thedrifter
01-18-08, 05:50 AM
January 17, 2008
Marine colonel speaks on Iraq
By RAELYN RICARTE
Hood River News
Retired Marine Corps Col. Mike Howard believes the good rapport that has developed between U.S. troops and Iraqi citizens is winning the war against Islamic extremists.
He said Iraqi children now frequently refer to terrorists as “Ali Babas” and alert soldiers and Marines to the locations of roadside bombs. In addition, Howard said al-Qaida operatives have started turning up dead outside of villages that no longer tolerate the violence and dissension they bring.
“I think Iraq is going to make it now because we’ve invested so much in blood, sweat and tears,” he said.
“We have won a strategic victory because more Sunnis now realize the moderate course is the only course.”
Howard, 53, served two combat tours of duty in Iraq before retiring from the Marine Corps in March 2006. He believes it is important for Americans to learn about the acts of heroism taking place every day in that country. He said, since the corporate media rarely portrays these events, the message needs to be taken directly to the people.
He visits the gorge next weekend to present “Iraq: The Rest of the Story” in two locations in Hood River and The Dalles (see box for details.) The programs are free and sponsored by American Legion Post No. 22 and the Vagabond Lodge in Hood River.
Iraq talks
Howard has compiled thousands of photos that illustrate the horrors and triumphs that he and others have witnessed. He will show some of these pictures on the 19th and 20th to highlight the achievements of the U.S. armed forces.
“Americans need to understand that it undermines the troops when they start talking about doom and gloom defeatism. Our military is getting the job done over there and they are doing it well,” said Howard.
“This is a war of Good versus Evil. When your bulldozer turns up the
remains of little girls still clutching their dolls in Saddam’s Baathist mass graves, you know you’re fighting for a righteous cause.”
He also plans to address the hardships faced by the troops on behalf of their fellow countrymen. For example, he said soldiers and Marines go for weeks with no clean clothes, withstand 130-degree temperatures while wearing layers of combat gear - and usually have bugs in their food.
“They quickly learn that anything that crawls, slithers or creeps in the desert ain’t their friend,” said Howard.
In spite of these and other discomforts, he said infantry units in Iraq maintain a “can-do” attitude and willingly risk their lives to protect each other and civilians.
“The military looks at Iraq and Afghanistan as ‘bug lights’ for bad guys,” said Howard. “Better to deal with the enemy over there than on our home turf.”
He said Saddam Hussein’s weapons caches have been found in thousands of Fallujah buildings, along with dozens of bomb factories and torture chambers. That city is located 69 miles west of Baghdad on the Euphrates River.
American forensic teams have unearthed 270 mass graves in Iraq and some contained an average of 12,000-15,000 bodies.
“To those of us who have served there, Iraq is no longer just another country in the Middle East,” said Howard.
“We have made friends there and established relationships that have altered our understanding of the Iraqis and the Middle East forever. It is these relationships and the lives that we are changing that gives our service and sacrifice there real meaning.”
Howard believes it is vital to national security that Americans understand the military’s “Away Game” strategy of fighting terrorism. He said battling extremists in Iraq and Afghanistan has staved off a second “Home Game” attack on U.S. soil.
“As a 32-year Marine veteran, I want to state that I am also anti-war, I deplore the loss of lives, particularly of my fellow Marines and friends,” said Howard.
“But I am still a Marine because I have seen things worse than war; I have seen slavery, torture, extermination and genocide.”
Howard said after Fallujah was taken over by coalition troops in 2004, U.S. Marines recovered computers from abandoned houses that were full of al-Qaida communications. He said in more than one document, Osama Bin Laden referred to Iraq as a “decisive point” in the war against American-led coalition forces.
Little known to many Americans, said Howard, is the fact that the vast majority of suicide bombers in Iraq to date have not been citizens of that country, they are foreign-born Al Quaida. He believes the U.S. must follow through on its commitment to stay until the mission is complete and the Iraqis are able to stand on their own.
“The people of Iraq are not asking us to leave. They understand that, if we remove our protection too soon, another tyrant will take the place of Saddam Hussein,” said Howard.
“And, if we don’t finish this effort, the terrorists will follow us home.”
Col. Howard and his wife of 30 years, Lynn, reside in Helvetia and have five children. His great-grandfather, Charles Howard, owned the legendary Seabiscuit and Mike grew up surrounded by horse racing history in a family with a long military lineage. He is a decorated combat veteran who bases life on the philosophy that, “Any day you are not being shot at is a good day, and every day is a gift from God.”
For more information on Howard’s presentation, access www.IraqTheRestoftheStory.com.
He visits the gorge next weekend to present “Iraq: The Rest of the Story” in two locations. His first appearance will be Saturday, Jan. 19th, from 7-9 p.m. at the Hood River Middle School, 17th and May streets. On Sunday he speaks from 2 to 5 p.m. at The Dalles High School auditorium, 220 E. 10th Street.
