The Iraq Experience....This Seabees' view and why the MEDIA has no standing.

The picture above shows Seabees from my unit showing their pride in the New England Patriots and being proud of being from New England. Good Stuff.

I have listened to the political wrangling, posturing & all the noise coming from the media regarding the Iraq conflict and the close of combat operations.

I was there in Iraq for the Battle of Fallujah. It was a difficult mission and the Iraqi people needed our help before and after we ousted a ruthless Dictator who brutalized his people, and allowed others (especially his sons) to rape & murder at will.

The key was that we did our duty, we upheld our core values and we had empathy for those who were there who only wanted to live in peace.

The measure of victory that I gained was that we went into Fallujah at the height of the battle with 130 Seabees and when our tour was done, we brought 130 Seabees home safely.

No other measure of success was more important or mattered more to me & my fellow Seabees.

That we were able to help Iraq start on a path toward a better country was important, and the ability to help her citizens cannot be understated, but most importantly, we brought ALL our troops home to their families alive and in one piece.

I'll leave the blathering to the pundits, mainly as they have no standing as they were only observers and they didn't have "skin" in the game. Me & mine did and that is why we can speak with an understanding of what was important and what isn't. The pundits can all just go about their business, thank you very much. They are highly inconsequential and their opinions rendered moot.