My Alibi

lets see if i can give you a run for your money here...

new news from afghanistan...

photo: zachary cleland

Blogger and 1SG in NY National Guard, Bouhammer, posted a podcast this morning on his blog, with journalist, Scott Kesterson.

If you are interested in a different, and some would argue better perspective of Afghanistan, I highly suggest listening to it.

if it isnt making dollars, it isnt making sense...

afghanistan, taliban, pakistan, etc...

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/video/2009/mar/27/obama-afghanistan-military

This video is a recent piece by the Guardian, featuring the major deficits found in the Afghan National Army.

New Yorker article, Policing Afghanistan, written last year, illustrating dynamic and lack thereof in the Afghan National Police force.

Tonight on PBS Frontline World, there was a segment called, Pakistan: Children of the Taliban. I feel like I do my best every day to try to gain an understanding what is going on with the Taliban and how they are working, and this really shined a light on the indoctrination that is saturated on children and their families. Whether it is to put fear into people or to recruit and why people choose the Taliban life.

I just bought a copy of Ahmed Rashid's latest book, Decent into Chaos, The United States and the Failure of Nation Building in Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Central Asia. I'm not that far into, but his books almost read like history text books. It breaks down many of the mistakes that have been made, and what is on the horizon.

Several Sidenotes and a reminder, mainly to myself. Tomorrow the Engaged Citizenship Common Experience Speaker Series at UIS is presenting a lecture called "Prisoners of Conscience in the Modern Era" on April 16 at 7 p.m. in Brookens Auditorium. I am planning on going, not that it has anything to do with Afghanistan. I guess it's an opportunity to be around critical thinkers and learn.

Also, is it just me, or is anyone else still pretty disappointed with the lack of coverage of Afghanistan?

Afghanistan Milblogs I read:
http://www.bouhammer.com/
http://afghanistanshrugged.com/
http://billandbobsadventure.blogspot.com/

telephones to talk to strangers, machines guns, and a camera lens....

prints of my work are available, starting at $40. please email at alliecarnes at gmail dot com for inquiries.

the role of the seabees in world war II...

(i wrote this paper in 7th grade, i was about 11 years old.)

Preface

This is a brief accounting of the role of the Seabees in World War II.

First of all let me begin my report that Seabees is a colloquialism for C.B. which is an acronym for Construction Battalion. Specifically, I will be discussing the 135th United States Naval Construction Battalion, which was organized at Camp Peary, Williamsburg, Virginia, in August of 1943.

The War

On December 7, 1941, the Japanese provoked the United States to enter war by bombing Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. The next day the United States declared war on Japan! On December 11, 1941, Germany and Italy, declared war on the United States. The war in Europe was merged with the Pacific War, thus creating a global conflict. President Franklin Roosevelt told Congress, December 7 was a date which will live in infamy,
The United States began manufacturing planes (296,000), tanks (87,000), trucks (2,400,000), rifles and artillery sheets (millions), and ships (28,000,000 tons).
The United States fought the war on all fronts: Europe, North Africa, and the South Pacific. The U.S. Government realized it would be necessary to take over several strategic islands in the South Pacific in order to defeat Japan.
As the U.S. systematically began securing various islands, the Seabees moved onto those islands and constructed facilities for the war effort. In addition to being trained builders, the men of the 135th Construction Battalion were trained in combat techniques.

Training

First Stop: Camp Peary, Virginia. Here, 1,100 men began four long weeks of their Seabee boot camp. It is said that the first day of boot camp is permanently etched into each man's brain, never to be forgotten. In addition to basic training, each man his shaved, was shouted at, issued 100 pieces of clothing and equipment, and had his picture taken for an identification card. Perhaps the best word to describe that first day is "grueling."
Next Stop: Camp Endicott, Rhode Island. Here the men learned combat techniques and self-sufficiency. After a few days of practice shooting with Marine instructors, the 135th shot a Battalion score that has been surpassed by few, if any!
Next Stop: Camp Hollyday, Gulfport, Mississippi. Here the men spend four months, beginning December 1943, learning construction trades and more military training. One good thing about Mississippi was warm weather. The Seabees built a railroad and docks on Horn Island. Horn Island was a secret experimental Army Base. The men also learned how to dismantle a barge, lay out mine fields, build buildings and repair machines.
By April of 1944, after 6 months of training the men were anxious for some real action. They wanted to move on.
Last Stop: Camp Rousseau, California. More combat training follow in Camp Rousseau. The men were issued their own artillery, including carbines, Browning automatics or Thompson machine-guns. On May 17, 1944 the boarded the S.S. Meteor and sailed out into the boundless Blue Pacific. That first night on the ship, thoughts were of home and war.

