D.I.M.E.

OR AT LEAST PRETEND TO

In an earlier essay I wrote that I don’t miss the military, or being in the military. I miss the idea of the military.

The summer of 1994 was a very memorable highlight of my time spent in the United States Army. Part of that summer was spent as a guest training in SaarLouis, Germany with the Luftlandebrigade 1 “Saarland” airborne brigade, German paratroopers or Fallschirmjäger. We were in Germany for about a month, and upon returning home to a continued training cycle at Fort Bragg North Carolina, little did we know our training ammunition would soon be exchanged for live ammunition more quickly than the change of a season.

What is DIME?

DIME is a U.S. Department of Defense acronym representing the four primary instruments of national power:

“Diplomatic, Informational, Military and Economic. It is used to align military strategy with overall government policy, ensuring a comprehensive, whole-of-government approach to achieving national objectives.”

The war in Iraq, which I participated in, failed to apply DIME one fucking victory at a time. However, earlier in my career I was privileged to have a front row seat to seeing a real life and somewhat effective contextual use of the DIME application. In particular the diplomatic and military columns. Informational was also vital to the military operation I will name here in a minute. However, as I participated in this operation at the tactical level, my focus will mainly be on military and diplomatic (years later).

The operation I keep making reference to was called “Operation Uphold Democracy (Joint Task Force 180), a multinational military intervention in Haitidesigned to remove the military regime led and installed by Raoul Cédras after the 1991 coup d’état overthrew the elected President Jean-Bertrand Aristide. The operation was effectively authorized by the 31 July 1994 United Nations Security Council Resolution 940, which approved the use of force to restore the Aristide government.” (Wiki source)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Uphold_Democracy

On September 18th, 1994 late evening, in between lighting storms dropping crocodile sized North Carolina raindrops, a young field artillery first lieutenant fire support team leader assigned to Bravo Company, 2-325 battalion, 82nd Airborne Division conducted pre-combat inspections, to include donning a parachute, rucksack, weapons, ammunition, radios (equipment weighing over 100 pounds) for a mass tactical combat airfield and airport seizure at 0 dark fucking thirty - Port Au Prince Haiti. Our company’s mission was the task force main effort, with the mission of securing the small international airport terminals and to take control of the main tower in order to facilitate landing the remainder of the task force, run control tower operations for civilian aircraft (when safe), until proper relief would be provided by the FAA. At least that’s my recollection. If I made any error in facts, please feel free to correct the record.

So…short story made longer. We were turned around, about 45 minutes away from opening our aircraft doors to jump. I was on the sixth aircraft in a flight of about 40 or 50 aircraft. I was jumping right door (fifth jumper) on aircraft number six, and recall being able to catch a glimpse, from one of the few windows, of the aircraft echeloned in formation between distant strikes of lightening, dark as night - aircraft flying tactical with no lights. Then…the abort call, and nick names galore for the operation (Haiti One-Eighty, Operation Never Mind for example).

According to Wiki, this is some of the timeline for Operation Uphold Democracy:

“Therefore, the 2nd Battalion, 325th AIR “White Falcons” were attached to the 1st Brigade, 82nd Airborne Division Ready Brigade-1 (DRB-1). While allowing Cédras to process the panic-inducing sight, he was informed that while he assumed he was watching a live feed, he was in fact viewing a video captured more than 2 hours before. As such, the lead elements of the 3,900-strong paratrooper force had already launched from Fort Bragg, North Carolina and were currently over the Atlantic Ocean. They further informed him of the United States’ commitment to supporting democracy and that a forced-entry airborne assault on the island nation would, in all likelihood, result in Haiti coming under U.S. control before the next sunrise.”

To be clear, only the parachute assault portion of Operation Uphold Democracy was cancelled.

Tactical level soldiering is the most basic. Though not all the lessons I learned during this operation were restricted to this level. Here are a few of those lessons that stuck with me for 30-plus years since Haiti 180:

Pictured here, me(R) and a fellow paratrooper. This picture was taken the same year as Haiti 180 (1994) and same location where we always conducted aircraft load out for airborne operations, just on a different day. The aircraft type in the background is no longer in service…just as I am no longer in service.

