We Travel World

Town along the water
I’ve been a little slow on updating this blog (apologies for you who are still reading). I’m attaching some opinion pieces I’ve written for the Herald Standard, a local newspaper in Uniontown, PA. They haven’t been published yet in the paper but the editor there is taking a look at them. They encapsulate some of the thoughts flying through my crazed mind the last few days.

The language training in Rochefort has been excellent. There are 8 cadets here (including myself) as well as numerous international officers from Vietnam, Georgia, China, Tajikistan, Malaysia, Cambodia..etc. We have usually 5-7 hours of instruction each day with one teacher, all of whom thus far have been young attractive women. The “lessons” usually degrade into funny conversations in rough French about America and West Point. The teachers are all very patient and helpful. This weekend they took us on a trip to the Venice of France near Potiers. We enjoyed a nice boat tour, had a traditional 18 hour french meal with lots of wine, and then toured an ancient Abby. Not a bad way to spend a Saturday at all. Below are the three pieces I’ve written thus far. Hope everyone is enjoying
Venise of France
their days as summer slowly winds down (where did it go?). Ciao.

1)

While most of the world witnessed the high profile visit of President Obama to Ghana via CNN and other news stations, I sat riveted watching a television that tracked a different activity on the continent of Africa. The TV had one image fixed on it, that of the continent of Africa, and many small icons representing much smaller forces, but perhaps serving a greater role. Those icons represented the service men and women in and supporting elite Special Forces of our military conducting missions, training, digging wells, and flying in presidential limousines throughout the continent of Africa. In a political landscape where the two wars in Afghanistan and Iraq dominate the nightly news and main street conversation (and rightly so), the struggles in Africa are quickly dismissed, or outright ignored. During the summer between my sophomore and junior year at the United States Military Academy, I spent four weeks working with the command structure of Special Forces units in Africa, based out of Stuttgart, Germany. While there I witnessed men and women committed to assisting Africa by building and sustaining long-term stability by strengthening not
Venise of France
just the security and military forces in Africa, but by partnering with NGOs (Non-government organizations) to provide basic needs (water, food, agriculture assistance, etc). This new approach exemplifies the Army’s emerging view that battles can be won long before men take up arms, by giving young children an option outside of a rifle and an extremist religion.

AFRICOM, the United States’ newly unified command structure that oversees military activity in Africa is a misunderstood entity. The U.S. formerly had Africa partitioned throughout the preexisting command structures that were more focused on conflict in the Middle East, South America, East Asia, etc. In 2007, President Bush acknowledged the need for a unified and joint command presence in the continent and established AFRICOM. This is a step in the right direction. What AFRICOM hopes to provide, and even more so SOCAFRICA (The Special Forces Command contingent I worked with) is a continent capable of self-sustainment. This is only possible if basic security and human rights are guaranteed. AFRICOM’s joint nature acknowledges the multi-faceted approach needed to solve the plethora of challenges in Africa and that the definition of “security” goes beyond simple physical safety, but is in fact a holistic approach.
Old Church

Somalia is a perfect example of how a lack of security facilitates a chaotic environment that in turn causes international problems. The capture of Captain Philips of MV ALABAMA on April 8th illuminated the piracy issue in the Gulf of Aden. Thankfully, CPT Phillips escaped danger in a tremendous operation, but the cause and effect should be delved into deeper. Somalia is country on the brink of disaster. A young Somali man has little to no education, few roads that will lead to prosperity, and difficulty simply surviving day to day. When offered the chance to join his brothers and fellow village members on a boat and loot ships sailing off his coast, few options appear as promising. It is also imperative that our leaders look at what precipitated Somali pirating.

The staple of the Somali economy is fishing, and after their government failed in 1994, this fishing society found their waters tainted and polluted by barges and ships sailing by, and in some cases, purposefully dumping toxic waste (As in the case of some European businesses). What was a makeshift coast guard hoping to guard against this pollution morphed into a lucrative pirating enterprise. This in no way excuses the actions of what is definitely a criminal are definitely criminals, but it does highlight the fact this is not a cut and dry situation. These men are trying to provide for their families and selves the same way we would if our security and family were at risk.

So on Easter Sunday, when that SEAL team perfectly executed their extremely difficult mission and safely rescued the Captain from the pirates, America rightfully cheered; however, some of the officers I worked with saw it more complicated terms. We saved the day for one brave man, and his grateful family and shipmates, but for some Somalis, this is another reason to continue their frustration with the West. When President Obama spoke of Change in Africa, let us hope that this change includes helping Africans help themselves to build societies and institutions that offer young men and women living on the coast of Somali, and in all regions of Africa, realistic options. If not, I fear there will be little change to the piracy problem in the Gulf of Aden, or the overarching problems of instability, corrupt leadership, and sparse accountability throughout the continent.

