[November 17, 2017] Today is the anniversary of the Battle of Ia Drang (Vietnam) which pitted elements of the U.S. 1st Cavalry Division against regular North Vietnam troops in a bloody battle. The unit’s commander, Hal Moore, and the only journalist at the battle, Joe Galloway, wrote the book We Were Soldiers Once … and Young (2002) that details the battle. The movie – based on the book – became part of one unit preparing for combat in war.
The Second Gulf War (the invasion of Iraq in 2003) was preceded by a coalition of military units preparing for combat. Preparation for a unit has at its root the strengthening of its members; improving physical and mental fitness, tactical adroitness, and flexibility. One unit, a group of combat engineers, was preparing at Fort Sill, Oklahoma and like so many, none of its members had ever gone to war.
“I don’t feel that emotion is a good thing to have in combat. You must be cold.” – Conor McGregor, Irish mixed martial artist and boxer
It has been said that the strongest muscle in the human body is the brain and it is what ultimately will determine whether a soldier (airman, marine, sailor, coastguardsman) does their duty when engaged in combat for the first time. After the unit commander announced that his unit would be the first engineer unit in Iraq, alongside Infantry and Armor units, he showed the movie We Were Soldiers Once … and Young. The 2002 movie had just hit theaters around the nation and they were seeing it for the first time.
Feelings among soldiers are not often discussed, especially openly. But this was clearly a time of reflection as they were seeing what an army unit, new to the Vietnam War, like they themselves to the Iraq War, was experiencing. Movies can never do justice to war but it can give a small insight into the violence, chaos, and sheer intensity. Those young troopers, some only 18 years old, left the movie with an idea of war and what it might be like for them.
War is an individual experience. How it effects each of us – especially for the first time in combat – is unpredictable. And that is what many said. No one knew how they would act when engaged in combat for the first time. Would they be a coward and run away? Would they disgrace their fellow soldiers and the Army by their foolishness? Would they have a mental breakdown? Those are some of the questions that can never be answered in advance.
We have all heard the stories about soldiers in combat who have been shot but did not know it until the battle was over. These true stories tell us about the strength of the mind. Thus it is only reasonable that military troops take the time to prepare themselves mentally for going to war. They can do this through mental conditioning (visualizing combat) and improving their situational awareness (identifying, processing, and understanding about their surroundings).1
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