Was it worth it?

In October 2001, George W. Bush demanded that the Taliban surrender Osama bin Laden to the U.S., and rejected the Taliban's counter-offer to indict him themselves or extradite him to a country we couldn't influence. [Source]

Their refusal to hand him over directly was probably an aspect of the Pashtun concept of melmastya (hospitality).

However, we didn't understand this at the time, equated their "hospitality" as "harboring a fugitive," and thought (wrongfully) it would be easier/better to capture him if we just invaded the whole country. Metaphorically, we broke the vase to catch a spider that had crawled inside.

To say the least, it did not work out according to the plan. At some point, bin Laden escaped to Pakistan, where he was killed in 2011.

Looking back, I wonder what would have happened if we'd accepted the Taliban offer to extradite bin Laden to a country where we couldn't influence the trial.

We could have saved several trillion dollars, tens of thousands of American lives, and hundreds of thousands of Afghan and Iraqi lives.

Yeah Saddam Hussein might still be in power, and yeah bin Laden might still be alive, but looking back twenty years later, but let's be REAAALLLY honest here:

Was the price of our vengeance worth it?

We meant well....

We had a choice: stay in Afghanistan like we did South Korea, or excuse ourselves like we did Vietnam.

There were costs either way, but we went with Option B.

Having spent almost a year there, I'm sad about it, but I didn't see a way to get to our desired end state.

A domestic blame game will follow, just like in 1949 when Chiang Kai-Shek lost China's Mainland, but this tragedy was a long time coming.

Deployment per diem comes in

I finally got my deployment per diem today -- over a year after I returned from Afghanistan. Part of that's my fault -- I wasn't perfectly diligent about making sure my paperwork was straight when I got back. Of course, I believe the *majority* of the fault stills lies with the system.

Back in November/December 2011, the problem was that I wasn't submitting the amendments to my orders. (If they could tell I was missing them, why didn't they just pull them up themselves?)

Then, for three months in early 2012, I submitted the paperwork and received the confirmation only to find out they never processed it. What I thought was a long processing delay was simply a dropped ball.

Then, a couple times, it was a missing or incorrect field. I fixed those. (But again, if they know what the right code is, why not just fix it themselves? And why didn't they tell me about that before?)

During the summer my XO duties distracted me from  trying again more than once, but I picked things up around September. By this time, though, I had signed as my own reviewer -- when that got kicked back I had one of my classmates sign. (At this point, I had to wonder what the point was to having a reviewer -- none of us know what we're doing anyway.)

It took several more attempts to realize that I couldn't just do corrections -- that my new form was getting ignored whenever "they" saw my old one was still in the packet, but it finally went through on January 28th.

The confirmation email said it would take eight business days to process, but February 8th came and went without any news. I called the help center, and they said processing times were pushing the 11-12 day range. (Why don't they adjust the confirmation email?)

Then the 13th came and went. When I called on the 15th, the help center person said that payment had been authorized and that I would get it the next day. Sure enough, it did.

I was surprised to see how much it was -- my impression was what it was going to be $3.50 per day for each day I was in theater, but it was more than that. I got $21.70 for each of the five days I was Kyrgyzstan, and $79.50 (75% of $106) for the first and last day (combined) of travel.

More poignantly, I got an extra $3.10 as "late payment interest."  Nice.

Deployment taxes (or lack thereof)

H&R Block offered free filing for service members this year, so I did my taxes the other day. I was surprised -- my return was bigger than I expected.

There are a couple reasons for this.

First, there are the amounts that I knew I was going to get -- the child tax credits, a couple hundred from my December paycheck, and the 15% that was withheld from my third and final Student Loan Repayment.

What I didn't realize was that I also qualified for the Earned Income Credit.

Having excluded the combat pay I earned from January to November, my only earned income came from December and the SLRP. Serendipitously, it was enough to get almost the maximum EIC while falling below the standard deduction amounts. Zero tax liability; interesting refund. Thank you, H&R Block and strange tax code.

If you're in the military, I highly recommend filing online. Had I not, I would definitely have missed out on this one.

Reverse Soldier Readiness Program

Having returned from Afghanistan, we have to do the SRP process all over again. We got hearing, eye, and blood tests; immunizations; paycheck adjustments; and verified next of kin paperwork.

The worst line was the medical interview. Everyone talked about Kandahar's poo pond so that -- if we have respiratory problems somewhere down the line -- we might one day be compensated for it. I think at one point there was almost 100 people waiting in line for that station -- more than a three hour wait. (The 50 or so people before me took two and a half hours.)

Nevertheless, by the end of the day I was finished and on my first four-day weekend in a very long time.

Piece of shrapnel

This piece of shrapnel came from one of the rockets that hit in Tarin Kowt. Now that I'm back in the U.S., I can feel free to post it without my family worrying.

Your war is over

Remember that old Nintendo game "Defender of the Crown"?

I do. The ending was pretty short, but there was a line that has stayed with me all these intervening years:
And now, even in its most literal sense, it's true.

