Gulf War Vets Try to Prepare Troops

[thedrifter]

Gulf War Vets Try to Prepare Troops

By CHRIS TOMLINSON
.c The Associated Press

ABOARD THE USS AUSTIN (AP) - Gulf War veterans have some advice for the untried troops who may face combat for the first time: Stick to your training. Don't be afraid to be afraid.

``We tell them it's OK to be scared,'' said Lt. Col. Wes Weston of Cedar Point, N.C., a Marine commander aboard the USS Austin in the Persian Gulf. ``But with your training and your ability to do things you can combat that fear.''

Military training is meant to prepare troops for combat - how to fire a weapon accurately, move under fire, protect against counterattack. But when conflict appears imminent, that training takes on new meaning, greater relevance. Insecurities come to the fore.

President Bush has threatened to attack Iraq if Baghdad does not prove it has destroyed its prohibited weapons' programs. U.N. inspectors are attempting to verify Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein's claims that he has no such weapons.

Weston and some of the other men in the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit fought in the 1991 Gulf War to liberate Kuwait following Iraq's invasion a decade ago. The veterans know first hand that coming under fire is frightening.

``When you're getting shot at, the first thing is that you get scared. Then you're going to get an adrenaline rush. But you have to keep your head,'' said Sgt. Felix Nole-Ortiz, a mortarman from Houston. ``If you lose your head, you're done.''

Nole-Ortiz left the Marines after the Gulf War, but later re-enlisted. Now he's a squad leader in charge of 12 men and their 81 mm mortars.

``I try to push them a little harder than normal,'' said Nole-Ortiz, 34. ``We have a lot of young guys.''

The young Marines won't admit to being scared. Instead they insist they are well-trained and ready to take on any mission. But teenage insecurities can be seen through the bravado.

Nole-Ortiz's immediate boss, section leader Sgt. Dwayne Bailey, 36, of Hillside, N.J., also fought in the Gulf War, left the Marines and re-enlisted. Being older and a combat veteran, he commands respect beyond his rank.

His head shaved, Bailey said he was among the first Marines to cross into Iraq the night of Feb. 24, 1991. His squad followed tank tracks through the breach in the border, hiking into a fierce wind. At first, he didn't realize the sand around him was kicking up because of hostile small arms fire, not the wind.

``It's something that's an individual thing. It's different for everyone,'' Bailey said.

Bailey has noticed a change in the young recruits since he joined the military in 1989. Most of his men were in elementary school when he first saw combat.

He and the other veterans say their men are better-educated and more likely to question their decisions. But, they say, that's not necessarily bad, since it promotes more creativity and flexibility in accomplishing the mission, which remains the goal.

The veterans all said they believe Saddam poses a threat to the United States and needs to be disarmed, but they reject the stereotype that Marines are warmongers.

``Some people think that we're out here biting at the bit to kill someone,'' Bailey said. ``It's not like that. If it comes to that, I'm trained to do it. But if everyone could go home (without a war), I'd be fine with that.''



01/31/03 15:05 EST


Copyright 2003 The Associated Press.

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