The Observer, February 29, 2008
Volume XL, Issue 19
Case Western alum prepares for Iraq tour with U.S. Army
Here I am at Fort Riley, Kan. and training to go to Iraq. Almost two years ago, I graduated from Case Western Reserve University and now I find myself preparing to go to war. I wonder if I squandered my college years pursuing a degree in engineering to be hired for the same job as the guy next to me, who studied advanced underwater basket weaving at Kmart University during the blue light special. I realize the answer is no when he turns to ask me the product of six times five and I proudly answer 30 after pulling out my giant graphing calculator.
The question you may have is why an officer from an organization that as a general rule does not like the media would decide to write a column for his college newspaper. All I wish to do is report the story of my team while I am deployed to Iraq. I view it as important way to keep the students of Case Western as educated as possible on the events that are happening in the Middle East. I refuse to tell you that we as a military have executed our missions with precision and total success. We have made mistakes and we will continue to make mistakes. But the one thing the military does better than any organization or corporation is take a look at itself and change. We might not change as fast as we should, but we get there and we always come out stronger.
The main reason I am writing this series is that I sat in a room with Lt. Col. John A. Nagle (co-author of The U.S. Army/Marine Corps Counterinsurgency Field Manual) and he said to all of us that the enemy is broadcasting their message extremely well and we as an army are not able to match that ability in the Middle East or here in the United States. One of the solutions is to start informing America first-hand of our experiences. The more America understands what is going on over there, the more America can make an informed decision when it comes to politics. That's all I ask, is for an informed decision; not a decision based off of Geraldo Rivera's report or the local protest group feeding you misinformation (about half of what they say is true and the other half they think is true). I don't want to convince you to like the war, to like President Bush, or really to like anything. All I ask is that you keep an open mind and read what I have to write. I really do not care about politics and I don't care what you think about our political system, parties, and candidates. It sounds harsh, but having a political opinion in the military is something I keep close to the vest, and to have someone preach it to me is not on my list of top 10 things that I enjoy hearing.
My brief history is that I graduated from Case in May of 2006 and I commissioned as an officer in the United States Corps of Engineers from John Carroll University. I was trained to be a combat engineer (I make obstacles disappear) at Fort Leonard Wood, Mo. From there, I was able to go to Airborne School, where I had a blast jumping out of airplanes. Then I went to Korea, where the army saw my degree in mechanical engineering and put me in charge of mechanics. I had a good time with those soldiers. From there, the army sent me to Fort Riley, Kan. to prepare to advise Iraqis on how to fight. I have to admit, I'm really looking forward to this assignment. I hope that you continue to peruse this column over the next year and that I am able to provide some insight as to what is really going on over in Iraq.
Michael Wiehagen may be contacted via e-mail at michael.wiehagen@gmail.com.
