

Thank you.

JB2D out.

Another Baghdad memory, courtesy of AirBorneParaInf82

I stumbled across Eighty Deuce On The Loose In Iraq through another post he had put up on The Sandbox. I clicked onto his blog page and began reading some amazing posts.

This guy is good. I hope to see a book, e-book or paper book, sometime in the future. Very powerful stuff.

Anywho... it was his post about "the right wrong decision". It brought back another memory from my first deployment to the "Bagh".

It was our first month in country. Our first solo week since the "left-seat-right-seat ride" with the team we replaced. We stopped at Camp Cuervo (AKA Rustimiyah) in Baghdad. They had a kick ass DFAC. The line was ridiculous. We waited for probably over 30 minutes. No sooner do we get to the head of the line and grab out trays, than a barrage of mortars begins to rain down on the FOB.

Keep in mind that a month before, this very DFAC was leveled by a rocket attack and there were a lot of casualties. People were understandably skittish.

So the mortars begin walking around the base and all the contracted food workers split for the shelters.

This positively pisses me right off. I've been busting my ass in Jisr Diyala and Jifr Najaf all morning. Little fucking kids begging me for candy, pencils, water, chocolate, food, trying to snatch shit off my armor, and then pelting me with rocks when we leave despite the fact I give them anything I can spare. Changing not one, but TWO flat tires in the mud (run flats my ASS!) after having to take off ALL my armor to get under the trucks to place the jacks with my team forming a tight perimeter around me to provide security against any snipers looking for a target of opportunity. Covered in shit-mud having to play SAW gunner for two more hours after that. I LOVE BEING A SPECIALIST!

And all I wanted was a fucking cheese burger and a Pepsi. Just one Pepsi. And Ahmed and Mustafa were pissing themselves over some mortars that would just as easily level their little"bomb shelter".

So my buddy "Cooter" (name withheld due to OPSEC) and I set our trays down and walk behind the counter. We served the remaining soldiers their lunch until a bitchy E6 female type comes running from the kitchen screaming some shit about how I can't serve food because I'm not wearing any headgear to keep hair out of the food.

One problem: I HAD SHAVED MY HEAD FUCKING BALD! AS IN NO HAIR!

So like any good E4 worthy of the "Sham Shield", I tell her this is bullshit, decide I deserve a double portion of spaghetti (I worked up quite the appetite serving up all that food) and TWO Pepsi's.

I could hear my team leader CPT "JawBreaker" (OPSEC) roll his eyes.

That was my first experience in the food service industry. I made sure to put it on my resume (sarcasm).

But you know what they say, a bitching soldier is a happy soldier. And I was happier than a pig (or specialist) in shit.

So, be sure to stop by and check out Eighty Deuce On The Loose In Iraq. It's good shit.

JB2D out.

I'm BACK!

It's official, I'm a home owner! I've bought a 2300 sq foot home in Waupaca County, WI and I love it! It's about 110 years old, but it's solid.

Then I bought a puppy. Black lab/golden retriever mix. Cute as hell. Dr. Rocko is his name. I'll post pictures soon.

And there is a LOT of stuff that has pissed me off to no end and there WILL be rants coming soon.

I'd like to thank all the people that dropped me a comment about my short break in blogging. I'm grateful and thankful for your concern and support. You guys kick ass!

I've also found out from my co-worker "Victor Scott" (The co-writer of Road Trip to Oblivion) that an FM radio station in NYC has picked up their show, so many good things are just over the horizon. Keep listening to the Road Trip.

JB2D out.