Arkansas National Guard in Iraq

Garry Shipton (RIP) · #1 10-03-05, 05:32

Just watched a documentary of the above engineering unit from their call-up at home to deployment in Iraq on CBC Network..Guys like turkey farmers,and other rural weekend wonders.Boy!Talk about sending lambs to the slaughter.Their trucks were Vietnam era,breaking down on their way from Kuwait to Baghdad.In the end after their year deployment,33 of their number died.AS a sidenote,from monitoring Vermont TV News rural Vermont towns have voted unanimously,to have thier Natioal Guard units returned.Vermont apparently has the largest per capita losses,based on state populations in the Guard.As Peter,Paul and Mary sang,"When will they ever learn?"

Snowtractor · #2 10-03-05, 05:50

I saw the show too and to be fair it stuck with a couple of yokel's in a whole division. Also I only saw one truck break down , saw all kinds of Hummers and modern infantry kit and M16's with grenade launchers. They did not get their up armour kit for their hummers though and adhoc'd in field armour. They slept in the same trailers we used at the diamond mines, ATCO's.
Also, they either wanted the paycheques , or to play with the big toys or to help their country fight the enemies of their government. I wanted to feel for them but they did chose it. Interesting that the reporters managed not to find one positive thing to say about the deployment the entire year.
Also, it is amazing all the bombs, already discovered, weren't already blown up and the tanks and weapons secured by this time, crazy. Like the one chap said poignently " we're just killing ourselves ".
Just my thoughts on it
Sean

Geoff Winnington-Ball (RIP) · #3 10-03-05, 05:52

I saw that too, Garry... it was moving to me because I know - personally - at least a half dozen guys like this over there now. One just got back after a year there, unscathed thank god.