Title: Outlaw
Platoon: Heroes, Renegades, Infidels, and the Brotherhood of War in Afghanistan
Author: Sean
Parnell with John R. Bruning
Review: If you
want insight what is actually going on in Afghanistan and our troops you could
not do better than Outlaw Platoon which follows a platoon from the Army’s 10th
Mountain Division. Told from a first
person point of view from the platoon’s leader Lieutenant Parnell it brings the
war to life, especially all of the men (or boys in some cases) that served in
2006. You get to know these guys
intimately and genuinely care about their well being and their futures.
Written in the tradition of David Hackworth’s great books
about Vietnam, you follow these guys through their entire assignment in Bermel
Afghanistan which is righton the Pakistan border. Without losing the flow of the story Parnell
highlights the major battles and incidences his soldiers faced. He puts you right into the action letting you
know what these guys both physically and mentally suffered for their mission.
What amazes me with all these accounts of modern war, the
enemies America face generally follow the same plan. They make up for organization and firepower
by sheer volume of troops. If you send
enough guys forward with enough small arms, eventually you will hit
someone. Much how I play Halo, just keep
taking shots as fast as I can and eventually I will get lucky. Whereas America believes in a well-trained
force who are well-equipped. This plays
out with the Outlaw Platoon as they suffer very few casualties over their
deployment, but do receive a lot of wounds.
Yet they manage to kill a lot of the opposing force with much less
men.
What is hard to read is the enemy’s treatment of the Afghani
people they come across; they think nothing of the torture and murder of the
citizenry. Plus it is shocking to see
the treatment the Afghani’s will give the American troops at times. The enemy is killing them yet they will stand
by and let bad things happen to the troops that could have been prevented. The loan death in the platoon is truly
devastating because of this indifference; it could have easily been
prevented.
Then the major flaw of modern war is the desire to be
civilized about it, especially when your enemy has no interest in that. When their operating base is being shelled
nonstop by the enemy and you are not allowed to fire back. Why?
Well the enemy is sitting right across the border in Pakistan; are
supposed ally in this war, with Pakistani troops making themselves human
shields for the enemy. According to the
treaties we are teammates in this conflict, when the evidence on the ground is
they are clearly not. Yet we obey the
treaty and just let men get killed in order not to offend. It is this desire to fight a friendly war
that is the largest cause of troop suffering.
My only dislike of this book is the macho posturing I see in
all books of this type; that this platoon was the best and not only were they
were the best everyone else were detrimental to the cause of the real
soldiers. Especially noticeable was the
description of the Fobbits, the term for the support staff that stay at the
base of operations to maintain the troops who did go on patrol. These are the soldiers who cook the meals,
maintain the vehicles, get in the supplies, and all the other tasks that are
required to support the combat troops.
While I do not doubt there are a lot of less desirable people in the
mix, and the author describes several of them, a vast majority are there giving
up their life for this deployment doing all they can to serve these combat
troops and their country with honor. By
only focusing on the jerks of the bunch he paints them all with a broad
brushstroke of shame. Like their service was less than everyone else’s. Hackworth referred to these guys as REMF’s in
his books.
This is a great book to get a frontline understanding of the
Afghanistan war from the eyes of our combat troops. You will come away with a new view of the
stories and politicking you see coming out of Washington and the mass media.
Publisher:
William Morrow
ISBN:
978-0-06-206640-4
Copyright: 2012
Pages: 372
Quick Review: 3.5
stars out of 5
Why I Read It:
Enjoy a good non-fiction book
Where I Obtained the
Book: Sent to me by the publisher for review
Synopsis: Former
Army officer Parnell and collaborator Bruning (Shadow of the Sword) reprise
Parnell’s 16 months as an infantry platoon leader in Afghanistan in this
heartfelt memoir. In 2006, Parnell and his 10th Mountain Division platoon, the
self-styled Outlaws, arrived in Afghanistan’s Bermel Valley, which borders
Pakistan. Their mission was “to stanch the flow of enemy troops and supplies into
Afghanistan.” Besides their 32 Purple Hearts, the platoon—which “usually
patrolled with about 30 men... loaded into six Humvees”—earned seven Bronze
Stars and 12 Army Commendations for Valor, making it one of the most decorated
units in the Afghan war. Parnell vividly captures the sounds, sights, and
smells of combat, and proves most eloquent when describing the
bond—“selflessness was our secret weapon”—that developed among his men.
Studiously nonpartisan, Parnell still raises important questions about Afghan
president Hamid Karzai’s integrity, the competence of the Afghan police, and
the sincerity of our Pakistani “allies.” Parnell balances sentimentality with
sincerity and crisp prose to produce one of the Afghan war’s most moving combat
narratives.
Author Biography: Sean Parnell is a former U.S. Army airborne
ranger who served in the legendary 10th Mountain Division for six years,
retiring as a captain. He received two Bronze Stars (one for valor) and the
Purple Heart. He is a passionate supporter of America's military and is
currently serving as an ambassador for the Boot Campaign, a national veteran's
charity. He lives with his wife and three children in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
John R. Bruning is the author or coauthor of fifteen
nonfiction books, including the critically acclaimed Shadow of the Sword and
House to House. To prepare for this book, he embedded with coalition forces in
Afghanistan in 2010....
John Bruning is the author or coauthor of fifteen nonfiction
books, including the critically acclaimed Shadow of the Sword (with Jeremiah
Workman) and House to House (with David Bellavia). To prepare for this book, he
embedded with coalition forces in Afghanistan in 2010. He lives in Oregon with
his wife and two children.
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