MetaFilter posts tagged with soldiers

43,000 Words Worth

gallois — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 16:16:10 -0800

43 photographs of Afghanistan provide a striking sense of personal identity to a conflict that is often remote and abstract.

Team Lioness - Female Soldiers in Combat in Iraq

nooneyouknow — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 11:49:13 -0800

Team Lioness is the name given to a group of female soliders, (and the documentary about them) who were some of the first women in modern American warfare to engage in frontline combat — something that is officially forbidden by the military. "The female support soliders were assigned to the 1st Engineer Battalion and they were recruited to accompany Marine units during raids. Originally, the female soldiers were there to search and detain any women they came upon and to guard the unit's Arabic interpreter. Over time, however, as the situation in Ramadi deteriorated, the Marine units transitioned into a more offensive role, baiting insurgents into firefights in order to draw them out. Until officers higher up the chain got spooked over the possibility of a female soldier killed in combat and quietly disbanded the unit, members of Team Lioness were often right in the thick of things, including some of the fiercest urban firefights of the Iraq War."

The Downward Spiral

empath — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 22:36:16 -0800

What killed Sgt. Gray? "He survived the war only to die at home. An exploration of his death and his combat unit's activities reveals what can happen to soldiers who feel the freedom -- or the pressure -- to do things in war they can't live with later." -- An American Radioworks documentary.

Soldiers at War

puckish — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 15:15:47 -0800

Suzanne Opton's haunting soldier portraits, appearing on a billboard near you. (courtesy of Design Observer) Some interesting comments: As a Marine, I find these really disturbing. If you want to support me... send a letter, send a care package, send a book... for God\'s sake... My wife told me to look at this website, and I am honestly horrified. Is this the representation that Americans have of the troops defending them? I too, am a spouse of a soldier; I understand the intent behind these, but showing them on the ground, to me, is too much for public viewing. I would prefer to view these at an art museum so that we may have the choice to show our children these depictions.

US out of Iraq in the year 2525, er 2011

filthy light thief — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 17:12:04 -0800

It's (semi) official: Washington and Baghdad have reached a final agreement after months of talks on a pact that would require U.S. forces to withdraw from Iraq by 2011, U.S. and Iraqi officials said on Wednesday. Additionally, "Iraq said it had secured the right to prosecute U.S. soldiers for serious crimes under certain circumstances" "Inside their bases, they will be under American law. Iraqi judicial law will be implemented in case these forces commit a serious and deliberate felony outside their military bases and when off duty." But it's not officially done, with State Department spokesman Sean McCormack quoted saying: "Nothing is done until everything is done. Everything isn't done. The Iraqis are still talking among themselves. We are still talking to the Iraqis." An unnamed senior U.S. official said both sides agreed to the December 31, 2011 date for US troops to be out of Iraq, "unless Iraq asks them to stay longer." The same story is being carried around, but USA today had a bit of info from AP on the previous draft.

Dog Days of Occupation of Iraq

Surfurrus — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 08:06:05 -0800

Endgame in Iraq - 9/11 release of Sean Smith's latest video. This one, finished this summer, is of candid interviews with soldiers in the 101st Airborne in Baghdad. Painful to watch. "I believe it's time to go home ... I'm done fighting ... tired of it."

Feuding movie directors: Movie-goers WIN?

spock — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 16:38:38 -0800

Sometimes a simple Amazon reader's review leads you to a fascinating story (or stories) of which you may have been previously unaware. In this case, the story of (the so-called) Buffalo Soldiers that liberated Tuscany in WWII. The novel Miracle at St. Anna also captivated director Spike Lee, who is bringing it to the Big Screen (Higher quality at apple.com). This may be considered his latest shot in the "feud" with director Clint Eastwood, who offended many by overlooking the contributions of black soldiers in his two recent WWII films.

