It's just business

I continually remind my subordinates that it's not what happens that defines us but rather how we react to what happens. At the same time, I reinforce to them that mission success is our business and to remember that what we do is just business and never personal. Some of you will read that and think I've seen The Godfather one too many times. Actually, I don't think it is possible to watch that movie too many times, as it is filled with quips of wisdom. Applying the Corleone Family philosophy to the Army can serve any Soldier well. But, unfortunately, too many folks in the Army have very thin skin and extremely fragile egos. They also jump to conclusions as soon as thing go wrong - as they sometimes do. When something goes wrong on Bagram the tendency is to automatically blame Garrison even when the facts bare out differently. We deal with what I call "knee-jerk" reactions almost daily. This is why I make certain neither my subordinates nor me take anything personal and that we always react with professionalism and courtesy. This past week brought a case in point.

It started when we signed for a brand new transient billeting building from the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE). The building is a large 2-story structure that houses up to 600 personnel in an open bay furnished with bunk beds and lockable steel cages for securing gear. On one end of each floor is a large latrine that includes toilets, sinks, and showers. USACE supervised a contracted company during the construction phase of the building in one of many projects on Bagram known as MILCON (Military Construction). Once the building was complete it was given an independent third-party technical inspection (TI) that, once passed, would allow the building to be accepted by Garrison and brought onto the base "density list". The density list is critical, as it allows service and maintenance contracts required to maintain the building and keep its facilities clean. In the case of this building, there was something missed during the TI. It turns out the construction company workers (a Turkish-based company) had been tossing empty bottles, rags, and trash down the main latrine drain pipe early on in the project. The building was a ticking time bomb for a huge sewage problem. The stage was set for disaster. It came within 48 hours of us signing for the building.

The day after we signed for the new building we moved a redeploying unit into the facility. It only took a few hours for the previously unknown blockage in the latrine to rear its ugly head. Late on the evening of the unit's first night the toilets began overflowing. Before long a "river of feces" flowed through the toilet side of the latrine. It may have been the most putrid thing I've ever seen or smelled. My team was already on the problem. But the unit's leadership had already jumped to the conclusion that Garrison had done this on purpose and that nothing was being done about the situation. Their commander refused to meet with me, instead choosing to go straight to higher command to complain. My CSM and I were at the building the entire time to monitor the situation. The unit's command team was nowhere in sight. We offered the unit alternate billets. They refused. But our technicians did, in fact, clean out the latrine pipe in an amazingly fast time. Simultaneously, a cleaning crew arrived to completely sanitize the place. Less than twelve hours after the latrines backed up they were not only back in service - they were even cleaner than when we first signed for the building. There have been no issues since. The unit's leadership proved just as unprofessional with the solution as they had with the problem. Their commander never acknowledged the rapid repair and cleaning of the latrine. No thanks were ever rendered. But my team just continued on our professional way. We've come to expect all the blame and none of the praise. It's just business. It's not personal.

Never a dull moment

Somehow I let an entire week slip by without sharing another entry. It's much more realistic to say the week didn't just slip by - more like flew by. Every day when I come into the office I have to prepare myself for whatever the drama of the moment will be. There's never a dull moment. I think I just might write a novel based on all the things that happen in Bagram. The past seven days are simply a microcosm of "As Bagram Turns". When I last wrote it was about a memorial ceremony for three fallen Heroes. Fortunately, since then we haven't had a similar event. But my life has been full of adventures.

