Monday, February 25, 2013
War, part 2
There are several key ideas in this section of the excerpt (10-21). One of them is the idea of what makes soldiers react the way they do to insure the survival of the unit. For example, Junger writes that Sal Giunta had about 15 seconds to assess the ambush in which they were trapped and react. His heroic actions saved his fellow soldier and earned him a Congressional Medal of Honor. If the army can determine what makes Sal Giunta react the way he does, there would be many more positive outcomes for the U.S. Army. What do you believe is the key attribute for a soldier? Is it fearlessness? intelligence? instinct? or something else? Secondly, think about the IED (Improvised Explosive Device) encountered by Junger. Suddenly, the idea of a good soldier goes out the window. Death is a random event when your truck happens to go over the spot of an IED when a Taliban fighter touches the 2 key wires together. Comment on the psychological toll this weapon must take on modern professional soldiers with the best equipment in the world. That's a lot to consider!! Please respond by Monday, March 4.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
What makes a “good soldier” is not the absence of fear but instead it is the embracing of fear. Spending time worrying about what could happen to you in war or combat doesn’t dilute the fear, instead it turns fear into a debilitating force rendering you powerless in controlling your fate. Sal Giunta, was a man, no a soldier, who never let fear get in his way. When Giunta ran after his fellow soldier and friend he didn’t hesitate because he understood that if it were himself that was being dragged away by the enemy to a certain death that a comrade of his would risk their life for him. War among other things is comradery, it is knowing that you won’t be left behind and that your brother will have your back no matter what. Thus, the question isn’t how do we instill bravery, courage, selflessness, or intelligence in a soldier but how do we strengthen the bond between 10-12 men who serve together, die together, and fight together in a platoon.
ReplyDeleteMany people wonder why a soldier does what he does. Is it because he was trained that way? Is it because he learned to behave that way? I personally feel that a soldier isn’t taught how to act in war they are born knowing what to do and when to do it when it counts. You cannot teach a cat to land on its feet the same way you cannot teach a man to risk his life for a cause that he or she may not even believe in (Vietnam). These men and women are born understanding that they must keep their head down and follow orders regardless of whether or not they believe in them. They not only lay down their lives but their voices as well as Kevin Tillman would put it.
Even after the military feels as if they have properly trained a man for war or after the government feels that spending 80,000 on a single rocket better prepares a man to fight in said war a man can never be prepared for the “random luck” of an insurgent sitting miles away that touches two wires together and ends a life. Expecting the unexpected is impossible when the unexpected is a slow cooker with enough explosives in it to blow your body in several directions at once. Surely, this fear of death lurking around (and under) any corner is enough to emotionally and mentally unravel any soldier. For example, Junger commented on being put in a state of shock after seeing two men carry a mattress because it reminded him of two soldiers carrying a dead body on the battlefield. The worst part is Junger wasn’t even a soldier in the war.
With regards to whether or not the I.E.D is “fair” one must consider if any weapon is “fair.” Junger pointed out that machine guns add thousands more casualties to wars because they often never need to stop firing. A bomb dropped from miles above an enemy giving them absolutely no time to defend themselves is also unfair. Thus, does it matter what method of killing is used so long as the person whom you are trying to kill dies. As Junger stated war is not about honor it is about winning and in war today the end may very well justify the means.
---Nick Palumbo
Such things especially war are definitally not planned for me because decisions such as the actions Sal Giunta performed that day are so unbelievible. When war turns into a fire fight people will get injured, some even close to death but the actions such as Sal Giunta's don't seem to be any traits such intelligent or fearless but beliving that he can do it,believing he can help his comrades which he shows by going into this supposed L ambush which supposed to kill them but he believed in all the training he took and used that to save his comrades. He was able to face death and live because there could have been his death included to all those he saved that day. An IED seems to be a scarring memory to most because when you think of joining the force you expect to die but most may feel like they might die by another humans doing not death by a car explosion especially since it could happen at any time and people could survive if the timing is off could make you think of how close you were to dying because of the timing being off Even when you think you can't die than something explodes would make you think wether you are safe or not leaving you with paranoya and ptsd
ReplyDelete-Jesus Garcia
The key attributes for the soldiers are the bonds they share with their platoon, selflessness, patriotism, and fearlessness. They need to want to help and protect the people they are with. They must trust who they are fighting with and also be willing to run into battle to save them. They need to not think of themselves but of the others and the country they are fighting for. With all of this they will be willing to put their lives on the line but they also have to be fearless so they can act when they are needed and not become paralyzed. To be strong they need to be physically fit but also always have the right mindset so they can do what must be done in an intense situation. Then when you put IEDs into the equation you can get a totally different psychological state. The soldiers have to know what they are getting into and not let it get to them. They can’t live in fear of what could happen. No matter what they do they could get killed and this really can take a toll on them because they never know when they can die and they can’t protect themselves. The IED is the ultimate weapon it will make you scared of everything and it kills at anytime but the soldiers must learn how to keep themselves calm if they are to be any help.
