AMERICAN CITIZEN SOLDIER

WE LIKE GUNS

2010-01-03T17:20:00.007-06:00

OPERATION ENDURING BOREDOM: THE XBOX GAME

2009-11-27T20:39:00.007-06:00

Ultra-Realistic Modern Warfare Game Features Awaiting Orders, Repairing Trucks

THE VICTORY LAP OR: HOW I LEARNED TO STOP SCURRYING AND LOVE THE CALM

2009-03-16T19:17:00.022-05:00

video flashback of Buck Sargent circa August 2008JAMming in Jamia: Strumming the West Baghdad Blues and bringing it to Jaish al Mahdi with some SRV northwest of the IZ.Yes, I'm finally home again.You know, I'm glad. I need the rest.

WHITHER 'BUCK SARGENT'?

2008-07-19T08:20:00.003-05:00

photo by Buck Sargent"The Secretary of the Army has reposed special trust and confidence in the patriotism, valor, fidelity, and professional excellence of REDACTED [aka, "Buck Sargent"]. In view of these qualities and his demonstrated leadership potential and dedicated service to the U.S. Army, he is, therefore, promoted from Sergeant to Staff Sergeant ... effective 1 JULY 2008."Any of you sons

THE WILLING SUSPENDERS OF DISBELIEF

2007-12-21T23:34:00.002-06:00

photo by Buck Sargent The Willing Suspenders of Disbelief The Tao of Modern War part III (Parts I and II can be found here and here). We meet in an evil land That is near to the gates of hell. I wait for thy command To serve, to speed or withstand And thou sayest, I do not well? -Rudyard Kipling, Evil Land As conditions on the ground shift as extra boots gained a step Expect not to hear how

PARDON MY FRENCH

2007-11-12T02:09:00.000-06:00

photo and unapologetic sentiments by Buck SargentYou cannot escape the responsibility of tomorrow by evading it today.-Abraham LincolnOn this Veterans Day I'd like to take this opportunity to offer thanks to the countless Americans who came before us; who wore the uniform, charged a hill, walked a post, flew a sortie, trained a recruit or bandaged a wound.My generation is honored to follow where

FATHER OF THE PRIDE

2007-10-26T21:14:00.000-05:00

Father and son Scorpios plotting world domination/naptime.photo (and baby) by Mrs. SargentI must study politics and war that my sons may have liberty to study mathematics and philosophy.-John AdamsWorld: meet Wilder Scott. Wilder Scott: world.On my signal, unleash smell.

ONCE MORE UNTO THE BREACH

2007-09-28T10:28:00.000-05:00

Buck Sargent taking the Oath of Reenlistment in April 2007, thus simultaneously awarding the gift of flight to pigs while sending the temperature in Hell into an irrecoverable nosedive. Once more unto the breach, dear friends, once more; Or close the wall up with our English dead. In peace there's nothing so becomes a man As modest stillness and humility: But when the blast of war blows in

THE AUDACITY OF HYPE

2007-03-27T04:01:00.000-05:00

The Tennessee Gore family compound as seen from space. During daylight hours. While vacant. When people stop believing in God, they don't believe in nothing--they believe in anything. -G.K. ChestertonThe sky is warming! The sky is warming! Poor Al Gore. He had a speech booked at a lecture hall in Hell to scold the devil on runaway carbon emissions but had to cancel when it froze over. So he

SUBMERGED IN A RIVER IN EGYPT

2007-03-18T15:23:00.000-05:00

In a Perfect World: Former Guantanamo Bay detainees shuffle along toward their brand new facilities relocated to the Supreme Court parking garage.It’s easy to hate Bush because he’s not going to come and behead you.-Ayaan Hirsi Ali, Somali-born former member of the Dutch parliament and author of InfidelIt's official: the lunatic fringe has now gone mainstream.Perhaps I'm just being played by the

TRUST YOUR INSTRUMENTS

2007-03-10T17:13:00.007-06:00

It is not because things are difficult that we do not dare; it is because we do not dare that things are difficult. -Seneca This is the end, my only friend, the end Of our elaborate plans, the end Of everything that stands, the end I'll never look into your eyes again Is this really the end, (beautiful friend)? Has the Democratic takeover Congress spelled doom for the war? Should we

GLOBALONEY AND ITS MALCONTENTS

2007-03-02T19:50:00.001-06:00

"Terrorism has no religion" -- rough translation of a common PSA billboard seen throughout Baghdad. Actually, I can think of one religion in particular... photo by Buck Sargent While America's military strength is important, let me add here that I've always maintained that the struggle now going on for the world will never be decided by bombs or rockets, by armies or military might. The real

PORTRAIT OF THE CONGRESS AS A WRUNG HAND

2007-02-17T04:55:00.000-06:00

"C is for Congress, not good enough for me."Specialist Dan "the Man" Walker and friend brandish their Victory Fists while taking a breather on an Iraqi sofa during clearing ops in Baghdad, fall 2006There is hardly such a thing as a war in which it makes no difference who wins.-George OrwellThey say on Capitol Hill if you don't like the bellwether, just wait a few minutes. It may be a