A synopsis of the last week gives a glimpse into my world. We had two Vietnam era Medal of Honor recipients in for a visit. They were accompanied by actor Stephen Lange, who was promoting his stage production "Beyond Glory". Their visit gave a welcome interruption to the day-to-day silliness of Bagram. The rest of the week was filled with a variety of adventure. It went from mundane to exhilarating. A necessary mundane task that filled a large portion of my time was completing awards and evaluations for my Military Police detachment from the North Carolina Army National Guard. I definitely wanted to ensure my fellow Tarheels were taken care of before they go home. Then I had to deal with the usual complaint issues that come from a base of 30,000 - primarily housing issues like no hot water, electrical problems, backed up toilets, and broken HVAC systems. The worst billeting issue came from complaints of mold forming inside the walls of a certain housing area. This became high drama when the Division Surgeon determined it was a potential Life, Health, Safety (LHS) issue. The result was a directive to relocate all 700 occupants, which is not easy when housing is very tight. But we got it done. Next came the incessant drumbeat of endless meetings dealing with just about anything that could be imagined. Garrison Command is brief spurts of productivity frequently interrupted by meetings. We supported a big security sweep of Bagram to net a bunch of foreign workers identified as being potential threats to the base. That was high excitement for my team. And, finally, the seven-day span wrapped up with another MWR visit. This time it was the Washington Redskins Cheerleaders on their "Adopt a Soldier" tour, which for some reason included an Elvis impersonator.

With that, I embark upon another week of fun and adventure. Welcome to my world. Like I said, it's never a dull moment.

Farewell to Three Heroes

During the early morning hours of 10 January 2014, three Heroes based at Bagram paid the ultimate price. They met The Lord performing the job they loved so dearly - flying their MC12 aircraft in the service of their Country. I did not know them. But I serve alongside people wo do. Yesterday I attended their memorial service. It was held at the Enduring Faith Chapel. The small church was filled to overflow capacity. By the end of the service I felt as though I had personally served with all three Heroes. The oldest of the three was 31, married, and from Ohio. He was a civilian contractor pilot who served alongside his military family with selfless distinction. The next oldest was 27, married, and father of one daughter. He was a Chief Warrant Officer from Wyoming who loved flying and was rated on both rotary and fixed-wing aircraft. The youngest was 25, married, and father of one son. He was a Sergeant in the Hawaii Army National Guard who had enthusiastically volunteered for this assignment in Afghanistan. During the course of the ceremony words of remembrance were shared by their Commanding Officer and others with whom they had served. Emotions flowed freely from the hearts of men and women for their love of these men. The Lord was present. His love captured the tears and calmed the sadness. As the twenty one gun volleys sounded and the bugler played Taps the emotions swelled as one. There is a bond formed among those who serve together in combat. Only those who serve know the strength and depth of this bond. Though we enter our military adventures as strangers, we become brothers and sisters who are forged and tempered stronger than life itself. At the conclusion of the ceremony each person in attendance waited for their opportunity to render a final salute to the boots, rifles, helmets, and ID tags of the fallen Heroes. I did likewise. Raising my hand in silent salute, then after touching their ID tags I laid my command coin down for each of them. I did not know them before I came to the ceremony. But through the heartfelt descriptions of the love they devoted to their families, their comrades, and their Country I came to know them. Farewell Warriors and may your flight to Heaven be borne by Angels adorned with the wings of eagles. We shall all join you one day for our final roll call.

This is dedicated to the Warrior Aviators of Task Force Odin and the families of the fallen Heroes.

In Memory Of

Chief Warrant Officer 3 Andrew L. McAdams
Sergeant Drew M. Scobie
Kristopher L. Noble

Bowl Games?

We become conditioned to the expectation that work slows around the New Year. And why should it not? After all, with the holidays, family, celebrations, and College Football it is only natural that life slows for a couple of weeks. Expectations remain unfulfilled in Bagram. The arrival of 2014 did not equate to a chance to kick back and watch football - much less catch a breather. Instead our work tempo increased dramatically. New Year's Day was even busier than a normal day and included two separate briefings to the Commanding General. There hasn't been a day of 2014 yet that I have not worked at least 15 hours. I've come to believe that everyone had a New Year's Resolution to work longer hours. If that be the case, everyone in my Chain-of-Command is making their resolution come true. While I do appreciate having a sense of urgency, I also like to couple it with a sense of purpose. Right now the furious pace of 2014 has only been accompanied by the former. The work we are pursuing is no different than what we were doing right up to the end of 2013. The increase of tempo could be attributed to the Bilateral Security Agrement, which still remains unsigned. But I won't speculate. I just know that College Football Bowl Season came and went and I barely had time to notice.

