I am confident there are American soldiers, patrolling in the sweltering 100 degree Iraqi heat, who long for a place that is untouched by man, a place where they can escape, a place where they know oil development will never occur. To them, ANWR may be this place.
I am also confident there are American soldiers, patrolling in the same sweltering Iraqi heat, who wonder why we, as citizens of this great country, just don’t responsibly develop the oil here in the USA, possibly beneath the Coastal Plain of ANWR, lessening our dependence on foreign sources of oil, which oftentimes supports terrorism. They may wonder why we would fight so hard to allow other countries the opportunities to be free – to develop their natural resources and grow their economies, oftentimes without respect for the environment. Meanwhile, despite the freedoms we have in the USA, development is far too often blocked by lawsuit after lawsuit in our own country.
Either way, I am confident there are soldiers on both sides of the ANWR issue. And, either way, I am happy they are there, protecting our right to debate issues such as ANWR. Kind of helps put things into perspective when you think about it. I was recently named as an honorary commander of the 3rd Civil Engineer Squadron at Elmendorf Airforce Base. I was humbled by this honor and take this position very seriously. Indeed, from my point of view, this squadron is now RDC’s adopted squadron.
The soldiers in this squadron, and in fact all soldiers, are our brothers and sisters, moms and dads, cousins, and friends. And sadly, far too often, they are like North Slope workers—we know they’re there, but we don’t see them, so we don’t appreciate what it is they do. But, we wouldn’t enjoy the quality of life we have without them.
As we celebrate Independence Day this year, regardless of your position on the war, remember to say thank you to our colleagues abroad who protect our opportunities to be free and to have the debates we are so fortunate to have.
I received a letter from the squadron commander that I’ve included on this page. I encourage all of you reading this column to send members of this squadron warm wishes, letters, or even care packages. Send mail to:
c/o Lt Col Andy Lambert
407 AEG/ECES/CC
APO AE 09331
When you write them, I encourage you to tell them what you do; tell them that you think and pray for them; tell them you long for the day when they are home so you can have the ANWR debate, or other discussions with them for that matter, in person. But most of all, as every day we take our freedoms for granted, tell them thank you.
Alaskan squadron commander writes RDC
I’m Lt Col James Hodges, the current commander of the 3rd Civil Engineer Squadron (3 CES). A group of us from Elmendorf AFB and Eielson AFB have been here in Iraq since January expanding and maintaining the base infrastructure, protecting the people with our firefighters and explosive ordnance disposal technicians, and working with Iraqis to train them on construction methods and emergency services. It’s been a great experience and we’ve made a difference over here.
We have a very diverse mission at the 3 CES. We do everything from base master planning, engineering design, construction, maintenance of facilities, environmental remediation and management, housing services, explosive ordnance disposal, fire and emergency services, base emergency management, as well as manage a big budget, computer system, and our internal human resources.
I’m sure you will find our mission interesting and the people will be glad to show you what they do. We also have lots of dedicated Americans in the squadron, over 260 of whom have deployed overseas in support of the Global War on Terrorism over the past couple of years. They and their families have endured much to help solidify the gains we continue to see growing.
I was also interested when I read about your organization. It would be great if at some point a group from the 3 CES could see and hear what you do. I look forward to meeting you and welcoming you into the extended 3 CES family.
Colonel James Hodges is Commander, 407th Expeditionary Civil Engineer
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