The Mission

Moanalva Ridge, Hawaii. The Battalion quickly built barracks. Then they started building facilities vital to the base that would be the springboard of the U.S. Pacific offensive. The men of the Seabees then began more military training, which would be essential as they moved farther into the Pacific Ocean. As soon as the Seabees completed their mission in Hawaii, they were ordered to an undisclosed area only known as "Island X." The 135th was prepared tot ake its place at bat in the World Serious between the United States and Japan.
Next Stop: Tinian, in the Marianas Islands. The natives of Tinian, known as the Chamorro, had previously been removed by the Japanese. On July 24, 1944, the U.S. Marines landed on TInian, and they took the Island. On August 2, 1944, after 5,00 Japanese were killed, the American Flag went up. The 135th soon landed on Tinian. They called their temporary quarters "96th and Broadway." The 135th immediately began construction of an airstrip. During the next few months they participated in constructing every Army and Navy facility on the Island.
Because of the Seabees, Tinian was established as one of the greatest military airdromes in the world. Also, while on the island, the Seabees captured 10 Japanese. The Seabees used tractors, dump trucks, earth moving equipment, bulldozers, and dynamite to clear the land for the bases and airfields. It is interesting to note that the Enola Gay, the plane that dropped the bomb that would later end the war, took off from Tinian.
Next Stop: Okinawa, 325 miles from Japan. One June 27, 1945, the 135th landed on Okinawa. They immediately began building administrative and housing facilities for the Naval Operating Base. Howver, it seemed no sooner had construction began, when news came of the Japanese surrender. Officers and men soon started to go home.
On December 7, 1945, four years after Pearl Harbor was bombed, and 26 months after its formation, the 135th Naval Construction Battalion ceased to exist as an active organization.
Mission accomplished!!! The enemy was unconditionally defeated an the way of peace was ours once more.

fortitudo et artis...

After reading the cover story, Support The Troops, in the Illinois Times, that came out yesterday, I feel even more disappointed in the Army system. I want people to know there are more than just National Guard and Reserve families in your neighborhood.

I moved back to Springfield, during the deployment. I thought I would find support, and foolishly, an easier time. I was wrong. It's probably my fault. But I'm still letdown. I am a relocated spouse. One that left the Duty Station during the deployment, often to go "home." I got here, and I'm not sure if I had changed, or the people that were her,e the time I was gone, but I didn't fit. Not anymore. It felt like I was all alone. And it still does. Lately, I have been asking and reminding myself why I left New York.

The winter in New York is horrendous. I drive a front-wheel drive, 1991 Honda Accord. The were so many days, it was just impossible to drive my car out of the driveway, let alone around the city. And I couldn't find a job. Watertown was once a very industrial city. They had hydro-plants along the Black River, and lots of factories. I'm not sure when it happened, but the factories closed. Half of the city is subsidized housing, if the dwelling aren't boarded up. Everything, not just gasoline was expensive. I thought if I came back to Springfield, I would find a decent job, find an apartment, and keep waiting, for Zach to come home.

I got here, and almost immediately, an injury I had received a year prior, began to really bother me. I went to the doctor, and thought everything would be great. No, there is only one Physician's Group on my insurance network, and I was having a difficult time getting that information. So, I went to the doctor, and ended up paying for everything out of my pocket, and getting no resolution for my medical problem. It wouldn't matter much anyone, because I am away from our "Duty Station," and have a 40% co-pay.

Presently, I am working one part-time job, extremely part-time. I work at a bar every Friday and Saturday night. Business is slow, with so many people questioning the stability of their finances. I am questioning mine. I made twenty-one dollars last Saturday. Hand to mouth. It's depressing. Not the job, not the people, not me. Just that things are this way. I sleep in a backroom at my mom's, because I have no where else to go. Dreading the tires on my car are falling apart.

I'm in the FRG, Family Readiness Group, but because they are in New York, and I am in Illinois, there is no connection. I tried to care at the beginning of the deployment, but we had leadership issues, and after several people, including the Support Assistant, crossed lines that should have not been crossed, I ceased an attempt at active participation. There are new leaders and they do their job, but again, I am not there. Monday, they are having a teleconference with The Colonel. I would love to participate. The FRG just doesn't really recognize you as family if you don't have kids and are not in New York.

Don't feel bad. I don't want anything. I just don't want anyone else feeling like this.
Maybe one thing, if you get a chance and are feeling generous, please consider donating to one of the following organizations:

*Operation Homefront
Operation Homelink
*Fisher House
*USO
Soldiers' Angels
Yellow Ribbon Fund

spartans lead the way...

Zach is a part of Task Force Spartan. His FOB is not shown in the pilot video, but it's still pretty neat getting to see some of the daily happenings in an AO.

cant keep up with what i got...

that is what 31 looks like?

by the way, vegan, sounds like vee-gan.

i cant get motivated. help.

i will never accept defeat...

relativity.