Bishkek-Bucharest-Leipzip-Shannon

We finally arrived home. What an ordeal.

We started going through customs at noon on the 13th (Kyrgyzstan time), then loaded up the plane ourselves (I was in charge of the baggage crew) and left at about 6:00 in the evening. On board with us were about 100 Romanians.

So our first stop was Bucharest, a five and a half hour flight from Bishkek.

From there we continued two hours to Leipzig, Germany, so we could change planes. Unfortunately, changing planes also meant we had to switch out all our bags in below-freezing weather. Thumbs down.

It also meant having to pack in like sardines. While the first plane would have been big enough to spread out, this one had almost no spare seats.

And because our second plane was smaller than the first -- too small, in fact, to make the trans-Atlantic trip without a few other stops -- we had to stop in Shannon, Ireland. After refueling, we set out for Bangor, Maine. By then it was about 7:00am on the 14th. Here a picture of Pushaw Lake as we came in for arrival.


I think that flight was about five hours, too, but after roughly 24 hours of traveling I stopped keeping track. In any case, it looked like we would be home in time for dinner.

That's when I found out our plane had a mechanical problem. We sat there -- delayed -- for about another five hours. The worst part was when the plane we first got on in Bishkek -- the one we left behind in Germany -- arrived from Aviano, Italy with less than 100 Air Force personnel on it. After they spent just an hour or two on ground, we watched them take off for South Carolina.


:-(

We finally left Bangor at about 5:00 in the evening for our final leg to Killeen, Texas, and arrived in Texas Around 10:00. After turning in our weapons, we were bussed over to the post, where our new battalion commander greeted us with a (mercifully) brief speech before releasing us. After more than 40 hours, we were finally home.

Lobster roll

With the layover in Bangor, Maine, I just had to have one of these, even though it was a whopping $12 combo meal. It's basically chopped lobster in a sauce on a hot dog bun.

I figured, hey, how often am I in Maine?

On another note, the retirees that greeted us in the airport were really nice.

The Bangor Airport was not necessarily on my list of places to visit before I die, but because of them I'll never forget it.

Waiting...

Since leaving Kandahar on the 8th, we've been hanging out at the U.S. base adjacent the Manas airport near Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan.

I'm not sure why we're waiting, but our departing flight keeps getting pushed back. I wouldn't mind so much -- my deployment was already already short than others in the company -- except that my father and grandfather flew down to Texas and have been waiting for me to arrive since the 8th.

At this point, it looks like they'll have to reschedule their return dates (and pay penalties) if they still want to be around. That bugs me.

Ho hum....

We don't get Veteran's Day

I feel bad for my unit. Today marks the third Veteran's Day in a row that we've had to work.

In 2009, we had to make the preparations for the memorial service following the 5 November attacks. I 2010, the unit had already deployed before the 11th. This year, we missed out because we've been stuck in Manas, Kyrgyzstan.

Thumbs down.

Chilling [literally] in Kyrgyzstan

Our flight from Kandahar was pushed back from the 5th to the 8th, just in time for a cold wave and snowstorm to hit the country. Fortunately, the tents were really warm and the shower facilities were like saunas.

I was able to find the tent I stayed in on Google Maps. The coordinates are 43° 2'58.02"N, 74°27'41.99"E.

The toilet facilities were a little different, though -- distinctly Army issue.


Although permanent party servicemembers are allowed off-post into Bishkek, we transients are not. We are, however, to allowed access Pete's Place, the on-post bar.

Here they have "Russian-style" Black Russians -- cognac with cherry and almond flavors -- along with a slew of other drinks for about $2 each.

We're allowed 2 per 20 hour period, at least until someone messes it up for us.

End of Tour awards

You don't get a bonus if you do a good job in the Army -- you get an award. It costs taxpayers less and you get to put it on your dress uniform.

Today we did a combined transfer of authority and end of tour awards ceremony. Though the former was fairly short, doling out awards to 85% of the company was a bit like a graduation ceremony -- formal and somniferously long.

I was really looking forward to it, though -- for the first time since basic training ended three years ago, I got some new awards to wear: the overseas service bar (for having completed an overseas tour), the Afghan Campaign Medal (with two campaign stars for having served during "Consolidation III" and "Transition I"), and the NATO award (for service in the International Security Assistance Forces).

Best of all, I got a Bronze Star. Not for valor, though -- I didn't get get into a single firefight, let alone save somebody's life -- but for merit, the more common reason. (And considering what this Marine went through to get his, I'm happy with what I got.)

Yeah, I know -- there's a certain trade-off between rank and performance required for this award, but it still means something to me. It basically says I performed my responsibilities with some measure of competence and succeeded in not embarrassing myself.

And I didn't have to wait 66 years to get it.

Yay for me.

Awesomest hat ever

I doubt Daniel Boone ever had one of these:

Some sort of fox-lookin' thing with sequins for eyes and paws still attached. It even drapes over your neck to prevent sunburn.

