What It’s Like To Finally Understand The Realities Of War

2015-08-20T20:52:04-04:00

This is a really good piece about the realities of war. I think so many have this preconceived notion what war is. They think they know it but they don't.

This reminds me when I was a young SPC in formation at Fort Bragg. My company was getting to deploy to Kuwait in January of 2003. This would be the build up of what would be OIF. So I was there and our CSM spoke to us. He told us to look around. Some of you are not going to make it back. I thought he was foolish for saying that. I didn't realize at that time he knew what he was talking about.

In the article it read of the reality of war. The reality of it is that you might not make it back but more so than that you know one of you buddy's won't make it back. It didn't strike me until the Chaplain came to see me and tell me that my old roommate PFC Tim Brown, was killed in a convoy on Aug 12, 2003. I didn't even know what to think. I didn't think it could happen. But the CSM was right. We also lost SPC Kyle Griffen, SPC Zachary Long, and SPC Michael Gleeson. That was the reality of war. We were going to lose someone. It is a dark truth that we can't avoid. That is the reality of War. On my second tour we also suffered much the same way. We lost soldiers within the first month in country. For me this is what war means. It is something that is very solemn. The ones in war know what I am talking about. Some won't. But the worst thing you can do is to question one's reality of their war. To be honest some will never understand.

Sebastian Junger shared the moment he finally understood what war is like in a recorded story for the Moth.

Response by SPC(P) Jay Heenan made Aug 20 at 2015 9:32 PM

2015-08-20T21:32:58-04:00

No one can understand the "reality of war" unless they lived it. Also, no two SMs will have the same "reality of war". It just is what is it to each of us, regardless of branch, MOS/job, age, etc.

Response by CPT Private RallyPoint Member made Aug 20 at 2015 10:04 PM

2015-08-20T22:04:40-04:00

I have an anniversary, coming up, 8/23. In 1968, CCN MACVSOG, was overrun by NVA Sappers. We lost 17 SF soldiers that day, some were personal friends. I live that day every year. That's the reality of war. De Oppresso Liber.

Response by SGM Steve Wettstein made Aug 20 at 2015 11:15 PM

2015-08-20T23:15:14-04:00

CPT Private RallyPoint Member (LONG READ) LT you don't get the realities of war until you get into a fight. My platoon's first big fight was the night before the second Thunder Run made by my 2BCT 3ID SPARTANS. We were helping the S4 look for CCPs for the next days battle. Well he neglected to inform anyone in the BCT TOC how far we were going to go, which was past a tank platoon that was screening the Northern most boundary of the BCT. This guy was an INF MAJ. I think he was medal hunting and didn't tell my squad + that I took on the patrol with his element of 3 1025/1026 HHWVs. I always had my trucks loaded for a good ass kick. Because in a fight, you either we kick their asses or you get yours kicked and that wasn't going to happen. First we had to bypass a AT minefield on the route just after we passed the tank platoon. I got a good look at it and the G2 would help 2BCT the following morning. After we bypassed the mine field, we continued to to proposed CCP sites. In the field where he wanted the CCPs, we observed numerous bunkers in the field. I was getting a very bad feeling at this time. We continued on for about a mile and observed heavy lift trucks with heavy engineer equipment. At this time we were on a 4-6 lane MSR. When we were about 500m from a traffic circle and they had some technicals in the immediate area. We started laying into them with the M2 and MK-19. It ended up that we were going to engage an engineer company. So it was 3 light skinned HMMWVs and my 4 1114s out on a main road with no cover. We initiated contact and commenced to laying waste on the Iraqis. When you are relatively close to you target and killing them with a M2 it becomes very personal. One of the S4 HMWWVs go stuck in the mud in a ditch so we had to continue fighting until they were recovered. I get fried in your brain the picture of what a .50 cal round does to a humans head. We had to fight for almost an hour because of this fucked up plan by a glory hound.We took mortars, RPGs, DSHKs, and AK fire. We won that day because of our training and leadership from my squad+. We got back to the BCT TOC and the S3 and BCT Commander ripped the S4 in front of me because of the dumb ass shit he pulled (they pulled me asside after and thank me and my squad for pull his ass out. Another thing that sticks in my mind is the smell of death and dogs eating the dead. That, for my crews, was seeing the realities of war. We were just so damn lucky that the only injury was to the S4. An RPG reached it's max range and detonated over his truck. He got a few scratches and tried to dictate to me what to write on his causality feeder-card so he could get a PH. I just thank God that none of my Soldiers were injured on this guys escapade into an area that we were not cleared to go into. The only really good news was that I was able to identify the AT mines. This enabled the BCT to prepared to reduce the mine field and not slow the attack. This was the night before 2BCT took the Palace Compounds in what is now the Green Zone.

Response by SSgt Terry P. made Aug 21 at 2015 1:54 AM

2015-08-21T01:54:12-04:00

A sense of loss of ALL innocence.

Response by PO1 William "Chip" Nagel made Aug 21 at 2015 2:28 AM

2015-08-21T02:28:53-04:00

The Reality that is burned into my Brain. 15,000 Muslims outside my Office in London Screaming "Baby Killer" after Eldorado Canyon and realizing that they were right. There is no such thing as a Clean War and given the right situation we humans are equally capable of committing horribly sick actions and great acts of kindness each and every one of us.

Response by SGT Ben Keen made Aug 21 at 2015 9:52 AM

2015-08-21T09:52:40-04:00

I read this article as well and love what it says, but I must say, I think the words that CPT Private RallyPoint Member wrote were more powerful. Maybe it is because I know him better than the people mentioned in the article. Maybe it is because of the time we all spent in South Carolina drinking beers at that bar after RPx or all the interaction here. But what I do know is I related more to what Eric wrote than the article.

The reality of war is that war is ugly, it is raw and it is unapologetic. War brings out the best and the worst in people. War remains a cornerstone of foreign relations. War is hell and for all of us here, we have walked up to those gates of Hell and walked back. We have seen the truly rawness of human survival. We have been asked to do things that others will never be asked to do; sometimes we were asked 4, 5, 6 or more times. War is exciting and scary. It truly is the one experience that will push you to your limits and leave you asking for more. War isn't meant to be celebrated. War is meant to be remembered so that we hopefully learn from our mistakes. War is truly war.