WHICH EXPLAINS HIS NAME... (via Rick Turley):

Bush ups the ante for putting troops at risk (JUSTIN SANE, 2/17/05, Seattle Post-Intelligencer)

Not long ago, President Bush condemned Saddam Hussein for recruiting Palestinian suicide bombers by offering to pay $25,000 to their families. Now Bush has proposed raising the death benefit for U.S. soldiers killed in Afghanistan and Iraq to half a million dollars. When I learned of this proposal, I couldn't help but wonder if such payouts will create American martyrs?

or perhaps Nane would fit better.

MORE:
GIs instructing Iraqi soldiers at FOB: Wilson say trainees are making strides (Terry Boyd, February 13, 2005, Stars and Stripes)

The turning point came when the Army supply chain started producing.

“When we got here, [Iraqi troops] were underequipped, undertrained,” Jackson said. Initially, there wasn’t much 1-4 Cav soldiers could do except “request, request, request, request,” he said.

Soon, uniforms, weapons and radios started flowing. Then trucks. With the material improvements came improving Iraqi morale and confidence.

“They take pride in the stuff they have, no matter how limited,” Jackson said.

But Iraqi soldiers say they still need greater capabilities. The Iraqi army won’t be able take over from the United States until it is equipped like the Americans, said Staff Sgt. Alaa Akram, one of several 201st soldiers who speak English. The Iraqis won’t be able to replace the Americans till they have tanks, aircraft and communications equipment, he said. [...]

Just as important as weapons, Akram added, is that the central government establish “strong law.” Right now, the Americans are the law, especially Jackson.

Wednesday, a rotund, fireplug of an Iraqi officer stormed into Jackson’s office, demanding Jackson discipline a soldier who had smashed up a truck. But Jackson is days from returning to the 1-4 Cav headquarters at Schweinfurt, Germany. “What are you going to do when I’m gone? E-mail me?” Jackson asked.

“You’re the [executive officer]. You’ve got a good head on your shoulders. You take care of it.”

Some 1-4 Cav troops see the soldiers coming into the Iraqi army now as superior to those who joined when it was called the Iraqi Civil Defense Corps. During last October’s fighting in Samarra, Veach said he saw elite Iraqi army soldiers that were “at the point that our guys are getting to now.”

Ultimately, there is only so much the Americans can do, Akram said. The difference between his men and U.S. soldiers is something far more abstract than weapons or training.

“It’s heart,” Akram said. He’ll know the Iraqi army is ready to take control from the Americans when his fellow soldiers quit joining for a paycheck, he said.

“When we’re like the American soldier,” Akram said. “He never worries about money. He’s worried about his country.”

Posted by Orrin Judd at February 17, 2005 5:50 PM