Seeking Soldiers' Stories!

[Renegade8273]

Hello,

My name is Ben. I am currently working on a book following Canada's commitment to the Afghanistan War through the eyes of the soldiers who fought it. There will be no beating around the bush, cutting corners, or anything of the such. I feel it's only right for the story to be told as it was, not what people think it is. This is why I am posting this topic. I am looking for a few veterans (preferably Army, but Air Force or Navy are welcome if they are lingering around this forum) who fought in the Afghanistan War. I am looking for people who would be willing to tell me their story and what it was really like overseas. If you are interested, please message me directly and we will take things from there. I am seeking members from these current operations:

• OP Athena
• OP Attention
• OP Medusa

If you have any stories that you'd like to tell me about outside those three, feel free to contact me. I really look forward to seeing some messages from you guys. I know this isn't much info for now, but if you message me, I will explain more in depth. I would like to say now that I have the utmost respect for our Armed Forces and I thank you for the sacrifices and commitments you have made for our country. Have a good day.

 

[PuckChaser]

Have you published anything before? Is this book simply just a compilation of stories, or is there going to be a commentary added?

 

[Eye In The Sky]

Possibly small point, but consider that the Air Force personnel, as an example, who may not have been in 'close contact' with the enemy also did things like operate UAVs; their perspective of the war there would likely have value to the stories to paint a 'total picture' of the Canadian experience.  Same for our brothers and sisters in the RCN uniform;  regardless of what color we wear on Nov 11th, we all get the same sand on our boots when we are away from our postal codes on an Op.

:2c:

 

[jollyjacktar]

True. I was not there in a combat role, but I helped make it possible for those who were to do so.  We all had our part to play in the mission(s) even when we were inside and outside the wire.

 

[brihard]

I'm an infnatry guy who did a six month tour of convoy escorts and never fired a shot. We had Navy clearance divers clearing IEDs. We had air force electronics specialists in dangerous outside the wire roles. We had medics and truck drivers get engaged in active combat. We had an air force helicopter shot down. We had navy guys working on CIMIC teams doing fot patrols through villages talking to locals and sometimes getting in fights.

The scope of what you're doing is artifically limited, I suspect out of lack of awareness. What is the background you bring into this project? What is your prior knowledge of the Canadian military and of Afghanistan that you beleive equips you to be deserving of the trust you're asking from soldiers to tell their tale?

 

[daftandbarmy]

Hello,

My name is Bennett. I am currently working on a book following Canada's commitment to the Afghanistan War through the eyes of the soldiers who fought it. There will be no beating around the bush, cutting corners, or anything of the such. I feel it's only right for the story to be told as it was, not what people think it is. This is why I am posting this topic. I am looking for a few veterans (preferably Army, but Air Force or Navy are welcome if they are lingering around this forum) who fought in the Afghanistan War. I am looking for people who would be willing to tell me their story and what it was really like overseas. If you are interested, please message me directly and we will take things from there. I am seeking members from these current operations:

• OP Athena
• OP Attention
• OP Medusa

If you have any stories that you'd like to tell me about outside those three, feel free to contact me. I really look forward to seeing some messages from you guys. I know this isn't much info for now, but if you message me, I will explain more in depth. I would like to say now that I have the utmost respect for our Armed Forces and I thank you for the sacrifices and commitments you have made for our country. Have a good day.

So far you don't seem to be following the code of ethics of your chosen profession, especially that 'transparency'' thing:

Viz: We generally don’t conceal our identities. When, on rare occasions, a reporter needs to go “undercover” in the public interest, we will clearly explain why.

http://www.caj.ca/principles-for-ethical-journalism/

 

[Renegade8273]

I'm an infnatry guy who did a six month tour of convoy escorts and never fired a shot. We had Navy clearance divers clearing IEDs. We had air force electronics specialists in dangerous outside the wire roles. We had medics and truck drivers get engaged in active combat. We had an air force helicopter shot down. We had navy guys working on CIMIC teams doing fot patrols through villages talking to locals and sometimes getting in fights.

The scope of what you're doing is artifically limited, I suspect out of lack of awareness. What is the background you bring into this project? What is your prior knowledge of the Canadian military and of Afghanistan that you beleive equips you to be deserving of the trust you're asking from soldiers to tell their tale?

Hello Brihard,

I'm a bit unsure of what you mean when you refer to what my background is. Have I served? No. Do I know people who have served? Yes. Do I have knowledge in the conflict? Yes. I guarantee you that my knowledge of the Canadian military and their part in the Afghanistan is high (or so I like to think). As for me being deserving, that is simply something I cannot answer, as I'm not sure. To some people, I'm deserving and they've given me their story. Some people don't. I completely respect your privacy and concern on the topic, because I do understand that this is a very sensitive topic for many, but I don't feel I am in a position where I am able to deem myself deserving. I hope this answers/clears up my position on your concerns.