Ellie
Marine colonel speaks on Iraq
By RAELYN RICARTE
Hood River News
Retired Marine Corps Col. Mike Howard believes the good rapport that has developed between U.S. troops and Iraqi citizens is winning the war against Islamic extremists.
He said Iraqi children now frequently refer to terrorists as “Ali Babas” and alert soldiers and Marines to the locations of roadside bombs. In addition, Howard said al-Qaida operatives have started turning up dead outside of villages that no longer tolerate the violence and dissension they bring.
“I think Iraq is going to make it now because we’ve invested so much in blood, sweat and tears,” he said.
“We have won a strategic victory because more Sunnis now realize the moderate course is the only course.”
Howard, 53, served two combat tours of duty in Iraq before retiring from the Marine Corps in March 2006. He believes it is important for Americans to learn about the acts of heroism taking place every day in that country. He said, since the corporate media rarely portrays these events, the message needs to be taken directly to the people.
He visits the gorge next weekend to present “Iraq: The Rest of the Story” in two locations in Hood River and The Dalles (see box for details.) The programs are free and sponsored by American Legion Post No. 22 and the Vagabond Lodge in Hood River.
Iraq talks
Howard has compiled thousands of photos that illustrate the horrors and triumphs that he and others have witnessed. He will show some of these pictures on the 19th and 20th to highlight the achievements of the U.S. armed forces.
“Americans need to understand that it undermines the troops when they start talking about doom and gloom defeatism. Our military is getting the job done over there and they are doing it well,” said Howard.
“This is a war of Good versus Evil. When your bulldozer turns up the
remains of little girls still clutching their dolls in Saddam’s Baathist mass graves, you know you’re fighting for a righteous cause.”
He also plans to address the hardships faced by the troops on behalf of their fellow countrymen. For example, he said soldiers and Marines go for weeks with no clean clothes, withstand 130-degree temperatures while wearing layers of combat gear - and usually have bugs in their food.
“They quickly learn that anything that crawls, slithers or creeps in the desert ain’t their friend,” said Howard.
In spite of these and other discomforts, he said infantry units in Iraq maintain a “can-do” attitude and willingly risk their lives to protect each other and civilians.
“The military looks at Iraq and Afghanistan as ‘bug lights’ for bad guys,” said Howard. “Better to deal with the enemy over there than on our home turf.”
He said Saddam Hussein’s weapons caches have been found in thousands of Fallujah buildings, along with dozens of bomb factories and torture chambers. That city is located 69 miles west of Baghdad on the Euphrates River.
American forensic teams have unearthed 270 mass graves in Iraq and some contained an average of 12,000-15,000 bodies.
“To those of us who have served there, Iraq is no longer just another country in the Middle East,” said Howard.
“We have made friends there and established relationships that have altered our understanding of the Iraqis and the Middle East forever. It is these relationships and the lives that we are changing that gives our service and sacrifice there real meaning.”
Howard believes it is vital to national security that Americans understand the military’s “Away Game” strategy of fighting terrorism. He said battling extremists in Iraq and Afghanistan has staved off a second “Home Game” attack on U.S. soil.
“As a 32-year Marine veteran, I want to state that I am also anti-war, I deplore the loss of lives, particularly of my fellow Marines and friends,” said Howard.
“But I am still a Marine because I have seen things worse than war; I have seen slavery, torture, extermination and genocide.”
Howard said after Fallujah was taken over by coalition troops in 2004, U.S. Marines recovered computers from abandoned houses that were full of al-Qaida communications. He said in more than one document, Osama Bin Laden referred to Iraq as a “decisive point” in the war against American-led coalition forces.
Little known to many Americans, said Howard, is the fact that the vast majority of suicide bombers in Iraq to date have not been citizens of that country, they are foreign-born Al Quaida. He believes the U.S. must follow through on its commitment to stay until the mission is complete and the Iraqis are able to stand on their own.
“The people of Iraq are not asking us to leave. They understand that, if we remove our protection too soon, another tyrant will take the place of Saddam Hussein,” said Howard.
“And, if we don’t finish this effort, the terrorists will follow us home.”
Col. Howard and his wife of 30 years, Lynn, reside in Helvetia and have five children. His great-grandfather, Charles Howard, owned the legendary Seabiscuit and Mike grew up surrounded by horse racing history in a family with a long military lineage. He is a decorated combat veteran who bases life on the philosophy that, “Any day you are not being shot at is a good day, and every day is a gift from God.”
For more information on Howard’s presentation, access www.IraqTheRestoftheStory.com.
He visits the gorge next weekend to present “Iraq: The Rest of the Story” in two locations. His first appearance will be Saturday, Jan. 19th, from 7-9 p.m. at the Hood River Middle School, 17th and May streets. On Sunday he speaks from 2 to 5 p.m. at The Dalles High School auditorium, 220 E. 10th Street.
Ellie