thedrifter
09-11-06, 08:32 AM
Ex-Marine questions war's purpose
After two tours, Gil O'Bryan sees Iraq as a 'commercial endeavor' and wonders if the nation is ready for democracy.
By Margo Rutledge Kissell
Staff Writer
Monday, September 11, 2006
HUBER HEIGHTS — Gil O'Bryan got caught up in the fervor that swept the country after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
The Huber Heights man joined the Marine Corps within weeks of the attacks and has served two tours in Iraq.
"I think almost all Americans at that time wanted to try to stop terrorism, wanted to try to do their part, do what they could to end what had just happened," said O'Bryan, 25.
The infantry assaultman with the 1st F.A.S.T. Company (Fleet Anti-terrorist Security Team) based in Norfolk, Va., returned home from his first Iraq tour in 2003 feeling proud: "I felt I was making a difference."
But during his second tour with a different infantry unit in 2005, his attitude began changing.
"I really just started to see the war differently. I began to see the war more as a commercial endeavor," said O'Bryan, who is now going to Sinclair Community College on the G.I. Bill. "I'm really against the war completely."
O'Bryan is concerned he could be among thousands of Marines in the Individual Ready Reserve ordered back to active duty because of a shortage of volunteers for Afghanistan and Iraq.
"It's a very real possibility," he said. "I don't know what I'd do. You can apply to be a conscientious objector, but that can take four years for them to process."
In some ways, O'Bryan's story seems to mirror the collective mindset this country has experienced since Sept. 11, 2001 — beginning with a wave of patriotism that swept the country and led many to begin plastering magnetic ribbons on their cars.
Five years after the attacks, a new AP-Ipsos poll found that doubts about the war on terror are growing, with half of those surveyed questioning whether the costs of the anti-terror campaign are too great.
Support for the war in Iraq has been waning. A recent CNN poll found that 60 percent of Americans oppose the war, the largest majority against the war yet.
O'Bryan — a corporal who said he was told during his military briefings not to discuss where he served in Iraq or what he did — now questions the purpose of this war.
"There may be a way to plant democracy. I don't think Iraq was the right country to pick," he said, noting that he believes Afghanistan was "ready for democracy."
O'Bryan is a drummer in the local rock band Brandon Road. He wants to organize a concert promoting the message that "peace is patriotic," too.
The 1999 Wayne High School graduate returned to Sinclair last week. He's maintained a 4.0 grade point average for two quarters. His ultimate goal is to get his doctorate degree and become a college professor, teaching English or history.
"I really have a new lease on what I'm trying to do and what direction I want to take my life," said O'Bryan, who married his high school sweetheart, Michele, on Dec. 21, 2002, while on Christmas leave.
They agreed to delay starting a family until after his four years of active military duty ended last December.
But now, he wonders whether it is truly behind him or if he will be sent back to war for another 12 to 18 months.
Asked if he regrets having joined the military, he responded "yes and no." While he credits the Marine Corps for giving him the discipline that is enabling him to excel in college, he said, "I regret it because now I feel it may be delaying my life even further."
He reflects on his last day in the service.
"I was so happy to go home and get into school," he said.
"I knew I was tired of hurting people and I wanted to help people."
Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2094 or mkissell@DaytonDailyNews.com.
Ellie
After two tours, Gil O'Bryan sees Iraq as a 'commercial endeavor' and wonders if the nation is ready for democracy.
By Margo Rutledge Kissell
Staff Writer
Monday, September 11, 2006
HUBER HEIGHTS — Gil O'Bryan got caught up in the fervor that swept the country after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
The Huber Heights man joined the Marine Corps within weeks of the attacks and has served two tours in Iraq.
"I think almost all Americans at that time wanted to try to stop terrorism, wanted to try to do their part, do what they could to end what had just happened," said O'Bryan, 25.
The infantry assaultman with the 1st F.A.S.T. Company (Fleet Anti-terrorist Security Team) based in Norfolk, Va., returned home from his first Iraq tour in 2003 feeling proud: "I felt I was making a difference."
But during his second tour with a different infantry unit in 2005, his attitude began changing.
"I really just started to see the war differently. I began to see the war more as a commercial endeavor," said O'Bryan, who is now going to Sinclair Community College on the G.I. Bill. "I'm really against the war completely."
O'Bryan is concerned he could be among thousands of Marines in the Individual Ready Reserve ordered back to active duty because of a shortage of volunteers for Afghanistan and Iraq.
"It's a very real possibility," he said. "I don't know what I'd do. You can apply to be a conscientious objector, but that can take four years for them to process."
In some ways, O'Bryan's story seems to mirror the collective mindset this country has experienced since Sept. 11, 2001 — beginning with a wave of patriotism that swept the country and led many to begin plastering magnetic ribbons on their cars.
Five years after the attacks, a new AP-Ipsos poll found that doubts about the war on terror are growing, with half of those surveyed questioning whether the costs of the anti-terror campaign are too great.
Support for the war in Iraq has been waning. A recent CNN poll found that 60 percent of Americans oppose the war, the largest majority against the war yet.
O'Bryan — a corporal who said he was told during his military briefings not to discuss where he served in Iraq or what he did — now questions the purpose of this war.
"There may be a way to plant democracy. I don't think Iraq was the right country to pick," he said, noting that he believes Afghanistan was "ready for democracy."
O'Bryan is a drummer in the local rock band Brandon Road. He wants to organize a concert promoting the message that "peace is patriotic," too.
The 1999 Wayne High School graduate returned to Sinclair last week. He's maintained a 4.0 grade point average for two quarters. His ultimate goal is to get his doctorate degree and become a college professor, teaching English or history.
"I really have a new lease on what I'm trying to do and what direction I want to take my life," said O'Bryan, who married his high school sweetheart, Michele, on Dec. 21, 2002, while on Christmas leave.
They agreed to delay starting a family until after his four years of active military duty ended last December.
But now, he wonders whether it is truly behind him or if he will be sent back to war for another 12 to 18 months.
Asked if he regrets having joined the military, he responded "yes and no." While he credits the Marine Corps for giving him the discipline that is enabling him to excel in college, he said, "I regret it because now I feel it may be delaying my life even further."
He reflects on his last day in the service.
"I was so happy to go home and get into school," he said.
"I knew I was tired of hurting people and I wanted to help people."
Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2094 or mkissell@DaytonDailyNews.com.
Ellie