CARL:"We were talking about various things to do with the conflict here and he said something very revealing about how cultural differences can have an effect upon the war."
"American military commanders and local police and Army commanders work very closely here; the closer the cooperation, the more both sides benefit. We have the firepower and logistics and they know who is who and where they are. The interpreter said the local police and Army commanders are very proud of their relationships with American Soldiers and Marines. The photo they have taken with their American counterparts they will display prominently on their walls and they will cherish (the interpreter's word) it."
"Then the American commander they worked with will leave at the end of his tour. And he won't keep in touch, no random e-mail, nor the occasional phone call. Normal for us, we work with somebody in a place on a job, and when we leave, we leave. Not normal for the local police and Army people. When the men they have worked with so closely don't contact them after leaving, they feel slighted. Their feelings are hurt."
Their feelings are hurt:
"When it comes to mobility I think Americans have it down cold. For Americans mobility is like the water in the gold fish bowl. Don't even think about it. Excuse me. How did we get here. Mayflower. Then boogie outside the city limits. Elbow room. Emigrant trail. Move on. However--- "mobility" is not the same for everyone. I discovered this on a fishing trip with a college classmate. At the lake where we were fishing I ran into a Marine from my unit in VN. The last time I had seen him was after the Tet Offensive which Walter "nose bleed" Cronkite said we lost. Recognized him right away. Four years or more since I had last seen his ass. No big deal. Say hey and like that. Who made it out. Who didn't. Who lost his ass. Who didn't. That kind of stuff. No biggie. I spilt my beers with him. We talked on forever. When it was time for us to leave--said see ya' and off we went back to the campus.
On the ride back , however, my classmate started started quizing with questions that said that "what was no big deal to you dummy is anomaly to the rest of us aka civilians." The big HUH? was written all over my face as I looked at him and wonder what strange bug had crawled up his tuckass. Excuse me, he says, but you talked to him like there was no time-no space-like it had been five minutes since you had last seen him-instead of the four or five years. Civilians, he said, do not react that way--veterans do.
Ok. Ok. No Problem. Put it on my punch list. STAY IN TOUCH.
"When it comes to mobility I think Americans have it down cold. For Americans mobility is like the water in the gold fish bowl. Don't even think about it. Excuse me. How did we get here. Mayflower. Then boogie outside the city limits. Elbow room. Emigrant trail. Move on. However--- "mobility" is not the same for everyone. I discovered this on a fishing trip with a college classmate. At the lake where we were fishing I ran into a Marine from my unit in VN. The last time I had seen him was after the Tet Offensive which Walter "nose bleed" Cronkite said we lost. Recognized him right away. Four years or more since I had last seen his ass. No big deal. Say hey and like that. Who made it out. Who didn't. Who lost his ass. Who didn't. That kind of stuff. No biggie. I spilt my beers with him. We talked on forever. When it was time for us to leave--said see ya' and off we went back to the campus.
On the ride back , however, my classmate started started quizing with questions that said that "what was no big deal to you dummy is anomaly to the rest of us aka civilians." The big HUH? was written all over my face as I looked at him and wonder what strange bug had crawled up his tuckass. Excuse me, he says, but you talked to him like there was no time-no space-like it had been five minutes since you had last seen him-instead of the four or five years. Civilians, he said, do not react that way--veterans do.
Ok. Ok. No Problem. Put it on my punch list. STAY IN TOUCH.