It's fair to say that the time difference makes an impact on watching football. Afghanistan is 9.5 hours ahead of Eastern Standard Time Zone. The premium bowl games didn't even kick off until the wee hours of the morning. For most of us that meant squeezing in the second or third quarter with a cup of coffee before running back to work. Now the same madness is spilling over into the NFL playoffs. AFN shows repeats of the games later in the week but that just isn't the same. Yes, missing bowl games and NFL playoffs are yet another sacrifice of being deployed. I haven't seen a single college or pro game from start to finish this entire season (I made the effort for the Army-Navy game but gave up in the third quarter).

I look forward to having my expectations for the holidays come true again. For now they have to wait. Bagram is very high-maintenance and she is extremely jealous of her time.

Happy New Year!

2013 ended with a bang. - literally. We can thank the Taliban for giving us New Year's fireworks free of charge. They got to work earlier than normal on New Year's Eve. Unfortunately, their rockets disrupted a much-anticipated USO performance by comedian Tommy Davidson. But, appropriately, it did make for a comical story. Tommy's show was held in the Clamshell across the street from my HQ. my CSM and I were in attendance. Although the event started earlier in the day for security reasons it still packed a big audience. Halfway into Tommy's routine the IDF alarm sounded. Everyone hit the floor as we've been trained to do - everyone except Tommy. Apparently, he thought we were playing a joke on him. It only took a few seconds for him to realize the alarm was real. He froze for a moment holding the microphone and then simply said, "shit." With that he sprinted off the stage and hit the deck himself. After a few seconds my CSM and I got up and moved out to our HQ to monitor the emergency response. But we both stopped to thank Tommy as we departed. He remained prone and laughingly said he'd finish his routine lying down. It was a funny sequence and, fortunately, nobody was hurt.

About three hours later I stepped from my HQ back to my room just to take a break. I stretched out and dozed off. It was around 1830. A short 30 minutes later I was awakened by the dreaded IDF alarm. I didn't move other than muttering "fuck" under my breath. But just a second or two later I got a vivid reminder of why reacting to the IDF alarm is important. Just after emitting my f-bomb came a loud screech and explosion - "FIP-BOOM!" The concussion knocked me out of my bed and onto the floor. Gathering my wits I put my glasses back on and instinctively ran out on the catwalk. My initial impression was that the rocket had impacted on one of the bunkers adjacent to my room. I saw my CSM and together we scanned around. Realizing my vision was blurred I looked at my glasses. They were broken. Returning to my room I found the lens and managed to pop it back in place. Then the two of us donned our IOTV and moved to the point of impact. The rocket had landed on a concrete pad a short 75 meters away from my room. God's grace had been upon us all once again. Earlier in the day a tent had resided where the rocket landed but it had been taken down. The area was normally busy with foot traffic but only two people were in the area when the rocket hit. Both of them, unlike me, had reacted correctly when the alarm sounded and hit the deck. Their actions saved their lives. Both of them were within twenty meters of the blast and were pelted by debris. Although they were obviously rattled, they were not physically harmed. CSM and I, along with a few others who had rushed to the scene, helped them to their feet and ensured they went to the hospital to be evaluated for Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI). The only damage was a hole in the concrete pad, destroyed tent supports, and wrecked electrical transformers adjacent to the impact. The smell of cordite lingered for some time. It was a close call for sure but everyone was safe.

Amazingly enough, the rest of the night went without incident. Midnight came to herald in 2014. The last year I'll ever spend deployed had now arrived. Back in my room I watched the New Year ring in places like Dubai and other cities. They had their fireworks too. But they had nothing on the excitement of ringing in the New Year in Bagram.