07-30-2007, 19:50
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Administrators
Join Date: Feb 2004
Location: Fayetteville, NC
Posts: 2,264
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Congressman visits special operations Soldiers in Afghanistan
Congressman visits special operations Soldiers in Afghanistan
Quote:
BAGRAM AIR FIELD, AFGHANISTAN - (CJTF-82 PAO, July 30, 2007) – During his 11th visit to Afghanistan July 22, Georgia Congressman Jim Marshall visited special operations troops to gain first-hand knowledge on the current fight in Afghanistan.
During his visit, Marshall visited the Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force-Afghanistan operations center then flew to meet special operations Soldiers at a remote firebase in the Patika Province.
After arriving and greeting the Soldiers and airmen of Firebase Chamkani, Marshall chatted for hours with senior special operations Soldiers over dinner. As night fell over eastern Afghanistan, conversations with subjects ranging from Army food to training filled the dining facility.
“I get along well with the Soldiers because I was one; the experience of being a Soldier stays with a person as long as they live,” said Marshall. “An old Soldier can talk to a young Soldier and find they have a lot in common, despite the age and era differences.”
The following day, Marshall conducted PT with Firebase Chamkani Soldiers and spent the rest of the morning in a briefing about military operations in the Patika Province. After watching a weapons demonstration, the congressman and locally based special operations Soldiers drank tea with Afghan National Security Forces and discussed the current security situation in Chamkani.
“You can’t know all about what is going on somewhere unless you go there and talk to the people who are living it,” said Marshall. “One thing that hasn’t changed since I’ve been in the Army is the value of details learned from first-hand experience.”
Marshall is no stranger to first hand experience. He is a thrice- wounded combat veteran and a member of the U.S. Army Ranger Hall of Fame and has visited coalition troops with 11 visits to Afghanistan and 10 to Iraq.
Though many critics and outside observers openly compare the current wars in Afghanistan and Iraq to America’s war in Vietnam, Marshall offered the perspective of a person with valid experience from the Vietnam War.
“Like my days in Vietnam, many Americans are clueless as to the Soldiers’ life and challenges during this era,” said Marshall. “While they still can’t fathom the depth of our Soldiers’ sacrifices, I don’t know anyone who isn’t appreciative and respectful of what Soldiers do for our country. It warms my heart when a group of Soldiers will walk through the Atlanta airport and people applaud them. That didn’t happen during Vietnam; people were more apt to boo.”
Before his departure, Marshall made sure he expressed his gratitude for the service of special operations Soldiers in Afghanistan and Iraq.
“Though you are rarely recognized, you’re bearing a heavy burden for our entire nation,” said Marshall. “For the rest of your life, you can take pride in the fact that you stood for freedom in a place that knew only pain and oppression.”
--usasoc--
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