ReplyDeletePamela Whatley
DeleteThere are many different attributes that make up a good soldier. I think a good soldier has a combination of instinct, intelligence, and bravery. Sal Giunta put his life on the line for the men in his platoon because it was his first instinct to save his brother, and because he was brave. Although he was afraid he still did what he had to to save his platoon. Giunta is considered a remarkable soldier because he had all these traits. However, I agree with Nick that the army should not be looking for men with these traits, but they should be focusing on how to strengthen the bond between men who are serving together. When IED’s are added into war it can cause a different mindset, but as a soldier you should understand that there are many different unfair weapons that you will encounter in war.
ReplyDeleteGilisa Paternina
A soldier needs many attributes to survive in a war. Deciding what is most important is hard. Some attributes like fearlessness, ingenuity, intelligence, etc. are very important but the most imporatnt attribute a soldier needs is the ability to quickly analyze a stiuation and react. You could be the best shot, the most ferocious fighter, the most tactical thinker but if you can't react fast when the bullets start flying then your not going be any good, because your going to be dead. IED's are weaponds that instill fear in everyman who is in an area with them. The thought that at any time some random anything could explode and wound or kill you puts a lot of psycological stress on you. It makes you paranoid and can disturb you for your entire time there.
ReplyDelete-Colin Krohto
Many attibutes are required to make a good soldier. Attributes like fearlessness, ingenunity, intelligence,etc. are all very important but they are not the most important. The most important attribute you need is the ability to quickly analyze a situation and react. You could be the best shot, the most ferocious fighter, the most fearless person, but if when the bullets start flying and you can't react fast enough then I doesn't matter how good you are at anything else because you are going to die. IED's are a weapon that are designed to instill into the hearts and minds of the enemy. It is pyscological warfare and the victims of it face constant fear from the fact that at any time something could explode and wound or kill you. These people face contant stress and can be mentally disturbed for many years after.
ReplyDelete-Colin Krohto
The key attributes that a soldier should have are intelligence, and psychological strength to make good decisions. A soldier needs intelligence because he/she needs to be able to approach each situation with a plan and the ability to make educated while under pressure. Psychological strength is important because it allows the soldier to think clearly and make effective and prompt decisions.
ReplyDeleteIED's put an interesting spin on modern wars. A movie that i find very relative to this subject is ""The Hurt Locker". In the movie it follows a bomb squad who face the dehumanizing effects that war brings. In one scene of the movie the main diffuser was ready to test out an explosive however he left his helmet near it so he took his Humvee to the site, then one of his squad-mates considers blowing him up and saying the explosives went off on him. Soldiers of modern day wars are put under more stress than any training could ever prepare them for and not many soldiers can cope with it especially when it comes to seeing fellow friends and soldiers blown up by IED's.
-Ryan Brehio
I believe that there are many different key attributes necessary for a modern soldier to possess on the battlefield. The most important attribute for a soldier to have is his/her instinct, a strong natural impulse or reflex based on their awareness and perception of their current surrounding situation. Of course, a fearless soldier will make more bold choices, take more risks and an intelligent soldier will try to understand different a perceptive/tactic while making a rational decision, it is the soldier with a strong natural instinct that will make the best out of the intimidating and rapid pace of warfare. I agree with Nick’s statement about how a soldier isn’t taught how to act in war, they are born knowing what to do and when to do it when it counts. In this excerpt, Jungar described how Sal Giunta had to make a vital decision in fifteen seconds. In fifteen second there is simply no time to contemplate different decisions; you just need to react instantly and intuitively. However, I believe that any of these key attributes goes out of the window when Improvised Explosive Devises are involved. Improvised Explosive Devices can take a major psychological toll on modern professional soldiers. ”The idea that there are rules in warfare and that combatants kill each other according to basic concepts of fairness probably ended for good with the machine gun.” Modern military tactics are not honorable; war is about winning which means killing the enemy by maneuvering them into a position where they can be massacred from safety. Jungar says that the core psychological experiences of war are so primal and pure; they hide subtler feelings, like sorrow or remorse that can gut you quietly for years. This leads me to believe that modern weapons such as machine guns and IEP’s must take a colossal psychological toll on soldiers.
