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Soldier brother not the same man after three tours in Iraq
KIM MULFORD
Courier-Post Staff
My 28-year-old brother is coming home and he's never going back to Iraq again.
I've been waiting to say those words for years.
My brother, Stephen Peacock, is a Marine sergeant, trained as a helicopter mechanic. Since the war on terror began, his job has been to keep his unit's CH-46 Sea Knights flying. They are massive assault helicopters that are older than me.
His unit was among those sent to invade Iraq four years ago. My mom spent every day watching war coverage on CNN. Whenever she heard about a helicopter going down, she feared the worst.
But Stephen came back months later, safe and moved by the joyful response of the Iraqis he encountered there. It was a war he believed in, a war I was slowly coming to support.
When he was sent back to central Iraq for another tour in 2004, insurgents were slowing progress and causing mayhem.
I can't tell you what he saw there or what it was like. This time, when he returned in June 2005, he refused to talk about it. He told my parents he didn't want to upset us.
There was a distance in his eyes. He hoped never to go back to what he called "the bad place."
Meanwhile, Iraq kept deteriorating. Stationed at Miramar in San Diego, Stephen seriously considered re-enlisting.
In November 2006, he was sent back for a third tour in Iraq. This time, he served in Anbar province, west of Baghdad. It's where most Marines killed in the Iraq War have died. It's where the insurgency is so bad, media reports speculated the area was a lost cause.
For the first time since the war began, I cried when I found out he was there. My sister was angry at President Bush for this poorly planned mess, and by now, so was I.
This time, my brother lost friends. He doesn't say much about it. I'm not sure he ever will.
Throughout this war, I kept sending e-mails to my brother, thanking him for his work. A recent response broke my heart.
Thanks, he wrote, but "I almost feel guilty because I'm just doing my job and what I know."
My brother, a veteran of Iraq and Afghanistan, is coming home this week and is leaving the military.
I just wish he was as proud of his service as I am.
Reach Kim Mulford at (856) 251-3342 or kmulford@courierpostonline.com
Published: March 18. 2007 3:10AM
Posted : 2007-03-18 06:25
Service in Iraq
Well, I guess no one wants to reply to your post. Maybe it's because it is a familiar story and hits a nerve with many here. I cannot speak for everyone but I can say, it is difficult to be fighting a war and not to truly see any progress.
Regardless of the vocal adventists of social equality, American males are inculcated with the need to win. From the early beginnings in life in Little League, school basketball, football, lacrosse, scouting, we are taught to win. And when events are contrived that do not allow us to do so, it affects our psyche. It gnaws away at our thoughts and you eventually begin to question why one is sacrificing their energy, time and possibly their lives for a cause with no end and you just know with no victory in sight. Add the stressors involved in the combat arena and it is a recipe for disaster.
I have always felt, Vietnam veterans had an obligation to stand as guardians against our government ever again commiting our troops in another war of attrition and nation building. America has a right to defend itself, but when it does it should be total and complete ala WW 2 and not with this limited/unconventional war concept that has again proven to be a failed tactic.
I hope your brother can somehow overcome his troubles and will seek help. He should focus on the fact he served with his fellow Marines faithfully and was loyal to them and in the end that is what truly counts.
S/F Gordon
Posted : 2007-03-18 16:37
G,
I think most will agree with you, but I have to ask- are you responding in general or to anyone in particular? Reason I ask is I see a lot of what I'll call "posting for" or posting of a news article and invariably there will be an answer to the post. My gut feel is the original author will never see any response.
Posted : 2007-03-18 17:21
