Ready or Not
Inadequate Training for War?
Justin Ware
http://nbc15.madison.com/home/headlines/3433476.html
Even on a perfect summer night on the square, hearing the news of another American killed in Iraq brings the pain back to the Maida family.
"It brought me back a year ago," said Ray Maida. "As a matter of fact it brought me back more than a year ago."
A year ago is when Ray Maida's son Mark was killed in Iraq.
More than a year ago, Ray was receiving letters from his son saying the Army was sending him to fight in a situation he wasn't prepared for and in Humvees that didn't have enough armor.
"What was being said was that our troops are not adequately equipped and our troops are not adequately trained," said Maida.
On Monday, Cedarburg native Stephen Castner was killed by a road–side bomb in Iraq.
Just a few days before that, he was sending the same message to his parents that Mark Maida had sent to his ... that the Guard had not given him the proper training to fight the war.
The Cedarburg soldier's complaints have spurred a major debate over training, with some Congressmen even asking for an investigation into the matter.
But Lt. Col. Tim Donovan says the training Wisconsin guard members get at Camp Shelby is top notch.
Donovan says he's seen it himself ... and the programs in Mississippi give soldiers what they need to successfully complete their missions.
"It just doesn't appear to us that Camp Shelby and training deficiencies have anything to do with this tragic event on Monday in Iraq," said Donovan.
But Ray Maida says that's just not possible.
Maida says the war in Iraq is much different than what America's leaders first thought they were getting into when they believed soldiers would be welcomed into the country as liberators.
Instead, the war has become a long, drawn out affair ... and Maida says the commanders training those soldiers, don't even know what they were preparing for.
"I think that's the crux of it," said Maida. "How can you train soldiers when you don't understand the culture and the people yourself?"
Ray Maida says it is upsetting when he sees a soldier's obituary buried behind other news.
Maida wants people to keep talking about the deaths and to keep caring about what is happening in Iraq.
Inadequate Training for War?
Justin Ware
http://nbc15.madison.com/home/headlines/3433476.html
Even on a perfect summer night on the square, hearing the news of another American killed in Iraq brings the pain back to the Maida family.
"It brought me back a year ago," said Ray Maida. "As a matter of fact it brought me back more than a year ago."
A year ago is when Ray Maida's son Mark was killed in Iraq.
More than a year ago, Ray was receiving letters from his son saying the Army was sending him to fight in a situation he wasn't prepared for and in Humvees that didn't have enough armor.
"What was being said was that our troops are not adequately equipped and our troops are not adequately trained," said Maida.
On Monday, Cedarburg native Stephen Castner was killed by a road–side bomb in Iraq.
Just a few days before that, he was sending the same message to his parents that Mark Maida had sent to his ... that the Guard had not given him the proper training to fight the war.
The Cedarburg soldier's complaints have spurred a major debate over training, with some Congressmen even asking for an investigation into the matter.
But Lt. Col. Tim Donovan says the training Wisconsin guard members get at Camp Shelby is top notch.
Donovan says he's seen it himself ... and the programs in Mississippi give soldiers what they need to successfully complete their missions.
"It just doesn't appear to us that Camp Shelby and training deficiencies have anything to do with this tragic event on Monday in Iraq," said Donovan.
But Ray Maida says that's just not possible.
Maida says the war in Iraq is much different than what America's leaders first thought they were getting into when they believed soldiers would be welcomed into the country as liberators.
Instead, the war has become a long, drawn out affair ... and Maida says the commanders training those soldiers, don't even know what they were preparing for.
"I think that's the crux of it," said Maida. "How can you train soldiers when you don't understand the culture and the people yourself?"
Ray Maida says it is upsetting when he sees a soldier's obituary buried behind other news.
Maida wants people to keep talking about the deaths and to keep caring about what is happening in Iraq.