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4.19 AVERAGE
4.19 AVERAGE
I'm so happy to be done with this poorly organized book. The only interesting parts were the actual fighting scenes and when the men finally got out and to see how war affected them.
This story of a platoon embedded in the most dangerous valley in Afghanistan has the right amount of backstory, combat violence, army intel to keep someone with no interest in the military, war, and least of all weaponry interested. Well, more than interested, I was hooked. Something I really took from the book was the necessity of having an all-male platoon, or brigade, or whatever they call it.
Sebastian Junger imbedded himself for year in Afghanistan in one of the harshest and most violent provinces. His aim had nothing to do with politics, and in fact he states this wasn't some kind of partisan mission, but instead to give a real and accurate portrayal of what it's like for the men in combat. The results are simply horrifying, and I feel should be required reading for all Americans. I had no idea how truly awful it is over there. How most times the men-or boys, because frankly some are terribly young, don't bathe for 38 days at a time. How there's so much salt in the their clothes, they can stand up by themselves, or that their bodies no longer give off the familiar body odor smell, but instead reek of ammonia because none of them have any fat left on them from the heat, and their gear. He examines the effects of fear, and the constant surging of adrenaline, as well as the platoon mentality, and how these men as a unit would do anything for each other without a second thought. I was constantly struck by the violence , not just in the skirmishes themselves, but in the moments of near normalcy that are shattered by a stray grenade or bullet.And I finished it shaken at the psychological toll this war is taking on our fellow Americans. The nightmares, the inability to re assimilate into society, and absolute horror of watching your friends die in front of you. This quote from the book kind of sums up my feelings about the whole thing: "Soldiers themselves are reluctant to evaluate the costs of the war (for some reason, the closer you are to combat the less inclined you are to question it), but someone must. That evaluation, ongoing and unadulterated by politics, may be the only thing a country absolutely owes the soldiers who defend its borders."
War is as good as combat reporting gets. This is the account of 15 months with Battle Company in the Korengal Valley between 2007 and 2008,a supremely tough 10x10 km patch of mountains, and the love and courage of a few hundred men. This book is the Dispatches of the Global War on Terror, a moving and lyrical account of the terror and excitement of combat that transcends little things like politics and morality and objectivity to get at some sort of Truth.
Part of this book is about strategy and tactics: Leaving an isolated outpost in the unimportant and distant Korengal to protect the important and populated Pech valley; human terrain and Taliban fighters and villagers caught in between, desperate firefights to survive long enough for the Apaches and A-10s to arrive, Prophet-the American intel unit listening to enemy radios. But mostly this book is about courage; about acting under fire so that the unit will survive, even if it means you might die. About brotherhood and love, and the fact that in 20 minutes in a firefight a man can live a lifetime. In a combat platoon, friendship and who you were before doesn't matter. All that matters is your dedicated to the unit and your ability to fight.
Junger's thesis, which is an important corrective in our post-modern age of detachment, is that defense of the group is a profoundly basic and moving action. It's like a powerful drug (although he writes directly against this metaphor towards the end of the book, I think it's an important one. Drugs obliterate reality and sensation, they can be used for good or abused.) Soldiers fight for each other, their entire universe closes down to the platoon, and all the advanced technology or clever counter-insurgency theory in the world, cannot replace this primal bond. Invoke it only with great seriousness.
For media types, it's also interesting to compare this book to Restrepo, a documentary filmed and directed by Junger and Tim Hetherington, covering the exact same events. It's been a while since I've seen Restrepo, but I remember it being far more bleak and nihilistic than the book. What's true? The beautiful words, or the ugly images? Can the same people interpret the same sources differently in different mediums?
Part of this book is about strategy and tactics: Leaving an isolated outpost in the unimportant and distant Korengal to protect the important and populated Pech valley; human terrain and Taliban fighters and villagers caught in between, desperate firefights to survive long enough for the Apaches and A-10s to arrive, Prophet-the American intel unit listening to enemy radios. But mostly this book is about courage; about acting under fire so that the unit will survive, even if it means you might die. About brotherhood and love, and the fact that in 20 minutes in a firefight a man can live a lifetime. In a combat platoon, friendship and who you were before doesn't matter. All that matters is your dedicated to the unit and your ability to fight.
Junger's thesis, which is an important corrective in our post-modern age of detachment, is that defense of the group is a profoundly basic and moving action. It's like a powerful drug (although he writes directly against this metaphor towards the end of the book, I think it's an important one. Drugs obliterate reality and sensation, they can be used for good or abused.) Soldiers fight for each other, their entire universe closes down to the platoon, and all the advanced technology or clever counter-insurgency theory in the world, cannot replace this primal bond. Invoke it only with great seriousness.
For media types, it's also interesting to compare this book to Restrepo, a documentary filmed and directed by Junger and Tim Hetherington, covering the exact same events. It's been a while since I've seen Restrepo, but I remember it being far more bleak and nihilistic than the book. What's true? The beautiful words, or the ugly images? Can the same people interpret the same sources differently in different mediums?
Un periodista (autor de La tormenta perfecta, por cierto) pasa unos meses "empotrado" en una unidad de infantería destacada en un remoto puesto del valle de Korengal, cerca de la frontera afgana con Pakistán. Desde allí, mientras cuenta las actividades diarias de la tropa, reflexiona largo y tendido sobre la guerra y la condición humana. Podía haberles dedicado más tiempo a las reflexiones de los soldados y menos a las suyas propias, pero es un libro muy interesante. La unidad con la que vive está formada por 150 de los más de 70.000 hombres que hay en el país, y a pesar de ello reportó el 20% de los combates en los que hubo implicadas tropas estadounidenses. El puesto donde están, pequeño y aislado, abastecido por helicóptero y rodeado de enemigos que querían arrasarlo, se llama Restrepo, en honor a un médico militar previamente destinado en él, y cuya historia se nos cuenta.
Todo el libro es interesante, y el estilo es rápido, conciso y agradable. Lectura recomendada.
Todo el libro es interesante, y el estilo es rápido, conciso y agradable. Lectura recomendada.
I don't know what I can say to do this book justice. It's one of the best looks at the human condition I've read. Junger breaks down the experience of combat into three sections: Fear, Killing and Love. As disparate as these themes may seem, they are unified by a tight narrative with insightful observations. The lessons on history and the research into psychological studies were also appreciated.
Junger spent 5 months off an on of a 15 month deployment embedded with Battle Company, 2nd Battalion of the 173rd Airborne in the Korengal Valley in the eastern province of Kunar in Afghanistan near the Pakistani border, and this book is part of the result. A heartfelt and well researched book about the life of these young men fighting for our country. This is now my favorite of Jungers books (I haven't read A Death in Belmont), the story of the soldiers of Battle Company are fairly told and, being based on actual interviews with his subjects, has a personal touch that The Perfect Storm, was lacking. The impact of war on the men and the positive and negative aspects of their combat experience puts a powerful "small picture" face on the war in Afghanistan that you don't often hear about on the general coverage of the war.
Fairly objective on my opinion. Good read for the average American to grasp a bit of understanding about the service and sacrifice of our men in uniform.