US Soldier: 'We Don't Feel Like Heroes Anymore'

'We Don't Feel Like Heroes Anymore'

By Pfc. Isaac Kindblade The Oregonian -Tuesday 05 August 2003

I am a private first class in the Army's 671st Engineer Company out of Portland. I just wanted to let you know a little bit of what we are up to, maybe so that you can have another opinion of what's going on over here in Iraq.

We have been in country since Feb. 14 and were a part of the Third Infantry Division's march into Baghdad. In fact, as a result of some serious miscommunications, we were the front line of the charge on two very distinct occasions.

We haven't been a huge part of the war. We are bridge builders, and we were here in the event that the Iraqis blew up the bridges on their retreat. They didn't, so we didn't have to do much.

We were scheduled for 13 missions at the start of the war. We did three or four bridge-related missions. We fill in where we are needed, whether it be guarding enemy prisoners of war, operating traffic control points, patrols on the Tigris River or guard duty of police stations. Our primary mission at this point is transportation, because we happen to drive very large trucks.

A lot is being said about poor morale. That seems to be the case all over the place. It's hot, we've been here for a long time, it's dangerous, we haven't had any real down time in months and we don't know when we're going home.

I think a big aspect has been the people here. When the war had just ended, we were the liberators, and all the people loved us. Convoys were like one long parade. Somewhere down the line, we became an occupation force in their eyes. We don't feel like heroes anymore.

We are doing the best we can, trying to get this place back on its feet so we can go home -- making friends with the locals and trying to enforce peace and stability.

A lot is made of our military's might. Our Abrams tanks, our Apache helicopters, computers, satellites, this and that. All that stuff is great, but it's essentially useless in peacekeeping ops. It is up to the soldiers on the ground armed with M-16s and a precious few words of Arabic.

The task is daunting, and the conditions are frightening. We can't help but think of "Black Hawk Down" when we're in Baghdad surrounded by swarms of people. Soldiers are being attacked, injured and killed every day. The rules of engagement are crippling. We are outnumbered. We are exhausted. We are in over our heads.

The president says, "Bring 'em on." The generals say we don't need more troops. Well, they're not over here.

It would take a group of supermen to do what's been asked of us. Maybe people back home think we are. Hell, maybe we are. I'm 20, and I can't help but think that serving in a war is a rite of passage, earning my generation a place in the history books.

I'm honored to be over here, and I realize that this is the experience of a lifetime. All the same, we are ready to come home.

Pfc. Isaac Kindblade of Cornelius enlisted in the Army at age 17 before his graduation from Valley Catholic High School in Beaverton.