Waging Peace: A Special Operations Team's Battle to Rebuild Iraq

Okay, so i am in the book, but I can still remain objective. Most military books I have read deal with specific combat operations or tactics as that seems to be what people expect when they think of the military. Like going to go and blow up a bridge or something. There are a lot of people in the military and most of those that serve have jobs other than combat operations. It is interesting to read about a military job that specifically does not use combat operations in a hostile military environment to acheive military goals. Like going to go and repair a bridge or something.

This is a great book. It tells the story from a Civil Affairs Team perspective, which many civilians don't even know exist and how they interact amongst themselves and the manuever Battalions they support. Unfortunately Rob was only able to concentrate on one of the Battalion's teams. There were, at times, over 10+ teams spread throughout Iraq doing similar missions which he did not have a chance to visit (one person can only do so much). I have to admit I am biased since I was part of the 425th Civil Affairs Battalion in Iraq and got to see "Writer Rob" quite a bit in theater. He is an incredibly interesting person and I was fortunate to get to know him. Look for more Civil Affairs stories from him because I think he is headed back over to Iraq or Afghanistan in the near future. UPDATE: SSG PAUL WAS KIA IN KABUL ON 8 SEP 06. HE WAS PART OF OF THE 425TH CA IN IRAQ AND VOLUNTEERED FOR A SECOND TOUR WITH ANOTHER UNIT IN AFGHANISTAN. GOD BLESS SSG PAUL. The Department of Defense announced the death of two soldiers, who were supporting Operation Enduring Freedom. They died in Kabul, Afghanistan, on September 8, when a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device detonated near their HMMWV. Both soldiers were assigned to the Army Reserve's 405th Civil Affairs Battalion, Fort Bragg, N.C. Killed were: Sgt. 1st Class Merideth L. Howard, 52, of Alameda, California and Staff Sgt. Robert J. Paul, 43, of The Dalles, Oregon. As Oregonians, we take the death of each of our soldiers quite personally. As we bid farewell to another, it is important to remember the man he was and the family he left behind. Staff Sgt Robert J Paul, an Army Reservist, was assigned to the 364th Civil Affairs Brigade, HHC, based in Portland, Oregon. These units serve as the main liaison between the military and the civilian populations of the country where the military is operating. SSG Paul was originally from Hammond, Indiana. He was a Peace Corps volunteer in Kenya from 1987-1989. He earned a Master's Degree in Urban Planning and Economic Development in 1995 from the University of Maryland. He joined the Army Reserve in April 1997. In 1998, He began working for the City of The Dalles, Oregon as an associate planner and became the senior planner. In 2001, he joined the Wasco County Planning Department as the senior land-use planner. SSG Paul was a great lover of the wilderness and an avid kayaker. "Bob loved this area so much. He moved out here because he loved the west, he loved Oregon, and he loved the gorge (the Columbia River Gorge). He was very much into hiking and trailrunning and whitewater kayaking, all the outdoor experience," said Todd Cornett, Planning director. In early 2004, SSG Paul was called to active duty and sent to Iraq to help build infrastructure, focusing on urban planning. He was deployed to Afghanistan in Spring of 2006. While in Iraq, he wrote, "It was pretty obvious what was broken and rundown. Saddam did absolutely no maintenance to his cities

This story is a must read for all Americans, especially those vocal, confused protestors who believe that we can just "pull out." We are doing important and often frustrating work to rebuild a nation in the face of an armed insurgency. All of us: American, the Iraqis, and the rest of the world are frustrated at the pace of progress. This story takes you to the frontlines of this operation and exposes the reader to a slice of what is good and bad about our efforts to rebuild Iraq, and why progress is so frustratingly slow. The President and our troops need all of our support to acomplish this mission. As Rob points out in his summary, we need more "boots on the ground," not less. We need to provide real security for ourselves, the Iraqi population, and the contractors who are rebuilding Iraq's infrstructure. We need more men and women working directly with Iraq's civil government to improve living conditions and the economy. Once security is achieved, many humanitarian organizations will come into Iraq and help. Until then, it all falls upon the shoulders of the Civil Affairs teams. Every American should ask, "How can I help these brave men and women better achieve their mission?" Only through their success will we be able to bring our troops home.

As I listen to the talking heads on TV or read the daily news reports about what's going on in Iraq I only hear that another American soldier has died in some kind of incident. (All in all, as of today there have been about 1,700 deaths, roughly what we kill on the highways every ten days or so.) And on the tables at bookstores I find books talking about how we are failing, and failing disastrously in Iraq. But these books are right next to the ones that say we are being extremely successful in restoring democracy in Iraq. (Kind of like the stacks of anti-Bush books just before the election, right next to the pro-Bush book stacks.) (I wonder if the stacks of books have the same authors.) Once in a while you find a book like this one. It's isn't strident in either direction. Instead it reports on what one small unit of soldiers is doing in Iraq to make it a better place. This fits pretty closely with the reports that I've received from the few Iraqi people that I've met. This is the story of Civil Affairs Team-A 13 (CAT-A 13) as they help to rebuild a war-ravaged area. They represent the absolute best that our country has to offer, and it's great to see that they get some of the recognition that they deserve. This book won't change the minds of the stridents on either side, but for those of us interested in what's really going on it's good to hear.

Waging Peace is a MUST READ. It's all too easy for Americans, sitting back in our comfortable homes, to read the news accounts of Iraq and at the same time, forget that human beings are involved - American and Iraqi. Schultheis brings us that humanity, from the men and women of the U.S. Army Civil Affairs Corps, to the men, women and children in the crowded marketplaces of Baghdad. Whether you're for or against the war - it's essential to see the situation today as a human tragedy of epic proportions. Waging Peace will make you laugh and cry - it will take you there - so jump in your unarmored Humvee, pull on your Kevlar vest, and prepare yourself for a wild ride.