The Toll - 9/30/07

Last week, the Department of Defense released the obituaries of seven military personnel killed in Iraq, ranging in age from 21 to 42. Three of the fallen heroes were killed by improvised explosive devices. According to the website www.icasualties.org, U.S. deaths in Iraq now stand at 3,803 including three whose relatives are being notified today.

At the same time, the Department of Defense also released the obituaries of six military personnel killed in Afghanistan, ranging in age from 21 to 38. Total U.S. deaths in Afghanistan were 376, as of September 22, according to the Pentagon.

While the casualties in Afghanistan were uncharacteristically high, a wave of cautious optimism greeted the lower Iraq numbers for both combat deaths and roadside bomb incidents.

It should be noted that this also comes at a time when Iran has agreed to provide tighter border controls to reduce the flow of arms that end up in the hands of Shiite militants. The LA Times carried the report this morning that Prime Minister Nouri Maliki secured such an agreement during a recent three-day visit to Iran.

In the article, Army General David H. Petraeus was quoted as saying: “The President of Iran pledged to Prime Minister Maliki during a recent meeting that he would stop the flow of weapons, the training, the funding and the directing of these militia extremists that have been such a huge problem…”

The prospects for a drop in the use of improvised explosive devices (IED’s) and explosively formed penetrators (EFP’s) is particularly encouraging.  According to today’s edition of the Washington Post, more than 81,000 IED attacks have occurred in Iraq since 2003, including 25,000 to date in this current year.

This signature weapon of the current wars is responsible for 67% of the combat deaths in Iraq and an even higher percentage of the battle wounds.  The Post article goes on to say that IED’s have also resulted in 11,000 Iraqi civilian casualties this year, in addition to 600 deaths among the Iraqi security forces.

Of course, the Shiites are not alone in the use of these destructive weapons. The Sunnis, including Al Qaeda in Iraq, have not only been responsible for most of the major incidents in the country, but have been particularly active recently, although their focus seems to have been targeted more towards the civilian population.

General Petraeus acknowledged today that overall violence has increased due to the Sunni offensive during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

Little has been said - and perhaps little is known - as to the source or sources of the weapons acquired by the Sunnis, but Iraq is bordered on the south, west and north by several Sunni-controlled nations.

Among the fallen heroes that were announced last week was Marine Lance Corporal Rogelio A. Ramirez, 21, of Pasadena, California.

According to his mother, Irene, Rogelio had been a good student up until the sixth grade, when his parents divorced. At that point, he sort of drifted through the next six years, losing interest in school.

In his late teens, his life began to come into focus, and he became determined to join the Marine Corps.  The only trouble was that he had several hurdles to clear in order to achieve that goal.

First, his recruiter told him he would have to pass a GED exam to get a high school equivalency diploma and he would also need to complete 15 college credits.

So, Rogelio went to night school, passed the GED, enrolled at Pasadena City College and gained the necessary credits. And he achieved all that in just one year.

Next, the recruiter said he would have to remove the almost $1,200 in truancy fines that had piled up during his drifting years. The Marines do not accept recruits with legal problems.

So, Rogelio got a night job while he was going to college during the day and, within the year, he was able to pay off the fines.

The last hurdle involved a small tattoo of three dots on his left hand. Rogelio had gotten it as a prank, according to Irene, but that particular type of tattoo was one that the Marines will not accept. The three dots usually signify the Spanish words mi vida loca (my crazy life) - which is supposed to represent life in a gang.

So, one Sunday, while his mother was in church, he cut off the skin, thus removing the offending emblem. When his mother returned, he said “Mom, I’m ready to go.”

With all obstacles removed, Rogelio then passed the Marine entrance exam, and was finally inducted into the corps.

One year later, he was on his way to Iraq, where he served as a machine gunner on an armored vehicle in Anbar province, west of Baghdad..

On a recent evening, he was on patrol when his convoy came under attack. According to his commander’s report, Rogelio silenced several insurgent machine gun positions, providing cover that allowed Marines to evacuate the wounded.

The next day, he could have stayed in camp, but when the officers asked for volunteers for another patrol, Rogelio raised his hand. That night, an IED exploded near his vehicle, killing him instantly.

Rogelio had become influenced, in his young life, by the writings of English philosopher John Stuart Mill, especially those passages that described war as ugly, but not as ugly as a person that has nothing he, or she, is willing to fight for.

As much as she hated to see him go, a saddened Irene was quoted, a few days ago, as saying: “It’s what he did with his life. When he walked out that door, he walked out whole. He had himself together. He had purpose. He was determined. I wouldn’t have taken that from him.”

Rogelio’s first baby is expected in February.