Home
Obama to mark end of Iraq War
By Aamer Madhani, USA TODAY
FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. – When President Obama arrives here Wednesday to deliver remarks marking the end of the Iraq War, there won't be the celebratory atmosphere of V-J Day and it's unlikely his speech will include the bravado of former president George W. Bush's declaration of "mission accomplished" early in the war.
By Jim R. Bounds, AP
Army 1st Sgt. Jason Friedly of New Bethlehem, Pa., hugs his son Tanner as daughter Lakyn looks on during 82nd Airborne Combat Aviation Brigade deployment to Afghanistan from Fort Bragg, N.C., on Sept. 12.
Enlarge
By Jim R. Bounds, AP
Army 1st Sgt. Jason Friedly of New Bethlehem, Pa., hugs his son Tanner as daughter Lakyn looks on during 82nd Airborne Combat Aviation Brigade deployment to Afghanistan from Fort Bragg, N.C., on Sept. 12.
Ads by Google
How to Buy Gold
Physical Gold Shipped to Your Door
Free Investor Kit. Since 1960.
Goldline.com/Buy-Gold
Donor-Advised Funds
A Smarter Way to Give. Learn How
They Work & About The Tax Benefits.
[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
Top Ranked Global MBA
Ranked #2 in the World by Financial
Times. Designed for Top Executives.
[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
This hometown of Fort Bragg and the Army's XVII Airborne Corps, the 82nd Airborne Division and Special Operations Command has seen its soldiers deployed repeatedly to Iraq and Afghanistan over the last decade.
And while the last troops will leave Iraq in the coming days and officially end the war, any sense of relief is leveled by the knowledge of what lays ahead in Afghanistan, according to soldiers and residents.
BLOG: White House unveils 'Promise Kept' timeline
STORY: Military divorce rate at highest level since 1999
"I wouldn't say there's much excitement, because there's one thing that is always certain," Chief Warrant Officer Rodney Moore, 47, a 26-year Army veteran who returned from Iraq less than two weeks ago. "There's always going to be another mission."
Obama's visit to Fort Bragg is being touted by the White House as an opportunity for the president to welcome home the more than 1 million U.S. troops who have served in Iraq over the nearly 9-year-old war. It's also a chance for him to remind voters that he followed through on his 2008 campaign pledge to end the war.
"The president looks forward tomorrow to thanking the troops, thanking those who served, and discussing what that sacrifice that Americans have made means now, as the Iraq War comes to an end — which is, as you know, what the president promised he would do when he was running for president, which was to end this war responsibly," White House press secretary Jay Carney said Tuesday.
In Fayetteville, the president and first lady Michelle Obama's visit is hardly making waves.
News from The Oval
Latest posts from USA TODAY The Oval blog
1:49 PM Obama threatens to veto GOP tax cut bill
1:22 PM Administration halts presidential coins
12:33 PM Obama to fundraisers: 'We'll win this thing'
12:04 PM White House unveils Iraq interactive timeline
9:56 AM Obama team enjoying GOP nomination fight
Read all The Oval posts
Along Yadkin Road, the business strip dotted with barbershops, tattoo parlors and fast food restaurants popular with soldiers, the typical holiday lull has already set in as many soldiers have already headed home for leaves and another brigade busily prepares to deploy to Afghanistan next month.
"To be honest, I haven't heard one person talk about it," said Orace Blount, a barber who runs a shop that's popular with soldiers.
Michael Ray, co-owner of Performance Tattoo parlor near Fort Bragg, said that he's watched the ebbs and flows of his own business parallel the deployments and return of troops, who get inked on their way in or out of the war zones (and sometimes both.) With some of his Special Forces customers, the deployments are shorter and more frequent that their comings and goings to wars became commonplace long ago.
Earlier in the wars, he said he sold more "memorial" tattoos — troops honoring their lost brothers and sisters in arms and tattoos listing their deployments. But those sort of tattoos are less frequent these days. What might be most remarkable about the soldiers nowadays is that they see their deployments as routine, Ray said.
"Early on we could feel the pulse and excitement of the troops coming and going," Ray said. "But now for a lot of the guys and gals we tattoo, it's just a regular deal. They might mention that I'm not going to be around next year."
As the last American troops prepare to leave to Iraq, the troops here — much like their commander in chief — are muted on the meta questions of how the war ended and whether it was worth the cost.
"Overall, I think as soldiers, we feel pretty good about how we did," Staff Sgt. John Smith said. "Time will answer all those bigger questions."
