I went to Iraq in 2004 because I believe in doing my duty, not because I agreed with the war.
I thought we never should have gone into Iraq in the first place. I wanted to go after Al-Qaeda and hunt down Osama Bin Laden for attacking our country. We should have completed the fight in Afghanistan instead of starting a new war in Iraq.
Military service is a tradition in our family. My dad served in multiple wars, ending his career in Vietnam. My ancestors have worn the uniform of our military during every period of conflict since the Revolution. I was so proud when I was commissioned into the Army. Everyday of my life since, like so many of our brave military men and women, I live the Warrior Ethos: to always put the mission first, never quit, never accept defeat and never leave a fallen comrade behind.
Eight months and 11 days into my tour in Iraq, a rocket-propelled grenade hit the Blackhawk helicopter I was piloting over Baghdad. It exploded in my lap, vaporizing one leg, crushing the other and ripping apart my right arm. My crew thought I was dead but they did not give up on me.
You wouldn't be reading this if not for the brave men in my crew. As dedicated as I was to the mission, they were just as dedicated to making sure I made it out alive, even if it meant risking their own lives.
As I recovered at Walter Reed, I worried about the soldiers who pulled me out of my helicopter that Friday afternoon. Would they make it back okay? And what about all the other soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines and Coast Guardsmen who were also putting their lives on the line every day?
From my hospital bed, I saw more and more of them join me -- many of them amputees like me, wounded by roadside bombs or left vulnerable by insufficient armor. Others suffered from Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBI), a signature wound of the war.
Far too many didn't even make it to a hospital. Those of us who made it back home were welcomed by an administration that hung a banner proclaiming "Mission Accomplished," but neglected its responsibility to help us fully recover from the very human costs of that mission.
That's why I refocused my dedication to service on something I believe in deeply: making sure that Iraq and Afghanistan Vets like me can come home to a country that gives us the care and respect we deserve. In my home state of Illinois, I stepped up to increase Veterans' coverage for screenings and treatment for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and TBI -- the invisible scars often borne by combat Veterans like me.
And when President Obama asked me to serve in his Department of Veterans Affairs, I knew that this Commander-in-Chief -- the one who knew that the Iraq war was wrong from the start -- shared my dedication to the right mission: not just honoring with words, but really taking care of those of us who served. In his first year, he increased veterans' benefits by the largest amount in 30 years, and by nominating Secretary Shinseki to head the VA, showed that he truly understands the cost of war and is committed to serving our veterans.
Now, the final U.S. troops are leaving Iraq. We absolutely must support them as they enter veteran status. It's more than just a slogan; we need to work to make it happen.
That's why I'm proud that the country and president I serve are dedicated to keeping the commitments they make. President Obama kept his word to the American people by bringing the Iraq war to a responsible end, just as he's keeping his commitment to veterans by helping us find jobs when they come home.
The President has supported us through both words and deeds. He created tax credits for businesses that hire unemployed and disabled Veterans, and he reformed how government works with vets so we can more easily transition into private-sector jobs. He worked with bipartisan support in Congress to make it easier for vets to afford college with the Post-9/11 G.I. Bill, and he made sure our medical care will always be funded a year in advance.
I know what's hard. I gave eight months of my life and both my legs to a war I never wanted, and I'd do it all again in a heartbeat because I am proud to serve our country. When I think about what it takes to support our veterans and honor their sacrifices, nothing seems easier.
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Stephanie Schriock: Women and the Road Home From Iraq
Robert Creamer: The Iraq War Is Over... Lesson for Progressives: Yes We Can.
War in Iraq - Special Reports from CNN.com
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A TIMELINE OF THE IRAQ WAR | ThinkProgress
Iraq War Facts, Statistics at November 30, 2011 - Iraq War ...
As a retired AF officer I, as well as every other service person, take an oath to serve and obey orders of the president as the Commander in Chief of the military. We are trained to question lawful orders from our superiors when they cross the line to the criminal. Questioning and or protesting the president or congressional decision to go to war would be more effective from the citizens who voted them in office. The Iraq war was sold to the American people as just war. Where were the people who disagreed with the war. Where was the outcry.
Commissioned officers on the other hand are credibly promoted IF they fit in the conventional accepted military ethos and prevailing political views. Nobody in or out of military service should be the least bit surprised by those facts and trends.
It's widely acknowledged that the American people's reactions to the Vietnam War were largely influenced by the daily carnage shown on TV screens during the 1960's. So, today media coverage shows none of those realities, only videogame images of "shock and awe" and "hooplas" to go with troops reacting to make-believe videogames of killing and mayhem.
I think I've told you once before to relinquish this poor, tired line.
Yes, vets need support. And thousand need help for the wounds they've suffered. And the overwhelming number of them, did their best to perform noblely in terrible circumstances. But don't tell us that you'd go there again. Every single reason given officially for starting this war has proven to be false. Our country has killed more one million Iraqis for our lies.
Yes a million is a much higher numbe than the official total. But some years ago, the British medical journal Lancet counted morfe than 600,00 deaths. When the US government disputed this number, scientists fromn all over the world leaped to Lancet's defense and called 'intensive sampling' the most accurate count any9one could make. So, lying about the cost in Iraqi lives is a disgrace. And destroying this country for a batch of lies is shameful. As is losing the war.
Washington government is doing a crude cruel shellgame end-run around the American people. The militarized occupation of Iraq shifts into a role under diplomatic cover with diplomatic immunity (not SOFA legal immunity covering US soldiers).
Troops returning home will be confronted with unemployment, budgetary cutbacks, cutback in health services, and multi-dimensional cutbacks on veteran services and wholesale reneging on politicized promises given out in empty speeches. Will veteran health and rehabilitation services needed for the next 50years be honored and maintained? How long would it take for the promises to be broken in silence? If the sad statistics of rampant homelessness among Vietnam vets in all major American cities are any indication, that wouldn't take long.
There are credible historical precedents of veterans participating in changing history. Returning WW1 veterans were abused with broken promises. They marched on Washington to claim promised educational bonuses, but were shot at by troops under MacArthur's command. In Russian Revolution of 1917, instead of continuing to accept being callously and wastefully exploited by their Tsar to be used as cannon fodder against the Germans, many Russian soldiers and veterans turned on their Tsar, and joined the Revolution. That history is only 100years ago.
America called and you went shopping.
President Bush told Americans with a straight face that the proper response to 911 for Americans was to go out shopping as usual. He had no rational concept of national emergency.
While American soldiers stuck in Iraqi cities were trustful of their Commander-In-Chief and leaders in Washington to look out for their wellbeing, Vice-President Cheney (ex-CEO of Halliburton) and Defense Secretary Rumsfeld were outsourcing the health and wellbeing of over 100,000 troops to Halliburton in outrageously lucrative (multibillion dollars) no-bid contracts to provide all services, including lifesaving (or life-threatening, depending on one's perspective and value system) daily water consumption.
Here, don't take anybody's words for granted, watch in this video testimony of a supply officer (holding back his tears of outrage) regarding the unsafe water for troops provided by Halliburton:--
"New American Century":
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Fk6qkHs0oM (video @ 1:16:00 to 1:17:15)
If you're not affected by this after watching this video, then you're part of the problem.