Christian Werthmuller's War Stories

War has always existed. Although the purpose of war varies, the outcome is the same; many lives are changed and ruined. War is often used to gain power, resources, and land, but it disregards the lives of those fighting the fight. Martin Luther King stated, “The past is prophetic in that it asserts loudly that wars are poor chisels for carving out peaceful tomorrows.” In three selections, “Medevac Missions,” “A Journey Taken with my Son,” and “At Lowe’s Home Improvement Center,” readers come to understand the truths of wars’ impact on the lives of those surrounding the soldier. Their friends change, their physical and psychological states change, but the hardest truth is adjusting to life back at home. Soldiers experience many life changes during active

The Vietnam War that commenced on November 1, 1955, and ended on April 30, 1975, took the soldiers through a devastating experience. Many lost their lives while others maimed as the war unfolded into its full magnitude. The book Dear America: Letters Home from Vietnam by Bernard Edelman presents a series of letters written by the soldiers to their loved ones and families narrating the ordeals and experiences in the Warfield. In the book, Edelman presents the narrations of over 200 letters reflecting the soldiers’ experiences on the battlefield. While the letters were written many decades ago, they hold great significance as they can mirror the periods and the contexts within which they were sent. This paper takes into account five letters from different timelines and analyzes them against the events that occurred in those periods vis a vis their significance. The conclusion will also have a personal opinion and observation regarding the book and its impacts.

How can soldiers fighting in war keep their love for family, or a special someone alive? Truthfully, the feelings of the love they shared stay in war times, but the physical proof of their love gets carried in photographs or small meaningful items. Sometimes, their love burns brightly through letters between each other, to move aside the fear of death, and having to move on to another lover. However, when a soldier remains away from their family or special someone for an extended period, they have to accept a new type of love from their fellow platoon mates where the goal of their love is to keep themselves and others alive. The Things They Carried by Tim O’Brien greatly examines the theme of love, specifically the extent of each soldier’s

Walter Dean Myers touches on a subject that give thought to war in general in his book Sunrise Over Fallujah. Sunrise Over Fallujah focuses on the Iraq war after 9/11 and a young man’s experiences while there. The Historical significance of sunrise Over Fallujah is that the young man, Robin “Birdy” Perry, realizes shortly after arriving in Iraq that this war will not end quickly, and that he doesn’t even really understand why he is there, or why his country, for that matter is there. There is a lot from Sunrise Over Fallujah that relates to real life occurrences and thoughts in and about the war in Iraq.

What they fought for is an analysis of a collection of nearly a thousand personal letters and journals entries written by the soldiers who fought America’s famous Civil War. This book seeks to define the ideology of what the soldiers understood they were fighting for, and their comprehension of the outcome of their service .Although counter arguments agree that most soldiers could not give a solid explanation of why they fought for, nor the real Constitutional issues that were at stake; the thoughts the soldiers recorded show that they fought for more than just masculine identity; they highly valued being at home safe with their loved ones, at any cost. This book gives an inside perception of the Civil War, and a

Millett, Peter Maslowski, and William B. Feis describe the field of U.S military history. Millett is a research professor, an Ambrose professor of history and a director of the Eisenhower center at the University of New Orleans, and a professor Emeritus of Military History at the Ohio State University. Maslowski is professor Emeritus of History at the University of Nebraska, Lincoln. Feis is a professor of History at Buena Vista University of Storm Lake, Iowa. (Millett, A., Maslowski, P., & Feis, W. (2012).

“War at its basic level has always been about soldiers. Nations rose and fell on the strength of their armies and the men who filled the ranks.” This is a very powerful quote, especially for the yet young country of the United States, for it gives credit where credit is truly due: to the men who carried out the orders from their superiors, gave their blood, sweat and tears, and in millions of cases their lives while fighting for ideals that they believed their country or government was founded upon, and to ensure the continuation of these ideals. Up until the end of the 20th Century, they did so in the worst of conditions, and this includes not only the battle scene, but also every day life. In

America is the land of the free, and the home of the brave. In it’s two hundred year long lifespan, it has accomplished many feats, it has overcome many trials, and it has helped shaped the world in the process. The nation has spawned into one of the world’s leading superpowers. But the roots of this grand country stem from a war fought long ago. A war that would be one of the most important events in the history of the nation, and in the world.

For this Oral History Lab, I turned to the Veterans History Project, which has an online archive full of Interviews of War Veterans ranging from all eras. The interview that I chose to critique for this assignment was conducted in September of 2003. The interviewer is Bruce Wirz and the Narrator is WWII sergeant William C. Abernathy. The interview is conducted in just under 25 minutes.

Officers of my unit will have maximum time to accomplish their duties; they will not have to accomplish mine. I will earn their respect and confidence as well as that of my soldiers. I will be loyal to those with whom I serve; seniors, peers, and subordinates alike. I will exercise initiative by taking appropriate action in the absence of orders. I will not compromise my integrity, nor my moral courage. I will not forget, nor will I allow my comrades to forget that we are professionals, Noncommissioned Officers, leaders!

War Is a Force That Gives Us Meaning, written by the talented author Chris Hedges, gives us provoking thoughts that are somewhat painful to read but at the same time are quite personal confessions. Chris Hedges, a talented journalist to say the least, brings nearly 15 years of being a foreign correspondent to this book and subjectively concludes how all of his world experiences tie together. Throughout his book, he unifies themes present in all wars he experienced first hand. The most important themes I was able to draw from this book were, war skews reality, dominates culture, seduces society with its heroic attributes, distorts memory, and supports a cause, and allures us by a

In the two hundred years since 1775, there has been thirty-five years of fighting in what we consider major conflicts or wars. This averages out to about one year of war to every almost 6 years of our existence as a nation and during that time, we have not been without formal military organizations. Over the course of history, the United States has engaged in many battles that were a crucial phase in developing who and what we have become. Throughout this assessment, we will analyze what were some of the true tipping points that shaped (1) America’s paradoxical love-hate relationship with war and, (2) How this relationship influences American warfare.

This case study is on the battle of Mogadishu. This battle took place on October 3rd and 4th of 1993 in the country of Somalia which is located in Africa. This battle changed the foreign policy of the United States. The battle cost the Americans 18 lives, and 77 wounded. Estimates are that it cost the Somalis about 500 lives and wounded 1000.1 This battle was fought with some of Americas most highly trained and lethal warriors. The main effort of the battle was led by Rangers from the 75th Ranger Regiment and Special Operations Forces Detachment- Delta. It started out as a peace keeping mission and escalated into a mission to capture a Somali warlord. It ultimately ended up being a mission

“As a soldier, I survived World War One when most of my comrades did not.” (Lester B. Pearson). Throughout the history of the world, many wars have been fought and lives lost. But one thing these conflicts have in common are three words. Greed, Invasion & Conflict. Because of the shear fact that thousands of conflicts have happened in the past, only the Canyon War, American Civil War, & World War One will be mentioned.

The seventh stanza says, “I will never leave a fallen comrade”. In battle, the dead and wounded are never left behind. Knowing this can strengthen and build confidence and courage in a soldier. It assures him that he is not alone and that someone has his back. He recognizes that someone may one day save his life; that someone will be there to help him work through the difficult mental turmoil of war. According to Killology Research Group, “The young combatant needs the presence of mature, older comrades to seek guidance and support”. A mature soldier can teach young recruits and build the confidence that they need to physically and mentally survive during times of war. At the same time, as he is mentored and taught by example, the soldier recognizes the responsibility he has to look out for his comrades. Because they are experiencing the atrocities of war together; a comrade is truly the only one that can