Briarcliffe's own Lieutenant Martella and I decided to relax last night in our company break area. We were both born on June 10th and while we would much rather have been with friends and family at a Delco establishment, we decided to make the best of what we had.

Linda and Nick Sr. (mom and dad to me) sent me a wonderful package of specialty meats and cheeses from Trio's Cold Cuts on Mac Dade Boulevard. We were joined by my roommate Jamie Kerwin and Chad McGrath who supplied us with birthday cigars. All was well. We were calm, had some music playing, some great food, and a couple cigars to celebrate our birthday. We were as far from Iraq as we could have been. That is until my trusted roommate Jamie Kerwin, turned on us.

Jamie is a member of the old Long Range Surveillance Detachment (LRSD) which recently closed up. They were a specially trained unit of the PA National Guard and some of their ranks now serve with our unit. Only if the Army had known that their skills in ambush tactics and hand to hand combat would have been used for such treachery.

While Mark and I enjoyed our relaxing evening, a plot was in the works. At SSG Kerwin's direction a force of former LRSD guys and some of our crew chiefs had assembled around the covered area which surrounds our common area. The force consisted of a former sniper, a Ranger, several paratroopers, and a hefty backup force. Upon Kerwin's command, the "A-team" rushed into the courtyard and wrestled Martella and I to the ground. We fought back gallantly but were no match for the elite team assembled for this mission. Once we were unable to fight back the objective of the mission became clear.

They were there to give us "pink bellies" for our birthday.

For those of you who have never been the victim of a this attack, according to a website it is "The act of rendering a person's belly skin bright pink with a series of sharp, open-handed slaps."

As a newly elected State Rep I'm not usually subjected to pink bellies, but this is the Army and this is one of the things I love about the Army. No matter who you are or what you do back home, you're just another one of the guys here. You get treated like everyone else for better or for worse. That means doing all of the monotonous work, being subject to the same threats, and being a part of all of the fun (sometimes crazy) traditions the Army retains. If there is one thing about the Army that I'm sure I'll miss, its the camaraderie. The we all live together, fight together, spend our recreational time together, and deal with the same problems together. It's sometimes hard in politics to know who's on your side and who's not. Soldiers don't have that problem.

It was a great birthday. I just hope the members of the "a-team" know that there's two Delco boys who just put all of their birthdays on our calendars.

Thank you all for all the kind birthday wishes. LT Martella's birthday is today as well. My dad sent me a big package from Trio's on MacDade Boulevard that we are going to snack on tonight to celebrate.

Blackhawk Pilot Steve Harper (pictured left) and I decided to have a look around the Basrah International Airport during a free moment. After convincing the Iraqi Police who guard the place that we didn’t plan to go AWOL (absent without leave), they allowed us entrance. The airport is in impeccable shape for what this nation has been through and it looks ready to facilitate thousands of people a day. The interior is beautiful marble throughout the cavernous rooms and the infrastructure is in place. All we are missing is people. The problem is that investment has been slow to come back to this area due to the uncertainty over future stability.
During my last tour in Ramadi, in 2006, people rarely left their homes if they hadn’t fled the city altogether. The streets were desolate and sometimes eerily quiet. Unfortunately they usually didn’t stay that way for long, as attacks on our forces were as frequent as any time during the war. Basrah 2009 is a far cry from Ramadi 2006. When we fly over Basrah we see the green palm tree groves, the bustling markets, and kids playing outside which have replaced my memories of blown out neighborhoods, empty streets, and citizens running for their lives to escape violence.
This place has more than a fighting chance. If the security situation continues to improve as it has since General Petraeus implemented his strategies, the Basrah Airport could become home to business and leisure travelers. It seems to me that Iraq is in a better position to be turned over to the Iraqi Forces now than ever before. Violence is more sporadic than ever, the Iraqi Forces are still standing up after taking some serious hits over the years, and the public seems to be pushing their politicians to end the corruption in their government. While the situation is far from stable, I for one can attest that this is not the Iraq I remember three years ago.
Booker T. Washington once said “I have begun everything with the idea that I could succeed, and I never had much patience with the multitudes of people who are always ready to explain why one cannot succeed.” I hope those who are fighting for Iraq can instill Booker’s sentiment in the rest of the population.

Our unit is up and running and we're doing very well. We've been working long hours and getting a lot accomplished. I'm getting used to flying more than I ever have, but the guys and gals in our unit really take the load off of each other. Whenever a crew is working on a task or a mission, there always seems like there are a few troops around to help in some way. The old idea that many hands make little work is alive and well in the vast majority of this unit.



Below is some good news and some sad news:

Rocket Attack on our base proves fruitless.

http://www.mcclatchydc.com/iraq-daily-violence/story/68994.html


Major Steven Hutchinson was killed in Basrah last week. He is the oldest soldier to be killed in this war and was a two tour Vietnam Vet.


http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/article-1182382/Vietnam-veteran-Major-Steven-Hutchison-oldest-U-S-soldier-die-Iraq-age-60.html


SPC Edmundson was a member of the Pennsylvania National Guard, killed in an IED attack.

http://www.postgazette.com/pg/09149/973616-100.stm?cmpid=newspanel4