Commode Communiqué

amyms — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 21:48:41 -0800

... I served my time I can speak on it. Fuck this War. American soldiers' latrine graffiti in Kuwait and Afghanistan. A photo essay. [Note: most text and one drawing NSFW]

Winter Soldier

homunculus — Thu, 13 Mar 2008 10:15:30 -0800

Winter Soldier: Iraq & Afghanistan. "Like Vietnam vets did decades ago, a group of soldiers are poised to speak out about atrocities they say the U.S. committed in Iraq and Afghanistan."

Blog from Iraq by an ex soldier

semmi — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 14:30:28 -0800

Frontline Blogger covers war in Iraq with a soldier's eyes. First hand impressions, photos, and reports from a non journalist. A NYT write up.

The War Will Be Televised

Sully — Sat, 17 Nov 2007 21:49:47 -0800

Like a YouTube for soldiers in the Middle East, this site boasts lots of large explosions, night vision footage, dawn raids, night-time firefights, desert shootouts, and convoy ambushes. There is one film of a failed IED that is breathtaking. Astonishing movies, whether you're for or against the war. Some of the films made me think of some First Person Shooters I've played, namely the latest Call of Duty, which in all likelihood took inspiration from these films, the way a game like Kane & Lynch took inspiration from Michael Mann's Heat.

An update on the 'Marlboro Marine'

salvia — Mon, 12 Nov 2007 00:18:02 -0800

Photo-Essay on the Marlboro Marine and PTSD. An update on this story: 1, 2.

Child Soldiers in Burma

homunculus — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 22:15:28 -0800

Sold to Be Soldiers: The Recruitment and Use of Child Soldiers in Burma. “I can’t remember how old I was the first time in fighting. About 13. That time we walked into a Karenni ambush, and four of our soldiers died. I was afraid because I was very young so I tried to run back, but [the] captain shouted, ‘Don’t run back! If you run back I’ll shoot you myself!’” —Aung Zaw, describing his first exposure to combat

"And I am even supposed to love our enemies.”

amberglow — Thu, 18 Oct 2007 16:20:41 -0800

"Killing others is not loving them.” --meet US Army Captain Peter D. Brown, just granted Conscientious Objector status due to his religious beliefs and honorably discharged after first being denied and taking them to court---only 224 applicants were approved for it during 02-06, out of 2.3 million serving. ... While deployed in Iraq for more than a year, Brown applied for discharge from the Army as a conscientious objector. Though the Army-appointed Chaplain and Investigating Officer designated to investigate Brown’s conscientious objector application concluded that he was sincere and recommended that he be honorably discharged, the Army disagreed and his request was denied. In July 2007, the New York Civil Liberties Union and the American Civil Liberties Union of the National Capital Area intervened on Brown’s behalf and asked a federal court in Washington, DC to order the honorable discharge. Before the court acted, the Army reconsidered the issue, this time granting Brown’s request. ... from the Medill link: ... But some veterans who oppose the war in Iraq, say the actual numbers of conscientious objectors has been underreported due to the difficult application process and because peer pressure within a military unit discourages conscientious objectors. The Government Accountability Office report found that from 2002 to 2006 the active and reserve components of all the military reported processing 425 applications for conscientious objectors of approximately 2.3 million current service members. Of the 425 applications, 224 (53 percent) were approved,188 (44 percent) were denied and 13 (3 percent) were pending, according to the GA0, an arm of Congress. ...

Documentary: embedded with US troops in Baghdad

jouke — Sat, 14 Jul 2007 01:53:53 -0800

Sean Smith spent two months embedded with US troops in Baghdad and Anbar province. His harrowing documentary exposes the exhaustion and disillusionment of the soldiers.

No web for you, Army Boy!

dejah420 — Mon, 14 May 2007 12:10:56 -0800

Soldiers may no longer use MySpace to communicate with family. The Defense Department will begin "worldwide" blocking access, as of today, to YouTube, Metacafe, IFilm, StupidVideos, FileCabi, MySpace, BlackPlanet, Hi5, Pandora, MTV, 1.fm, live365, and Photobucket on its computers and networks, according to a memo sent Friday by Gen. B.B. Bell, the U.S. Forces Korea commander. Note that most soldiers deployed in war zones don't have access to any network outside of the military network.

