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Afghanistan Troop Recall Policies
"I felt like I was being robbed of everything," Matthew Dobbs said over the phone from his home in Houston, Texas. "I had visions of military police banging down my door and dragging me back to war."
Dobbs, a 26 year-old former soldier who served a tour in Afghanistan from 2003-2004, was recounting a story that has become familiar in the ongoing Global War on Terror. It is the story of a soldier who, after serving a tour overseas and being discharged from Active Duty, received involuntary orders to re-deploy to Iraq or Afghanistan years later.
Dobbs was not a victim of stop-loss, the policy of involuntarily extending a GI's term of service, sometimes after multiple tours in combat zones. This practice has recently garnered widespread negative attention and Secretary of Defense Robert Gates claims that it will be phased out.
Rather, Dobbs was a victim of reactivation orders from the Individual Ready Reserves (IRR), a lesser-publicized form of involuntary service that has been fueling troop supply for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. While there has been a strong reaction to stop-loss, IRR recall has slipped under the radar, creating the illusion that the problem of involuntary military service has been solved.
The IRR is composed of troops who have finished their active duty service but still have time remaining on their contracts. The typical military contract mandates four years of active duty and four years in the IRR, but variations exist and an individual's IRR stint might be longer or shorter. IRR members live civilian lives, are unpaid, and are technically required to show up for periodic musters. Many have moved on from military life and are enrolled in college, working civilian jobs, or building a family.
The catch is that, at any point, IRR members can be recalled into active duty to serve in a "state of emergency." This policy has translated into the involuntary reactivation of tens of thousands of troops to fight the ongoing wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Since September 11th, 2001, about 28,000 IRR members in the U.S. Army have been mobilized, according to Major Maria Quon, Army Pubic Affairs Officer. There have been 3,868 Marines involuntarily recalled and mobilized during that time, according to Major O'Connor, Marine Corps Spokesman.
Dobbs was issued his reactivation orders in 2008, over four years after he had completed his tour in Afghanistan and been discharged from Active Duty. At the time, he was enrolled in school at Texas State University. The orders were sent to his mother's house, and he says that hearing her read them over the phone was, "one of the scariest moments in my life."
Dobbs says that his tour in Afghanistan left him with psychological scars that he struggled for years to overcome upon his return. He was deployed to Afghanistan as a communications specialist and bore witness to "firefights, rockets, and mortars," with two people from his unit killed in combat. When he returned from his deployment, Dobbs learned that his father was gravely ill. He got compassionate reassignment to Ft. Sill so that he could be with his dying father. Meanwhile, the rest of his unit was stop-lossed and forced to serve another tour in Iraq.
After his discharge from the military and his father's death, Dobbs struggled with depression and alcoholism. He moved several times, first living with his mother in Texas, then eventually getting a place of his own and enrolling in school. He says he was finally getting his life "to a happy place" when he got the reactivation orders in the mail.
The IRR provides a ready supply of troops who already have military experience, many of whom have already seen combat. With U.S. forces stretched thin in Iraq and Afghanistan, this pool of GIs has played a role in boosting military capacity. Even though recent reports suggest that the military is reaching its recruitment targets for the first time in years, likely due to growing unemployment, Army IRR reactivation rates remain "steady state," according to Major Quon.
Critics charge that the IRR forces already over-extended troops to fight yet another deployment, pushing them beyond exhaustion. "If people thought this was a just war, if soldiers believed that fighting these wars was making the world a better place, the army wouldn't have to involuntarily drag them out of civilian life," said Seth Manzel, Executive Director of GI Voice, an advocacy organization for soldiers who are mistreated by the military, and an active member with Iraq Veterans Against the War, an organization comprised of military service people who have served since September 11th, 2001. "The IRR is nothing more than a backdoor draft."
But military officials say that recruits know exactly what they are getting into when they sign up for military service. "When you sign your contract, you know you have to serve time in the IRR and that there is a possibility you will get called up," said Major O'Connor. "I would hope they read the contract that they signed."
Veteran advocates cast doubt on these claims. "I can say, in my own personal experience, my military recruiter never went through the effort to explain what the IRR is," said Jeff Paterson, former Marine and current Project Director for Courage to Resist, an organization that supports the troops who refuse to fight in Iraq and Afghanistan. "Military recruiters are expert at avoiding inconvenient details of the military agreement. In my case, there was no indication that recall during the inactive term would be a realistic event."
Others say that the very premise of the IRR is unfair, regardless of one's awareness at the time of signing their military contract. "No company in the world could make an employment contract like what the military has," said Seth Manzel. "Could you imagine IBM indenturing its workers in the same way? The only reason the contract is upheld is because it is with the government."
After returning from Afghanistan, Dobbs began questioning the ongoing wars. His own research led him to conclude that the war he had fought in was unjustified. "After a lot of reading and questioning, I found out this is not an honorable war, and I came to disagree with what I had done," he said. "Afghanistan did not attack us. This had nothing to do with the people of Afghanistan."
