thedrifter
08-25-06, 02:40 PM
‘In my soldiers’ minds, we are winning this thing’
Dodge City Daily Globe ^ | 25 Aug 2006 | Eric Swanson
In the United States, people are sharply divided over whether America can win the war in Iraq.
But Capt. Sean Herbig of the Kansas Army National Guard said he and his soldiers, who are currently serving in Iraq, think their efforts to stabilize the country are working.
“In my soldiers’ minds, we are winning this thing,” Herbig said Thursday morning during a teleconference with Kansas newspaper reporters. “No question.”
A native of Sublette, Herbig commands the Bravo Battery, 1st Battalion, 161st Field Artillery unit for the Kansas Army National Guard. His unit, which is made up primarily of southwest Kansas soldiers, is attached to the 1st Battalion, 125th Field Artillery, 1/34th Brigade Combat Team from the Minnesota National Guard.
Capt. Paul Rickert, 1-125 STRIKE/Special to the Globe Soldiers from A Battery, 1-125 STRIKE, provide small gifts to children during recent civil military operations near Camp Scania, Iraq. The unit is assigned to Camp Scania, located in south-central Iraq near the town of Hilla.
The soldiers’ assignments include daily patrols around the camp, building and maintaining relationships with local residents, and searching for insurgents and improvised explosive devices along transportation routes. Herbig said his unit has also conducted missions that led to the capture of potential anti-Iraqi forces.
A second platoon of Kansas soldiers under Herbig’s command is attached to a battalion based in Baghdad, where they assist with convoy escort missions that take them all over Iraq.
Capt. Paul Rickert, 1-125 STRIKE/Special to the Globe A gunner from A Battery, 1-125 STRIKE, provides security during recent civil military operations near Camp Scania, Iraq. Herbig said he has worked closely with Iraq’s army, Iraqi police and the Iraqi Highway Patrol, and he believes they are getting better with each operation.
“What I have observed about each of these forces is that they do want to do something to help make the government better for the entire population,” he said. “Like I said, they continue to improve and more importantly, they want to improve.”
Herbig said his unit is looking at starting or completing a series of humanitarian projects designed to improve daily life in Iraq, including building new schools and reopening canals to provide clean water to areas that have not had water for a while.
He added that his soldiers cannot promise anything, but they can act as sounding boards for Iraqis who have suggestions for ways to improve their community.
“The people will come and say, ‘We need this,’ and my soldiers will take note of that and we will bring it up to the civil affairs staff,” he said. “And then we can start prioritizing the need from what my soldiers are actually out on the ground hearing.”
Herbig said Americans’ perceptions of the war are influenced by the isolated incidents the media put in front of them, and they aren’t getting the real story.
“If they would look at the big picture, the American people would see that all the soldiers here, they’re seeing success everywhere they turn,” he said.
Reach Eric Swanson at (620) 408-9917 or e-mail him at eric.swanson@dodgeglobe.com.
Ellie
Dodge City Daily Globe ^ | 25 Aug 2006 | Eric Swanson
In the United States, people are sharply divided over whether America can win the war in Iraq.
But Capt. Sean Herbig of the Kansas Army National Guard said he and his soldiers, who are currently serving in Iraq, think their efforts to stabilize the country are working.
“In my soldiers’ minds, we are winning this thing,” Herbig said Thursday morning during a teleconference with Kansas newspaper reporters. “No question.”
A native of Sublette, Herbig commands the Bravo Battery, 1st Battalion, 161st Field Artillery unit for the Kansas Army National Guard. His unit, which is made up primarily of southwest Kansas soldiers, is attached to the 1st Battalion, 125th Field Artillery, 1/34th Brigade Combat Team from the Minnesota National Guard.
Capt. Paul Rickert, 1-125 STRIKE/Special to the Globe Soldiers from A Battery, 1-125 STRIKE, provide small gifts to children during recent civil military operations near Camp Scania, Iraq. The unit is assigned to Camp Scania, located in south-central Iraq near the town of Hilla.
The soldiers’ assignments include daily patrols around the camp, building and maintaining relationships with local residents, and searching for insurgents and improvised explosive devices along transportation routes. Herbig said his unit has also conducted missions that led to the capture of potential anti-Iraqi forces.
A second platoon of Kansas soldiers under Herbig’s command is attached to a battalion based in Baghdad, where they assist with convoy escort missions that take them all over Iraq.
Capt. Paul Rickert, 1-125 STRIKE/Special to the Globe A gunner from A Battery, 1-125 STRIKE, provides security during recent civil military operations near Camp Scania, Iraq. Herbig said he has worked closely with Iraq’s army, Iraqi police and the Iraqi Highway Patrol, and he believes they are getting better with each operation.
“What I have observed about each of these forces is that they do want to do something to help make the government better for the entire population,” he said. “Like I said, they continue to improve and more importantly, they want to improve.”
Herbig said his unit is looking at starting or completing a series of humanitarian projects designed to improve daily life in Iraq, including building new schools and reopening canals to provide clean water to areas that have not had water for a while.
He added that his soldiers cannot promise anything, but they can act as sounding boards for Iraqis who have suggestions for ways to improve their community.
“The people will come and say, ‘We need this,’ and my soldiers will take note of that and we will bring it up to the civil affairs staff,” he said. “And then we can start prioritizing the need from what my soldiers are actually out on the ground hearing.”
Herbig said Americans’ perceptions of the war are influenced by the isolated incidents the media put in front of them, and they aren’t getting the real story.
“If they would look at the big picture, the American people would see that all the soldiers here, they’re seeing success everywhere they turn,” he said.
Reach Eric Swanson at (620) 408-9917 or e-mail him at eric.swanson@dodgeglobe.com.
Ellie