2)
During my time in Germany, and now as I study alongside many international military officers in France, I have received many questions regarding what America is like, what we enjoy doing, think, eat etc. I have enjoyed representing my country in this unique way, and have fielded the questions as diplomatically and honestly as possible, while doing my best to make sure I stressed I am one of some 300 million American voices. The number one subject I am asked about is the recent Presidential election. While President Obama’s election has thankfully improved America’s international image, we as a society should investigate what other forces are at work projecting the “American Dream” abroad. While staying in Stuttgart, Germany there were three English language stations on the television, one of which was BBC, and since we threw that yoke off long ago, I won’t count it. The other two were CNN and MTV. Since the political landscape is beyond most ordinary Americans, I imagine the one station that is easy enough for I imagined myself as a young German boy, returning home from school and turning on the television, and flipping through the channels I reach MTV. I began to wonder what these shows tell these German, and many other foreign children, about America. In our world, where perception is reality, those people on the television, represent us all.
Some of the shows I sadly investigated while I relaxed in my room were the following; The City, in which very wealthy twenty something’s cry about poorly chosen relationships, how the new fashion they bought into is no longer in, and how they cannot tan as well in New York as they could in California. The young fictional German version of me would probably think all American young people are immature, spoiled, and narcissistic after three minutes.
The next show up for me to watch is Nitro Circus, a show where professional idiots perform outrageous stunts, inflicting bodily harm upon themselves while wrecking motorcycles, trucks, cars, scooters, boats, etc. I guess Americans do not mind breaking everything they own I would grow to believe. After that, I could watch New York Goes to Hollywood, a show following the path of reality star Tiffany “New York” Pollard in Hollywood as she tries to become a “real” star. I would probably feel good about my shot at also being a Hollywood star after watching this show. Watching her for five minutes reveals that you do not need talent or intelligence to “make it.” Sadly, the American me thinks this is true if somehow you fit into one of the freakish categories MTV’s production team deems worthy of broadcasting.
While I took in the sights of Germany, I often thought how just 70 years ago my presence in a small German town would not have only been unwelcome, but possibly met with hostility. Now Americans are not only welcome, but encouraged to visit. When I study alongside the Vietnamese, Tajikistani, Chinese, Saudi Arabian, and various other international officers in France, I often consider how unlikely this would have been just 40 years ago, but now here we are, joking about our poor French during the day and playing soccer in the afternoon. These blossoming relationships in our globalized world reflect the possibility when humans see how much they have in common. All the officers studying here are different, but we all share unique desires of keeping our countries safe, raising a family in a safer world, and figuring out why th French have such tough grammatical rules. This gives me hope that one day my children may spend their summers and semesters abroad in Iran, Pakistan, or maybe even North Korea. Then I think about what we are exporting via channels like MTV, and I fear they may want us to visit after all.

3)
When I sit on my back porch in North Union Township, nature opens her door to me. I will see wild turkey enjoying the gracious seeds my mother provides, a plethora of birds making nests, squirrels running back and forth in a seemingly chaotic pattern, an occasional fox, hopefully not a raccoon, and as everyone would guess, beautiful white tail deer. These majestic creatures fascinate our local culture because they our elusive when we hunt them, delicious when we enjoy their wild meat, and a reminder that what was once wild, still is. Not so in Germany. Here they keep their deer, and most “wild” animals for that matter, in quasi-captivity; albeit in their natural environment, but surrounded by fences nonetheless.
This captures one of the drastic differences between what I perceive as a foundation of American culture, and what I have observed to be systemic in German society. Although we don’t show quite as much respect to our environment as Germans, I do believe Americans have a much greater appreciation for the wild untamed spaces of our landscape; the forests, mountains, rivers, wetlands, prairies, and even deserts. Whereas the Germans meticulously tame and manicure their land, our land enjoys the freedom to roam and grow undirected by other influence than its own, much like our citizens. Even the mystery evoking Black Forest in West Germany is so carefully maintained that during a three-hour bike road through its many well kept trails, I saw no wildlife, and just a few birds. Every few miles geometrically sound stacks of lumber appeared. These were the product of methodical removal of old growth to keep the forest in check. The German’s adherence to order is not all negative; it has produced incredible automobiles, one of the finest highways in the world, and many fantastic beers, but the sense of unknown and adventure is missing. The trails throughout Stuttgart will never compare with those of Ohiopyle, nor will the Autobahn’s famous speed and efficiency satiate my desire to lumber along Route 40 and its rolling hills, and even sometimes the taste of Iron City is better than…well maybe some things in Germany are better.