Dobbs became involved with a local chapter of IVAW, where he met his now fiancé. He became an outspoken critic against the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and cites his activism as a key component that helped him get his life back on track.
It was in the midst of his burgeoning anti-war activism that Dobbs received his reactivation orders. He was furious. "Doesn't the military realize that if I get deployed again, that could be the end of my life?" he asked, his voice booming. "I have already served in combat. I started living a life of peace when I got out. I didn't ever think they would ask me to go back."
Dobbs told his mom to rip up his activation orders, and he hasn't looked back since. The military made several attempts to contact him, but he ignored them every time. On April 19, 2009, Dobbs was discharged from the IRR. He is still waiting to receive his papers.
GI counselors at Courage to Resist note that, up to this point, the U.S. military has not attempted to apply the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) to IRR members who refuse to report. This means that the military has not had jurisdiction to go after IRR members who refuse recall. IRR members can receive a less than honorable discharge from the IRR, but so far this has not affected active duty discharge and has had no bearing on military benefits. Furthermore, the military does not arrest IRR resisters or force them to show up for activation, though they do resort to pressure via letters, phone calls, and even home visits.
However, many troops are not aware of this, and tens of thousands show up for recall. This dilemma was made famous Ryan Conklin of MTV's ‘The Real World,' who, in front of millions of TV viewers, reported back to duty after receiving reactivation orders from the IRR. The recent case of Matthis Chiroux, an IRR resister who pushed for an upgrade in his discharge from the IRR, also garnered widespread media attention.
Many troops also join the military reserves, in hopes of avoiding an IRR recall that will land them in a combat zone. "The IRR ultimately is a tool for military retention," says Jeff Paterson. "Many people are strong-armed into joining the reserves under threat of IRR recall."
Dobbs said that now that he has been discharged from the military, he is prepared to speak out against IRR recall, a practice that he says is indicative of the military's broader policy of using troops up and destroying their minds and bodies through multiple deployments.
"My heart goes out to all of those people showing up for recall," said Matthew Dobbs over the phone. "When you are in a combat zone, you live through the hardest stuff you ever thought you would have to. It is not just physically exhausting, it is also mentally exhausting not to know if this tour is going to be the tour where you die. And now, after making it through alive, they tell you have to go back."
43 Comments so far
Show AllI joined the Marines in '86. While I was at the processing in I noticed the part about the IRR in the fine print, and asked one of the people who were working through the contracts with the recruits about it. My recruiter never did mention it, and the woman who I asked about it said 'well, they'll only recall you if it's like WWIII'
Hey, I was 18 years old, had already gone through the MEPPS center and went through all that crap, and hey, they'd only recall me if it was WWIII? Right? So I carried on and went off to boot camp.
Five years later, just after I got out, got married and started to set up a life Desert Storm happens. Guess what.
"Only if it's WWIII" my ass. That was a hard lesson. I asked about it, and they lied to me about it. But I still had to go.
As a former serviceman, while I agree that many recruiters are 'less-than-forthcoming' with details like IRR, the contract's terms were there for me to read if I so desired. I did read the contract and asked questions about this and other terms of the contract that I freely entered into.
Now, if you want to print articles about the 'used-car salesmen in training' and snake-oil purveyors called recruiters, that's another issue, but all a recruit has to do is ask direct questions and get the recruiter to put anything they promise in writing and then these 'mis-understandings' of contract terms might be less surprising...
To the "They have/had no choice" Again this song sums it up best.
He's five feet two and he's six feet four
He fights with missiles and with spears
He's all of 31 and he's only 17
He's been a soldier for a thousand years
He's a Catholic, a Hindu, an atheist, a Jain,
a Buddhist and a Baptist and a Jew
and he knows he shouldn't kill
and he knows he always will
kill you for me my friend and me for you
And he's fighting for Canada,
he's fighting for France,
he's fighting for the USA,
and he's fighting for the Russians
and he's fighting for Japan,
and he thinks we'll put an end to war this way
And he's fighting for Democracy
and fighting for the Reds
He says it's for the peace of all
He's the one who must decide
who's to live and who's to die
and he never sees the writing on the walls
But without him how would Hitler have
condemned him at Dachau
Without him Caesar would have stood alone
He's the one who gives his body
as a weapon to a war
and without him all this killing can't go on
He's the universal soldier and he
really is to blame
His orders come from far away no more
They come from him, and you, and me
and brothers can't you see
this is not the way we put an end to war.