[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
By Aamer Madhani, USA TODAY
FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. – When President Obama arrives here Wednesday to deliver remarks marking the end of the Iraq War, there won't be the celebratory atmosphere of V-J Day and it's unlikely his speech will include the bravado of former president George W. Bush's declaration of "mission accomplished" early in the war.
By Jim R. Bounds, AP
Army 1st Sgt. Jason Friedly of New Bethlehem, Pa., hugs his son Tanner as daughter Lakyn looks on during 82nd Airborne Combat Aviation Brigade deployment to Afghanistan from Fort Bragg, N.C., on Sept. 12.
Enlarge
By Jim R. Bounds, AP
Army 1st Sgt. Jason Friedly of New Bethlehem, Pa., hugs his son Tanner as daughter Lakyn looks on during 82nd Airborne Combat Aviation Brigade deployment to Afghanistan from Fort Bragg, N.C., on Sept. 12.
Ads by Google
How to Buy Gold
Physical Gold Shipped to Your Door
Free Investor Kit. Since 1960.
Goldline.com/Buy-Gold
Donor-Advised Funds
A Smarter Way to Give. Learn How
They Work & About The Tax Benefits.
[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
Top Ranked Global MBA
Ranked #2 in the World by Financial
Times. Designed for Top Executives.
[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
This hometown of Fort Bragg and the Army's XVII Airborne Corps, the 82nd Airborne Division and Special Operations Command has seen its soldiers deployed repeatedly to Iraq and Afghanistan over the last decade.
And while the last troops will leave Iraq in the coming days and officially end the war, any sense of relief is leveled by the knowledge of what lays ahead in Afghanistan, according to soldiers and residents.
BLOG: White House unveils 'Promise Kept' timeline
STORY: Military divorce rate at highest level since 1999
"I wouldn't say there's much excitement, because there's one thing that is always certain," Chief Warrant Officer Rodney Moore, 47, a 26-year Army veteran who returned from Iraq less than two weeks ago. "There's always going to be another mission."
Obama's visit to Fort Bragg is being touted by the White House as an opportunity for the president to welcome home the more than 1 million U.S. troops who have served in Iraq over the nearly 9-year-old war. It's also a chance for him to remind voters that he followed through on his 2008 campaign pledge to end the war.
"The president looks forward tomorrow to thanking the troops, thanking those who served, and discussing what that sacrifice that Americans have made means now, as the Iraq War comes to an end — which is, as you know, what the president promised he would do when he was running for president, which was to end this war responsibly," White House press secretary Jay Carney said Tuesday.
In Fayetteville, the president and first lady Michelle Obama's visit is hardly making waves.
News from The Oval
Latest posts from USA TODAY The Oval blog
1:49 PM Obama threatens to veto GOP tax cut bill
1:22 PM Administration halts presidential coins
12:33 PM Obama to fundraisers: 'We'll win this thing'
12:04 PM White House unveils Iraq interactive timeline
9:56 AM Obama team enjoying GOP nomination fight
Read all The Oval posts
Along Yadkin Road, the business strip dotted with barbershops, tattoo parlors and fast food restaurants popular with soldiers, the typical holiday lull has already set in as many soldiers have already headed home for leaves and another brigade busily prepares to deploy to Afghanistan next month.
"To be honest, I haven't heard one person talk about it," said Orace Blount, a barber who runs a shop that's popular with soldiers.
Michael Ray, co-owner of Performance Tattoo parlor near Fort Bragg, said that he's watched the ebbs and flows of his own business parallel the deployments and return of troops, who get inked on their way in or out of the war zones (and sometimes both.) With some of his Special Forces customers, the deployments are shorter and more frequent that their comings and goings to wars became commonplace long ago.
Earlier in the wars, he said he sold more "memorial" tattoos — troops honoring their lost brothers and sisters in arms and tattoos listing their deployments. But those sort of tattoos are less frequent these days. What might be most remarkable about the soldiers nowadays is that they see their deployments as routine, Ray said.
"Early on we could feel the pulse and excitement of the troops coming and going," Ray said. "But now for a lot of the guys and gals we tattoo, it's just a regular deal. They might mention that I'm not going to be around next year."
As the last American troops prepare to leave to Iraq, the troops here — much like their commander in chief — are muted on the meta questions of how the war ended and whether it was worth the cost.
"Overall, I think as soldiers, we feel pretty good about how we did," Staff Sgt. John Smith said. "Time will answer all those bigger questions."
[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