"Of 10 governments worldwide implicated in the recruitment or use of children as soldiers, nine receive US military assistance."

chunking express — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 11:22:26 -0800

"Of 10 governments worldwide implicated in the recruitment or use of children as soldiers, nine receive US military assistance."

Interview of Henry Rollins on his USO visits to Iraq in TNR

Ethereal Bligh — Fri, 13 Apr 2007 08:38:07 -0800

You'll go by the phone kiosk and you'll hear young men having these very strange, almost surreal arguments or discussions with their wives over something like, "Hey the garage is leaking, how do we fix that?" And what she maybe doesn't understand is, maybe that guy just got ambushed, like half an hour ago, and he's shaking from the adrenaline, and he's just calling her just to hear a familiar voice, and she's like, "We gotta get the sprinklers fixed." And he's like, "Oh, OK ... . I love you." He just wants to get back to the ground. And that's what makes me angry, is what all of this is doing to these very young families. It just makes me mad. It makes anybody mad.

—Henry Rollins, interviewed in TNR (reg required, free) on his frequent USO visits to Afghanistan and Iraq.

Fire in the Hole, from A to Z

miss lynnster — Mon, 02 Apr 2007 10:25:52 -0800

Army men as alphabet (Warning: serious plastic army men carnage).

US Soldiers speak .

amberglow — Fri, 30 Mar 2007 16:04:36 -0800

Voices of the Fallen: the war in the words of the dead-- In letters and journals and e-mails, the war dead live on, their words—urgent, honest, unself-conscious—testament to the realities of combat. What do they have to say to us? ... The result is a window on Iraq we have not had before: the bravery, the fear and the chaos of war, and the loves and hates and dreams and nightmares of the warriors. Things are incredibly busy, then they are not. The Iraqis are welcoming, then they are not. The war is going well, then it is not. The mission makes sense, then it does not. ... (video, audio, email, and text)

Supporting our troops by making them guinea pigs?

amberglow — Tue, 21 Nov 2006 14:08:00 -0800

Recombinant Activated Factor VII --the Food and Drug Administration said that giving it to patients with normal blood could cause strokes and heart attacks... the Army's faith in the $6,000-a-dose drug is based almost entirely on anecdotal evidence and persists despite public warnings and published research suggesting that Factor VII is not as effective or as safe as military officials say. ...

http://www.h-pep.com/icepaw.html

spock — Wed, 23 Aug 2006 09:01:00 -0800

I'm Coming Home (video/sound warning)

Middle Eastern troops at Hadrian's Wall in the early fifth century

greycap — Sat, 19 Aug 2006 06:05:51 -0800

Iraqi peacekeepers sent to the Scottish border... 1600 years ago. The Notitia Dignitatum, the Roman equivalent of an organisation chart for the imperial bureaucracy in the fifth century, contains a reference to soldiers from the Tigris stationed at Hadrian's Wall. More on the Notitia here; more on Hadrian's Wall here, including a 3D tour of a fort near the Wall, and tablets discovered at another fort (including a request by a commanding officer for "more beer").

...another less attractive but probably more realistic version of modern warfare in Iraq today ...

amberglow — Sat, 05 Aug 2006 16:31:40 -0800

Pentagon to Soldiers: Don't Post those Trophy Videos Online ... another said it made him feel good to bring the gruesome reality of a soldier's life in Iraq to those living safely behind their "clean, white picket fences at home". ...the taking and posting of trophy video served as some kind of relief from the psychological stresses of serving as a soldier in such a violent and acutely dangerous place. ... and from PBS' Mediashift: Your Guide to Soldier Videos From Iraq

What it's like to lose a son in the Iraq war.

ND¢ — Mon, 12 Jun 2006 10:31:01 -0800

Never Coming Home is about the families of five young men killed in Iraq. Slate presents a short documentary that focuses on the bereavement of the parents, or in one case, a brother. This portrait of grief and sacrifice is brought to life through the use of still photography and the recorded voices of family members.