American soldiers in Iraq are all well-screened before being sent into battle. At least, that's what the United States would like us to believe. But that isn't true, says well-known Iraq War blogger Colby Buzzell in a new story chronicling his path from dope fiend to front-line soldier.

Trading in the Bong for the Bayonet



AP
How do you end up here? Colby Buzzell explains.
So how does one actually end up as a soldier in Iraq? It's not, apparently, all that difficult. A story in the March Esquire, written by well-known Iraq War blogger Colby Buzzell, describes the author's transformation from a dope-smoking skater to a front-line soldier. While Buzzell does seem awfully excited about his marijuana and beer consumption, his fast-paced and chatty piece -- written in a style not all that different from his blog -- offers a fascinating insight into a military that is often willing to set aside its own rules in order to bolster its numbers. His personal view of the frontlines is set to come out in book form in the autumn of 2005.

There are "high lighted" segments in this article....hope this will be opening in the forum, but I guess going to the Spiegel will do it?
http://service.spiegel.de/cache/internatio...,349595,00.html

Oh I could tell you some stories of what took place during the 'nam debacle in how the green machine aquired their walking stats to send into that lie war. Wait until the real crap hits the fan overseas and a serious draft has to be reinstated ..... you really get a mixed bag of goodies then. From the cream of the crop to the bottom of the barrel.... even a few section 8s that will fire up the camp over a DJ letter or spook at the drop of the hat and spray your immediate ao. From basic training to the war zone ... both will sport their own 'cherry' style of casualties. It all comes with the green machine turf.