Bad News/Good News
Thanks for all of the posts, comments, and especially emails. I will be writing back to you. I got a lot of great ideas and some people even archived my stuff and sent it to me. Thank you.
Bad news. I will be deleting the entries about Fallujah and anything describing our manuever, and I won't be posting anything new about Fallujah yet.
Good news. I got an email this morning from a high-ranking officer:
LT Prakash,
I'm one of the people following your blog. I have to correct you and say that your blog is not all over AKO's IA sites - it's all over 1st IO command's IA site, and they happen to be on the front page of AKO right now. That said, the IA concerns prolly *are* reasonable.
Anyway - why don't you put your blog on AKO? Yes, your audience might be a little truncated, but the people you really want to see it - parents, other soldiers - still can. I will be happy to devote some contractor time to helping you get it set up.
That way, your blog will still be up and you'll be making the IA guys happy. At the same time, it'll be a big win for AKO - we really wanna break into the blog space.
Whatever you do, do *NOT* delete your entries.
Email me back and lemme know. In the meantime, don't forget to boresight!
Thanx....
This is the best news about the blog I've gotten so far. So if you are military or the immediate relative of the military, you will be able to access the weblog once I get this going. I'm sorry it can't be available for everyone.
But I will continue to post anything else not maneuver-related.
Next post: Atomic Sit-up
Bad news. I will be deleting the entries about Fallujah and anything describing our manuever, and I won't be posting anything new about Fallujah yet.
Good news. I got an email this morning from a high-ranking officer:
LT Prakash,
I'm one of the people following your blog. I have to correct you and say that your blog is not all over AKO's IA sites - it's all over 1st IO command's IA site, and they happen to be on the front page of AKO right now. That said, the IA concerns prolly *are* reasonable.
Anyway - why don't you put your blog on AKO? Yes, your audience might be a little truncated, but the people you really want to see it - parents, other soldiers - still can. I will be happy to devote some contractor time to helping you get it set up.
That way, your blog will still be up and you'll be making the IA guys happy. At the same time, it'll be a big win for AKO - we really wanna break into the blog space.
Whatever you do, do *NOT* delete your entries.
Email me back and lemme know. In the meantime, don't forget to boresight!
Thanx....
This is the best news about the blog I've gotten so far. So if you are military or the immediate relative of the military, you will be able to access the weblog once I get this going. I'm sorry it can't be available for everyone.
But I will continue to post anything else not maneuver-related.
Next post: Atomic Sit-up
posted by REDSIX at 11:36 PM
29 Comments:
LOVE YOUR BLOG!!! I am so glad I will be able to continue to read it on the Army's official site.
I have read other blogs and I will have to agree, a majority of them are little more than griping and complaining. Can't blame them, it's gotta be rough being a "Stop Loss" soldier, however when we raise that right hand and take an oath...we alone forfeit some of our rights for the privilege of defending our country.
I just reenlisted this past Saturday. I am looking forward to serving.
Sgt Lori
I can't stress how important blogs like this are. Knowing the good and bad about war is so valuable, especially unfiltered by non-combatants. I anxiously await a book from you, and wish you and your fellow soldiers a safe return when your tour is up. Godspeed.
Great job. I've been a reader since day one, even though I don't comment too much. Glad you'll be able to keep it going, even if it's not accessable to all.
Thanks!
SGT Lori, Congratulations on Re-Enlisting! If you are in garrison right now, you better have gotten your 4-day pass. If not, lemme know. Best of luck to you. Where are you now?
-1LT P.
I'm Army, and love your blog, but I was in Iraq too, so it is kind of like "preaching to the choir" having it on AKO. You definitely need to write an article on information warfare or your experiences in Fallujah in Armor Magazine or one of the other professional journals. My point here is that while your blog is very enjoyable and even informative to those of us who were also there, it's priceless to citizens who are *NOT* in the Army and have enormous misconceptions about what we do. That's what I liked best about your blog and countless other milblogs--informing the public and dispelling their ignorance and myth about what's going on and what Soldiers do. DoD is killing the goose that laid the golden egg by pressuring milbloggers (I'm not a milblogger--no self interest there) and the value of your blog FAR outweighs the temporal OPSEC considerations.