I was tempted to buy it just for the silliness, but for $45? No.

Massive reenlistment

This morning my company did a big reenlistment. In part, it was so that soldiers could have a bit more freedom in determining what they wanted to do next (by reenlisting while deployed).

Besides that, though, it was so that we could have a massive formation that attracted a lot of attention. The battalion commander did the honor of leading the group in the oath of enlistment.

To many, we come off as a good unit that so many are willing to commit a few more years to the Army. I however, have come to the conclusion that such numbers are not so indicative.

Happy Halloween!

Among the holiday decorations at the nearby USO I saw this:

Building leave packets

A few days ago, we turned over all the property and equipment the next unit would need to do their mission. Yesterday, we packed up our remaining equipment and supplies for shipment. At this point, the only thing we have left to do is pack up our personal gear and get on the plane.

Except for leave packets.

In the Army, you can't just tell your boss, "Hey, I'm going on vacation." Your request has to be approved by the unit commander. Unfortunately, that requesting process can get tedious and usually only 10 percent of the company can be gone at any one point. The good news is that - having completed a deployment just in time for the holidays - we're getting a month-long window where we all can take it at the same time.

It's this "block leave" from December 5th to January 3rd that we're getting ready for now. It should be a simple process, but with nothing better to occupy our time, it seems to be taking forever.

Two of the big sticking points are: "What if I want to take my leave outside that period?" and "What if I don't have enough leave days accrued up to this point?" We get 2.5 leave days for every month of service, but we still have three more months to go until our leave time will be subtracted.

I'm requesting my leave a bit outside that window. Since my father will be there in November to see my arrival, I plan to visit my Wisconsin parents in December and January. However, since Christmas isn't the best time to be there (ministry and retail preoccupations); it's the two weeks around New Year's that I want. As a result, I have to write a memorandum.

All total, there are seven documents I need to complete, and they need to be in a certain order.

First is that memorandum, which needs to be according to a particular format. There needs to be two lines between the unit code and the "memorandum for record" line, one between that and the subject line, and two between the subject line and the first point. After each point, there must be only two spaces between the number and the first letter. If anything is off, I have to redo the memo.

Second is the Leave & Pass Request, the cover sheet that requires signatures from 8 people: the platoon sergeant, the platoon leader (me), the company's leave/pass clerk, the orderly room NCOIC, the training sergeant, the company executive officer, the first sergeant, and the company commander. Each recommends approval or disapproval, though it's the commander who makes the final decision.

Third is four copies of the DA31 form - the official authorization to travel. This is probably the most important document, since it's with a valid copy of this form that you're not considered "Absent Without Leave (AWOL)."

Fourth is the Leave and Earnings Statement (LES) with the accrued leave days highlighted. You'd need a memo if it's less than what you're requesting; block leave and Permanent Change of Station (PCS) moves right after Initial Entry Training (IET) are about the only times you'd get approved for that.

Fifth is the Privately Owned Vehicle Risk Assistance Report. Even if you're flying to your destination or doing a "staycation," you have to have one of these. Like MapQuest, this report gives a map and the directions from your residence to your destination. In addition, it recommends particular safety measures you should take along the way, such as how frequently you should stop, how much rest you should get, and so on.

Sixth is your flight itinerary, assuming you're flying. This is important for platoon level leadership more than anyone else because it shows when the soldier is expecting to come back. 10:30 the night prior to a formation is a bad idea because the flight might be delayed. Rather, coming back a day or two ahead of time is better, not just because of the flight, but also so that there's a bit of "decompression time" following a family visit.

Seventh is the DA4856 Counseling Form. (We have to do this before every four day weekend, regardless.) Basically, it talks about how to be safe.

My commander is particularly thorough. Despite the facts that I'd traveled to three different continents before joining the Army, that I'm 36 years-old, and that I'm already a highly literate individual, my commander *still reads it to me* before we both sign it.

I guess that's just the requirement.

Last is the Privately Owned Vehicle Inspection form. This is done by one's supervisor to certify that the vehicle can be safely operated.

If you're sitting there, stupefied, at the lengths to which one must go to use vacation after surviving for a year in a combat zone, trust me I'm right there with you.

How ironic that in this age of computers, we end up with even more paperwork than before.

Last pack up

Today, in preparation for our redeployment, we packed up the last bit of organizational equipment and extra gear.

It went smoothly. Now, all we have to worry about is getting through the next week or so without anyone doing anything stupid. My soldiers have been good about it thus far (or at least, my sergeants have been good at handling matters discreetly), so I'm a happy lieutenant at the moment.

Still, I'll be happier if I can get through the holidays with everyone in one piece.

Last mission

My company's last mission finished today. We met them in the motor pool and cheered them as they came in.

The guy walking in armor is leading the truck (ground guide). Though the purpose is for safety, it's worked well for pictures because you could see guys' reactions.

Mechanic boots

Can you guess which pair is considered the "work boots"?