ReplyDelete- Jillian
What is a family? Is it the people whose blood courses through your veins as well? The people that you’re related to? Or is it the people who care for you or look after you? Maybe even die for or with you? The thing about family is that it does not mean the people who share your blood; those are simply your relatives. Rather, your family is the collective group of people, whether related to you or not, would almost certainly do anything for you. You must have a strong bond with someone for them to be considered a part of your family. This feeling of family, of brotherhood found in the troops of the United States Army is THE defining factor that can ensure the prosperity of the group. Once you have the sense of family or brotherhood, everything else comes naturally.
ReplyDeleteWhen the Taliban were raining hell down onto the soldiers, Staff Sargent Giunta was cut off from his group. Instinctively, he ran through the seemingly endless fire to try and connect with his alpha squad. Now, Sgt. Giunta says that, “I did what I believe anyone would have done.” However, this brings up the question, would just anyone really run through a storm of lead to try and reconnect with someone else? Would anyone just risk their life for someone they don’t have a strong relationship with? Sargent Giunta may have acted on instinct, but his instinct, depending on the situation, could be completely altered. If in fact he loathed the people he was fighting alongside, would he have gone out there? Would his instinct have been to risk his life to reconnect, or would it have been to hunker down and hold his own, while the other guys were getting shot at? His immediate instinct to sprint through hell was because of his sense of fraternity with his fellow soldiers; his brothers.
There is no debate on whether or not IEDs can cause disarray in a soldier’s psyche. Improvised Explosive Devices have a profound effect on the mental health of soldiers. However, how much they affect a soldier’s psyche can be significantly reduced by how much a soldier trusts his fellow brothers in arms. When a soldier goes into battle always worrying, always stressing, and always feeling alone when in a group of men, he has a significantly higher chance of developing some sort of mental instability. A soldier, who can trust those around him, knows that any one of his brothers would die for him, is much vastly more confident. He knows that they will always have his back in the best of times, and in the worst of times. So even if things go completely FUBAR (F***** Up Beyond All Repair), he knows he has someone he can count upon. And this sense of reassurance, of family, of brotherhood, can mean the difference between a soldier coming home through an airport terminal, or in a body bag.
What makes a good soldier is putting themselves before others. Sal Giunta risked his life to save his friend Brandon. Although Brandon died from his wounds, Salvatore put his life on the line to try and bring Brandon back to the lines. Sal was fearless, he wanted his friend, and he would do anything to get him.
ReplyDelete-Connor Lanoie
But was his "fearlessness" a result of the kinship (the "Band of Brothers" idea)he felt with Brennan? Does one put aside fear and react instinctively to the situation to preserve those bonds? What about the use of IEDs and other weapons of assymetric warfare?
DeleteYip the Grea
What makes a good soldier is the ability to react quickly and effectively in trying situations. Without this ability of self preservation, all other training is useless, as it isn't much help if you're dead. Sure, putting yourself on the line in order to save others is a very noble act, and very respectable, but this is what makes them a good person, not a good soldier. IED's on the other hand are a very devastating device. IED's make this concept of a "super soldier" near pointless, because of how powerful these devices are, and the destruction that they can cause at the click of a button. However the real strength in these devices is how much it affects a soldiers moral. It would make even the most advanced of a soldier helpless, and all of his previous training useless.
ReplyDeleteNick DeGennaro
I think there are many things that a soldier needs to be sucessfull and ultimetly to keep them alive. I think that it is fearlessness. You have to go into battle and not go in with fear because it can cause you to react in bad way and you could make a mistake. I think that is you have the mindset that you are going to make it out of this alive it gives you a psycoligcal advantage to a fearfull timid opponent. And ultimetly that is what will keep you alive. Personally I think IEDs are one of the worst creations ever. A soldier could be randomly driving along a road and BAM nothing they can do but either die, or get injured. It has a huge psycological impact. Just imagine not knowing if the next step you take could send you 100 feet in the air in 100 peices. And if someone was to see one of these go off on a fellow soldier it would be abosluetly devistating. This bombs make the war so much harder and worse then anyone can imagine.
ReplyDeleteTommy janicki
I think that what makes a soldier sucessful is instinct and when they act upon this it is what keeps them alive. Sometimes when they act upon pure orders or training this is what the enemy is expecting and can cause them further harm. But when they act on instinct they are doing what has been done for thousands of years to keep soldiers safe. Also IEDs are unpredictable and I think that the threat of being blown up no matter how good you are is constantly with the soldiers. Pysocologically this is must be extremely taxing, and can add to the stress the soldiers experience while at war and when they return home. These type of warfare is brutal and unforgiving.
ReplyDelete-Sarah Kennedy