By Brian Rooney, Guest Writer
Recently, I had the honor of addressing the 119th Michigan Army National Guard out of Battle Creek, at the last gathering this unit would have together until 2011.
The 119th is deploying to Kuwait, Iraq and Afghanistan in support of the ongoing War on Terror. These brave men and women will be leaving Michigan and their families for a year or more.
As an experienced Marine Corps combat veteran, I was asked to give them advice before their deployment. I took this opportunity to encourage these proud troops never to get complacent in their duties or mission.
The reality is that one of the easiest ways to get injured or killed in a hostile fire zone is by complacency. It's easy to gear up for battle, but the long periods of down time and boredom require a sharp and focused mind. I encouraged the soldiers and their families to handwrite letters instead of sending emails, because those letters would have more meaning and lasting value for them and their children.
Finally, I told the soldiers never to be too proud - overseas and especially when they come home - to seek out a chaplain or doc to talk through any issues they may have from being separated from their families or from what they experience abroad.
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder can affect a majority of the troops deployed, whether in combat or not. The divorce rate and suicide rate are at all-time highs in our armed forces, so we need to do a better job of taking care of our soldiers' needs when it comes to PTSD. This means starting with destigmatizing PTSD and encouraging our men and women to face it with the same determination with which they will face Al Qaeda or the Taliban.
As the only veteran in the race for the 7th Congressional District, I have been waiting with anticipation for the president's decision on the troop increase in Afghanistan. The 119th will be split up, but its members will be part of this new surge.
I was not pleased with how long the president took to decide, because, as a Marine, I was always taught that a good plan powerfully and quickly executed is better than a perfect plan never executed.
With General McChrystal being handpicked by the President to lead the charge in Afghanistan, I advocated either implementing McChrystal's plan or pulling the troops out and bringing them home. Half measures do not work in that part of the world. I was pleased with the commander-in-chief's final decision and support it as well as the troops tasked with implementing it.
Unfortunately, our Representative, Mark Schauer, doesn't seem to know if he supports the President's decision or the troops implementing it. As perplexing as Mark Schauer's record has been in his first year in Congress, I am baffled that he cannot understand the moral imperative we have to prevail in Afghanistan and support the president in this mission.
Schauer has identified the cost of the mission and job growth as his primary concerns. It is difficult not to be cynical about his argument, given his knee-jerk support for every outrageous spending increase that Nancy Pelosi has brought to the House floor.
His sudden concern for Michigan job growth had nothing to do with his other votes, and, in fact, several of them would actually threaten Michigan jobs. Unemployment was a top concern to Michiganders when Schauer took the oath of office in January, and he's done nothing in the year since to help get Michigan back to work. But all of a sudden, he is concerned about the cost of victory and its effects on job growth.
Career politicians like Mark Schauer who have the luxury of debating issues like our increased presence in Afghanistan in safety do so because our troops abroad are keeping them safe. His position, however, undermines the morale of our fighting men and women as they risk their lives while separated from their families to protect us.
Should the voters of the 7th District elect me in 2010, I pledge that politics will never play a role in determining my support of our troops and their mission - no matter who serves as commander-in-chief.
Our elected representatives owe this much to our service members. We can, and should, debate these important decisions, but once they are made, our elected leaders have an obligation to support our troops.
Brian Rooney
Candidate for Michigan's 7th Congressional District