 

[Alberta Bound]

8273,

I think that your intro lacked the depth to gain the confidence and buy in from those on this sight with the experiences you seek. What are you really seeking? A series of short stories? What's your angle? What is your vision for your book?

Any true book would have the human insights from all angles of the subject parameters. Whether Kabul 2005, Kandahar 2010, Camp Mirage, OMLT, TF 1-08, Roto 7, etc, etc, etc.

The best you can ask for is someone's most cherished memories of service, comradeship, and their worst nightmares.  Everyone from the Task Force commander down has something to contribute. The CF contribution in Afghanistan occurred by all elements, ranks, trades, etc.

If you really want to understand what it was like (and each individual, even in similar circumstances, had distinctive individual perceptions and feelings about "their" mission).  Then open your mind, be honest and be willing to listen.

Just my thoughts.

AB

 

[Scoobs]

Renegade8273,

1. Don't worry, we all know that you didn't serve, based on how you worded your original post and your response.  Trust me, we knew right away.

2. Your knowledge of what happened in Afghanistan is not high.  If it actually was, you would not have, in one fell swoop, insulted the Air Force (count me in this group) and Navy folks who served in Afghanistan.  Trust me, you did.  Just look at the number of comments that you got back when using terms like "Air Force and Navy folks lingering around these forums".  If your knowledge was truly high about Afghanistan, you would have already known about the contributions that all 3 branches of the military made in Afghanistan. 

3. I'd be surprised if you get the number of responses that you originally thought that you could get.  This has nothing to do with "deserving" or not, as I don't think that way.  It has more to do with your credibility.  Straightforward, when you insult a large number of us, don't know that your're doing that, and then try to tell us afterwards that you know a lot about what happened in Afghanistan, we simply don't believe you.  Therefore, most of us will not offer you any info about our time in Afghanistan.

 

[Renegade8273]

Renegade8273,

1. Don't worry, we all know that you didn't serve, based on how you worded your original post and your response.  Trust me, we knew right away.

2. Your knowledge of what happened in Afghanistan is not high.  If it actually was, you would not have, in one fell swoop, insulted the Air Force (count me in this group) and Navy folks who served in Afghanistan.  Trust me, you did.  Just look at the number of comments that you got back when using terms like "Air Force and Navy folks lingering around these forums".  If your knowledge was truly high about Afghanistan, you would have already known about the contributions that all 3 branches of the military made in Afghanistan. 

3. I'd be surprised if you get the number of responses that you originally thought that you could get.  This has nothing to do with "deserving" or not, as I don't think that way.  It has more to do with your credibility.  Straightforward, when you insult a large number of us, don't know that your're doing that, and then try to tell us afterwards that you know a lot about what happened in Afghanistan, we simply don't believe you.  Therefore, most of us will not offer you any info about our time in Afghanistan.

Thank you for your comment.

At no point was I aiming to insult any of the members who served. Yea, I'll admit my choice of words when talking about the members of the Air Force and Navy were poor, but it was most definitely not suppose to come across as an insult. The reason I posted this thread was to get to a larger audience, and possibly get more stories. I have more than enough insights already, but what I was looking forward to was getting some more insight from the Army side of things, that's all. At no point in time did I mean to insult other branches, as I know they were crucial in the mission in Afghanistan. Sorry if it came across as such, but that was not my intention.

 

[jollyjacktar]

Well, good luck with your endeavours. I'm out.

 

[Edward Campbell]

Renegade8273,

1. Don't worry, we all know that you didn't serve, based on how you worded your original post and your response.  Trust me, we knew right away.

2. Your knowledge of what happened in Afghanistan is not high.  If it actually was, you would not have, in one fell swoop, insulted the Air Force (count me in this group) and Navy folks who served in Afghanistan.  Trust me, you did.  Just look at the number of comments that you got back when using terms like "Air Force and Navy folks lingering around these forums".  If your knowledge was truly high about Afghanistan, you would have already known about the contributions that all 3 branches of the military made in Afghanistan. 

3. I'd be surprised if you get the number of responses that you originally thought that you could get.  This has nothing to do with "deserving" or not, as I don't think that way.  It has more to do with your credibility.  Straightforward, when you insult a large number of us, don't know that your're doing that, and then try to tell us afterwards that you know a lot about what happened in Afghanistan, we simply don't believe you.  Therefore, most of us will not offer you any info about our time in Afghanistan.

I notice the originator has not bothered to answer PuckChaser's very pertinent question.

Have you published anything before? Is this book simply just a compilation of stories, or is there going to be a commentary added?

 

[Loachman]

Or Brihard's ...

What is the background you bring into this project? What is your prior knowledge of the Canadian military and of Afghanistan that you beleive equips you to be deserving of the trust you're asking from soldiers to tell their tale?

... either.

No identification given.

No background given.

No motive/purpose given.

No trust given in return.

Even if I was inclined to spend a lot of time writing about my experiences - much of which will not be discussed publicly for a long time, if ever - for somebody else's benefit.