IT'S THE AUTONOMY, STUPID

2007-02-09T22:34:00.000-06:00

Another terrorist plot foiled! Insurgent prodigy Abu Assad al-Barney surrenders to coalition forces moments before releasing deadly Sentox nerve gas contained within his Improvised Explosive Diaper.photo by Buck Sargent If we in Congress don't end this war before January 2009, as president, I will.-Hillary Rodham ClintonJust when you think we're finally turning the tables in Iraq, the timetables

HUMMING THE HAIFA STREET BLUES

2007-01-24T06:32:00.000-06:00

Searching curfew violators with the "assistance" of Iraqi police in Baghdad.All parties would have rather been sleeping.photo by Buck SargentOur strategy can be summed up this way: As the Iraqis stand up, we will stand down.-George W. Bush, June 2005What does it really mean to "win in Iraq?" Am I the only one who's lost all patience for this jaded question? Especially when posed time and time

STUDYING IRAQ FOR DHIMMIS

2007-01-19T05:33:00.000-06:00

General Ingenuity Joe strikes again:A working prototype of Iraq Study Group Recommendation #79. photo by Buck SargentIt’s important to remember that “stability” is Arabic for “the mess we’re in.”-Mark Steyn, America AloneDecember 6, 2006: a date which will live in irrelevancy.Now that four out of five critics have agreed to agree that the President's latest elective surgery is poised to kill the

SURGING AHEAD WITH THE NEW STRATEGERY

2007-01-15T18:08:00.000-06:00

Staring contest: go! SFC Pickerel meets his match.photo by Buck SargentWar is not the best way of settling differences; it is the only way of preventing their being settled for you.-G.K. ChestertonTo the apparent chagrin of the new Congressional majority, President Bush has announced that we're moving forward with a renewed commitment in Iraq. So what does this mean precisely?Some units already

BLOG UNDER CONSTRUCTION

2007-01-09T21:31:00.000-06:00

If a writer goes to war for a year, he will have enough to write about for the rest of his lifetime.-Ernest HemingwayNew colors, new fonts, new pictures! What's not to love?!This is the brand-new release of AMERICAN CITIZEN SOLDIER version 2.0!In an attempt to make the site more user friendly I've included a ton more to look at, point at, and click on. If it's overkill, then I apologize, but

INCOMING HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS

2006-12-25T03:00:00.000-06:00

Last year's Christmas in Mosul, 2005photo by Buck SargentNot only are they commemorated by columns and inscriptions, but there dwells also an unwritten memorial of them, graven not on stone but in the hearts of men.-PericlesOn the last night I spent in Baghdad, an unusually large and noisome enemy shell impacted a few hundred meters away while I was otherwise indisposed in a portajohn. With the

THE ENEMY OF THE GOOD

2006-11-22T15:00:00.000-06:00

Nothing says 'welcome' quite like flowers in expended tank rounds.Livening up the place, as only a Baghdadi could.photo by Buck SargentThose who do not do battle for their country do not know with what easethey accept their citizenship in America.-Dean Brelis, The Face of South VietnamNobody likes you,Everyone left you,They’re all out without you,Having fun.-Billie Joe Armstrong, Homecoming THE

RETURN OF TALES FROM THE FRONT

2006-10-13T16:00:00.000-05:00

The Iraqi Army standing tall in Tal Afarphoto by Buck SargentView the latest film trailer for GIVE WAR A CHANCEMen make history and not the other way around. In periods where there is no leadership, society stands still. Progress occurs when courageous, skillful leaders seize the opportunity to change things for the better. You’ll notice if you read your history, that the work of the world gets

FIVE YEARS & CHANGE

2006-09-27T03:00:00.000-05:00

photo by Buck SargentThose who expect to reap the blessings of freedom must like men, undergo the fatigues of supporting it.-Thomas PaineThe Means Justifies the EndThe media roundtable question of the day on the five-year anniversary of 9-11 was "Have we changed?" I’m not uniquely qualified to answer that one for the country at large, but I can say without hesitation that I most certainly have.I

WIN, LOSE, OR DRAWDOWN

2006-09-02T15:00:00.000-05:00

Headline by CPT Obvious.Neither the wisest constitution nor the wisest laws will secure the liberty and happiness of a people whose manners are universally corrupt.-Samuel AdamsThe Shortest StrawOkay, so we got the shaft. ‘Nuff said. Time to get to work, down to business, and back in the saddle. Complaining isn’t going to help and whining isn’t going to change anything. As callous as Donald

THE BUCK STOPS HERE

2006-08-09T15:00:00.000-05:00

photo of Buck Sargent by Buck SargentMosul, Iraq - September 2005Once we have a war there is only one thing to do. It must be won. For defeat brings worse things than any that can ever happen in war. -Ernest HemingwayDue to technical difficulties at my current undisclosed location in Baghdad, I will for the time being be unable to continue to post either regularly or at length. I am no longer

REPATRIATE GAMES

2006-07-30T15:00:00.000-05:00

One of our tasks in Tal Afar was to keep the Iraqi Army "in check," a task at which Sgt. Romero often failed spectacularly. photo by Buck SargentWe have good corporals and good sergeants and some good lieutenants and captains, and those are far more important than good generals.-William Tecumseh ShermanHomecoming, InterruptedMosul, Tal Afar, and now the belly of the beast. It was announced this