LT P: I've got some people working on the AKO blog layout as we spoke about. They will be getting in contact with you soon. Please do *NOT* irreversibly delete any entries - they are all important and you will *really* regret it if they go away. If you take them off the web, at least make sure you have copies in other places - more than one other place - for safekeeping. I can't wait to get this on AKO - your colorful language should get some people heated up, which will be entertaining in and of itself.
Just keep killing the bad guys. You can tell us stories later when you come back home.
Leutenant, it has been an honor to read your posts,and highly enjoyable to boot. My best wishes for your promising career, and I'm sure we'll hear a lot more from you in the future in some form. Thank you for your service, and thank you for your writing.
Neil, as much as I understand the OPSEC concerns, I will miss your writing.
Unfortunately, I no longer have the contacts to be able to access your work once it goes 'inside'.
Please see if there is a timeframe for when you could release anything further to the general public. I would love to read (and see, the vids were awesome) more of your unit's actions, even if it amounts to an AAR.
In the meantime, keep doing the quality work you have been, and my best wishes to you, and your unit.
NavyspyII
-1LT P
I was U.S. Navy for 8 years, got out and now want to serve again. I am assigned to 138th Chem in Kennesaw Georgia with the Army National Guard. I am their senior NCO of Commo, MOS 31U.
I got a nice bonus so a 4 day pass is moot! ;-)
Sgt Lori
I will truly miss your posts, but I admire and respect you so much that I know the decisions you make regarding the blog will be the correct ones. I have learned so much through reading your posts, and I know that the best is yet to come for you.
Thank you so much for your service and for the generosity you have displayed in sharing so much with us. Take care of yourself, and Git 'R Done!!
Thank you for all of the time that you put into your posts; you brought us closer to your world, and I hope that you and your men know how much we average citizens appreciate all of you. It means a lot to many of us to get a first hand sense of what is happening. I will miss reading your posts, but am thankful for the time and blogs that you shared with us. I was very proud of you when you earned your Silver Star, and I am very proud of the good men that serve with you. God Bless. Come back safe; and soon!
Too bad I won't be able to read your new posts once you move the blog over, but it's good knowing that we have people such as yourself in our military! Thanks for all the greate posts!
Saw this on DrudgeReport & if one in our military, especially higher ups, pick up this book, then I think it's worth it & apologize for 'spamming':
Counterinsurgency Warfare: Theory and Practice by David Galula - $29.99
This classic, back in print after almost 40 years, provides a systematic discussion of how to defeat the insurgent as well as identifying potential pitfalls along the way.
Article about it here: http://www.sptimes.com/2005/10/04/Business/Strategic_control__by.shtml
Buy it here:
http://www.hailerpublishing.com/counter_insurgency.html
Take care!
Only a cousin of a Marine and girlfriend to a Solider so I'll miss all your great posts...but am glad you won't totally shut down on us! It's kind of a shame that we won't get to read more of the truth since MSM won't give it to us, but I respect your decision. Looking forward to more as you have time to post up. Stay safe.
*Lil Toni pouts*
This just ain't fair! I've followed your blog since FOREVA!
Now that you're safe in Germany, I WON'T be able to follow your rememberances because I'm NOT a mil family memba?!
sniff...
Would copious amounts of monk-made beer enamour u enuff to at least e-mail me with the latest posts??
Thank Gawd I down-loaded yer vids!(I soooooo enjoy watchin u n yer guys BLOW SHIT UP!)
God bless ya, Neil. You are a VERY talented writer, an amazing leader, and a blessing to our country.
Lil T.
any chance an old retired fart could access the new homw of the blog? yeah, i might have been air force, but i did 4 years with the 2nd ACR in nuremberg, so your stories bring back some fond memories.
dave fincher, msgt (ret) usaf
Roger, Sir. I'll keep a lookout for the AKO guys.
