20070117 A Young soldier in Iraq shares wisdom beyond his age

A Young soldier in Iraq shares wisdom beyond his age

January 12th, 2007 – January 17th, 2007

Quick update:

The Teflon Don writes in a post dated January 16, 2007, “Snowball? Where?!,” that “Walking on History” a great deal of (well-deserved) positive attention.

Except from “a rather vitriolic post by James Wolcott, a contributing editor to Vanity Fair, who says:

[…]

War is war, his service to his country is commendable, we wish him safe return, but, really, there's no excuse for a pretentious prose style. Hemingway, Steven Crane- -they kept it bone-clean lean. They would have blanched at such gold-leafed Victor Davis Hansen vainglorious horseshit

Well, right out of the gate, consider the source.

Secondly, many of us would love to have our work contrasted with that of Victor Davis Hansen. (One of my many favorites was “The War and Its Critics” from October 3^rd, 2006. Go ahead; it is a long piece that is worth every minute of reading it…

But when you write history, and especially history of a contentious nature about Iraq, in which so much is at stake, it is incumbent to identify primary sources. The last three books about the supposed mess in Iraq—Cobra II, Fiasco, and now State of Denial—violate every canon of intellectual courtesy. Check who said what in Cobra II and you find the following: “Interview, former senior military officer”, “Interview, former senior officer”, “Interview, former Centcom planner,” Interview, Pentagon Officials,” “Interview, U.S. State Department Official,” or “notes of a participant.”

When the readers encounter the most controversial and damning of verbatim quotes in Fiasco, they are presented with “said a Bush administration official” or “recalled one officer.” Woodward is ever more derelict, in imagining not just the conversations, but even the thoughts of characters…

But not too worry, the “Teflon Don’s” response is priceless:

“… Actually, I'm flattered that someone so self-important as James Wolcott tore into me in the same column as he tore into Pajamas Media. That's ok, James- keep on keeping us honest over here. Sip your latte as you wade knee-deep through your self-proclaimed Iraqi mire in the comfort of your New York office.”

_____

H/t: Walking On History from the Teflon Don

Writing on his milblog, “Acute Politics,” a young soldier shows wisdom beyond his apparent age in a poignant post, “Walking on History.”

It was on this land that the Babylonian empire first arose out of those first Sumerian agrarians, only to be conquered by the Assyrians, and still later throw off the foreign chains. It was here that Alexander's phalanxes swept by, trailing Hellenism in their wake. Rome, and later the Byzantines, drew their border with Persia at the Euphrates River. At that river was where the Sassanids made their stand against the spread of Arabian Islam. The Khans of the Mongols laid this land waste, sometimes killing only to build their towers of bones higher.

This region is steeped in history. We walk on it; we breath it in. Eons of history surround us, infiltrate us, and turn to dust beneath our feet.

Read the rest of his post here.

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