This was the first time as a light airborne infantry soldier I carried a combat basic load plus…lesson learned was that combat basic load ammunition is fucking heavy. During my previous assignment in Korea, located just a few kilometers from the North Korean border, we conducted monthly alert and load out drills, but this was in a tank or armored unit where rucksacks were just a fucking decoration. I can also confirm it’s heaviness, not just because it was on my back and between my legs, but also because the abundance of ammo was so great, soldiers in some units were unable to pack it, so they stacked it in dumpsters in the cantonment area. Not expecting our jump to be cancelled, therefore mistakenly believing they wouldn’t have to return EVERY issued round and explosive device. Needless to say our criminal investigation division from the military police were busy the next few months. Planners also considered that maybe combat standard operating procedures for what a trooper should carry needed adjustment. Ironically, some of these planners, who were chute sharks, with very light weighing rucksacks since they had no mission on the ground or frontline. Which transitions us into the next paragraph.

This operation was my first real instruction in cautionary tales about officers (some senior NCO’s) seeking the full benefit banner of war and authorized valor thievery. In other words, the number of chairborne powerpoint ranger staff officers from our higher headquarters attempting to steal a chute or strap hang for a “coveted” insignia addition to their jump wings (nicked named mustard stain*)was shameful. I would have fucking gladly given my parachute to any of these spotlight rangers**, were it not for the fact I actually had an assignment which included taking care of Soldiers, and the battalion training and rehearsals done for the last week, very specific to the mission at hand. I remember our battalion commander (which is the same mentor I mention in the essay linked below):

having some very candid inadvertently overheard conversations with some of these, in some cases, officers senior to even him, about their selfish decision-making-process and how this type of empty valor seeking is what gets our soldiers killed dead. We jokingly called these staff weenies chute sharks, and told our paratroopers to yell stranger danger when approached by one.

DIME worked in Haiti, perhaps if only for an instant, at least at the micro level, especially as US forces, followed by the Multinational Interim Force (MIF) authorized by the UN Security Council in February 2004, after President Bertrand Aristide “departed” Haiti for exile in the aftermath of an armed conflict (coup d’etat lite) which spread to several cities across the country. Please see link below:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_Stabilisation_Mission_in_Haiti

Earlier I stated I was able to observe from an operational and strategic level the ripples of Operation Never Mind by returning to Haiti in 2008 with the United Nations. In this assignment, aside from feeling like a uniformed diplomatic cop and having mucho cognitive dissonance about this out of normalcy assignment, it proved to be one of my greatest lessons in learning the importance of handling gray area operations. That is to say UN peacekeeping and peace enforcement operations combined with almost 7,000 military, police forces and civilians from 20 other nations, to include China, you learn to freelance. Thankfully during this deployment at least we could drink alcohol. But really…the D in DIME actually in action…working? Perhaps only as band aides for sucking chest wounds, ergo, the cognitive dissonance.

One could argue that having the UN in Haiti as a band aide for open heart surgery is an exercise in futility. But what if the UN wasn’t there?

Many will argue that Operation Uphold Democracy demonstrated the rare occasion of the US being able to apply the DIME principle. I say sure, but only as within the context of managing our strategic narcissistic flare ups like a bad case of never cured herpes. Especially as we fast forward to the current US dictator who continues to cut off the financial oxygen needed for the United Nations to function.

In conclusion. I didn’t write this essay as a whataboutism. More as a because of. Our military record for losing one victory at a time speaks for itself very clearly. I still struggle in making amends with being a part of an organization that has and continues to be exploited for financial greed and political expedience by citizens who have no skin in the game yet feel comfortable punching down on the citizens whom have made a sworn ****life-moment commitment. All while operating in an environment where authoritarianism can be so easily disguised as authority.

Hope you learned something today.

Strength and honor.

#LDRSHIP #proletariatvsoligarch #martiallawiscoming

* A “mustard stain” on U.S. Army jump wings refers to a bronze service star worn on the parachutist badge, signifying participation in a combat parachute jump into hostile territory.

** A “spotlight ranger” is a slang term for a person, originating from US Army Ranger school, who only performs at a high level when superiors or evaluators are watching. They are often skilled but choose to do the bare minimum when not in the spotlight, aiming to maximize credit while minimizing effort.

*** Global Security https://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/int/minustah.htm

**** Life is but a moment