Powerpoint Samurai. I see your point completely. In fact, Outlaw 1, or Chris Boggiano, had another simple term for it. I told him about the AKO offer and said "if you can't beat 'em, join 'em."...to which he replied to me..."there's another word for it...Uncle Tom. I thought that was hilarious.
I found your blog and found out about my cousin. How do I follow it on AKO? What does that mean?
A long lost relative
Lt. Prakash, I can't begin to tell you how much I enjoy reading your blog. Whatever little doubts I might have had about our nations struggle to bring what we enjoy to the Middle East, have disappeared. As long as we have incredible young men like you in our armed services, our nation need not fear for itself. I also expect, that someday, as you grow older, that you might follow in the footsteps of another tanker, Harold Coyle, who is also an entrancing and knowledgeable writer.
Please, whatever you do, do not leave the Army. Sometime before I'm a complete doddering old fool, I'd like to see you with stars on your shoulder boards...you deserve them, and this nation would benefit greatly by having someone like you as a general officer.
Keep putting them downrange!
Byron Audler,
shipfitter, husband, grandfather, father in law of AD1 Vanderberg, soon to be ADC Vanderberg, and damn proud of that.
This is censorship. Nothing in that article violated any security protocols. The military higher ups better wake up and smell the roses. They are going to allow the only coverage of the war to be the biased MSM coverage. The mission will never get done of people don't know there is a real need and a real war.
Damn, that cuts me out. Oh well, I'll be in the Air Force by Christmas 2006, I'll just have to catch up then! :)
At least you can keep it going though. That's awesome!
I am REALLY going to miss not reading your war experiences. PLEASE let Blackfive and Mudville Gazette know when your book is coming out! You've got to put all this into a book, don't you??
Or a DVD-book, so we can see all the great photos and videos! Yeah!!
All the very best, sir, all the very best. Thank you so very much for all you've done for us, for your unit, the Army, the country.
And for all you've done for human freedom. Thank you.
Lloyd
Hey, I just wanted to say awesome blog...I've been reading it for a while but this is my first post. You and your crew's antics always put a smile on my face.
I was wondering if anyone here knew of any blogs by air force pilots. I'm seriously looking into flying jets for a while and I wanted to hear a little about what its like.
Thanks, and keep up the great work!
Neil,
Gotta say I love reading about your side of Fallujah. I don't blog, but I love comparing stories about Fallujah. I am having fun telling all the 13B's about how much fun we had blowing up stuff! Maybe I will run into you again sometime! Until then, keep up the good work.
-from a fellow brother
LT, how does the AKO work? Sorry man, I'm a USAF spouse, I don't have a clue about internal Army stuff.
I'd love to still be able to read all your posts. They're some of the best writing out in the MilBlogs. :)
Sir,
Are you up on AKO yet? What's the URL, please. I'm WAITING!
SFC Mariani (Ret'd) -grin-
Greetings from England.
I am a mom of a National Guardsmen & A Marine, My youngest son the Marine will be deploying to Fallujah on the 21st of this month, and i am scared to death for him, Is there anyone one can or would be willing to give me an update on the situation in Fallujah, I haven't seen or read anything about Fallujah, only news lately is on Iraq & Bagdad. I know this site is suppose to be for Army, but i am a mom of many emotions about my youngest son. And afraid that after he goes my oldest will want to active and head over there, I can't stand the thought of both of my boys going over there, and i know they won't be in the same place and the thought of anything happening to any of them is terrifying, I realise the children are excited to have some one fight for them and their rights, but unfortunetly the children aren't the ones making the decisions on ending this war and putting their country back together. Aparently it is the insurgents and the shiites.Don't get me wrong i support our troops %100 and want this war to end soon, I believe it is the only way to save our children, fathers, mothers, brothers and sisters, husbands & wives. We have lost almost as many US soldiers over their then the civilians here on 9/11.
Thanks
A Marine Mom
Thanks for your service and great blog.
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