Buffy St Marie
Seems it will take the US a bit more time yet to grow into that Emancipation Proclamation.
actually, marco, they're being blamed for buying the lie.
like you, i too know the feelings of loss from the atrocities of war, on both sides of my family, but from an earlier era than that of which you speak. like you, i'm angered and bitter and disgusted, but not at the far left. it's called the military industrial complex. and complex it is. it preys on the naive and the innocent with it's star-spangled dance of sing-song patriotism.
my nephew, my godson, was hellbent, during his junior and part of his senior years of high school, in joining up to go to iraq. i copied countless articles and editorials and fact sheets and photos showing and detailing the lie that is war, shrouded in patriotism. these were either mailed or personally delivered to him. it is a certainty that he read many of these descriptions of what his life could really be like while trying to be all he could be, surrounded by the few, the proud, the untrained and deranged animals. all things happen for a reason, and i'm glad to see him still alive here, instead of over there in what's undoubtedly a horrific life-altering experience. to this day, all across this country, there are men, and women now, who refuse to talk about or discuss their experiences in foreign lands after they bought the lie.
take your bitterness and your sickness along with the disgust you feel and then try to convince the next possible candidate for enlistment to seriously consider the long-term consequences should he/she fail to return home safely. do your best to convince someone about the lie. it's the best thing you will do to rid yourself of these feelings.
"the reason we start a war is to fight a war, win a war, thereby causing no more war." - george weasel bush
"take your bitterness and your sickness along with the disgust you feel and then try to convince the next possible candidate for enlistment to seriously consider the long-term consequences should he/she fail to return home safely. do your best to convince someone about the lie. it's the best thing you will do to rid yourself of these feelings."
Well said.
Also, do the same for ANYONE in the US military.
People who have gone through the military, and emerge opposed to it, are some of the most potent antiwar activists we have.
There's a common bumper sticker that says "support the troops - bring them home". It implies that there are different ways of supporting the troops.
We aren't supporting the troops if we ignore or excuse their participation in a genocidal war. For their own mental health and for the health of our nation, and world, we must tell them that THEIR actions (like Bush or Cheney) were ALSO wrong and criminal.
Of course, I don't feel it would be possible or useful to prosecute every US soldier for war crimes (after all that didn't even happen to the Nazis) like we could Bush or Cheney. But I feel it is extremely important that every soldier psychologically "repent" for what they have done. I think that's part of supporting the troops, to teach them (if they don't already know) that murder does not become acceptable simply because a radical government has condoned killing brown people outside our borders (much to the disgust of the people of America and the rest of the world).
If we teach them they had no choice - then we are liars.
If we teach them they had no choice - then we are creating excuses for the next generation of soldiers.
Instead of that, let's "support the troops" for real. So, sure, let's get them health care, jobs, and counseling etc... But let's do this in a way that teaches them to NEVER to make the same mistake again. You can't do that by holding them blameless for their own actions.
I feel very bitter just reading this thread after remembering my grandfather who I never met because he died in Vietnam and my cousin who died in Iraq at the age of 20 3 years ago. Call the soldiers criminals all you want to but it disappoints me to see the way conservatives on the far right use the soldiers as pawns for their own game and here I find progressives on the far left blaming them for everything. Soldiers are controlled by our army leadership who are controlled by their politicians who we all elect. If you all want to explain your madness at the soldiers, feel free to do so. I am completely disgusted at blaming soldiers for everything.
"Soldiers are controlled by our army leadership who are controlled by their politicians who we all elect."
Are they still human beings with free will?
Nazis were just soldiers too. Do you maintain that none of them had a choice?
When they pull the trigger, or drop a bomb, or oversee a gas chamber, in that moment when they take a life, or hundreds of lives, or thousands, do they have a choice?
It's an important question, because if our 100% volunteer Army had decided not to fight, how many Iraqis and Pakistanis and Afghans would still be alive?
If they disagreed with the war, but went because they feared jail, is the avoidance of jail a worthy excuse for killing people?
If you were being tortured by a US soldier, would his or her motive really matter to you?
What if they said, "Look, sorry to murder your family and torture you, but I'm poor and this is helping me get a collage degree. I realized this war was wrong, but if I didn't deploy, I faced jail. Anyhow sorry about the goof. I'm not the sharpest tool in the shed. Now hold still while I sodomize you with this broom handle. You don't blame me for this, right? This is what my job is."
It makes no sense to say we are blaming soldiers for being soldiers. Not true. Only their actions, their choices, their participation in genocide. In fact, a great hero to me is a US soldier.
Lt. Erin Watada.
He realized that he did have a choice.
He chose not to fight in an unjust war.
Cassius Clay , otherwise known as Muhammad Ali refused to serve in Vietnam when drafted.
He was sentenced to jail and stripped oh his heavyweight title. This case went to the Supreme Court before he was exonerated.
He made a choice.
"Soldiers are controlled by our army leadership who are controlled by their politicians who we all elect"
. . . who are, in turn, controlled by the banksters and the corporations of the Military-Industrial Complex. And in fact, the politicians aren't really elected so much as SElected by that very same MIC. All the people do really, is nod approval for which wing of the corporate party they want as their head puppet.
Dobbs did " own research led him to conclude that the war he had fought in was unjustified."
Good. Now he can fight to end it.
But for all the other troops that get called back, who don't oppose the war, so what? I feel no sympathy for them. I feel sorry for the state of mind they are in. I hope they snap out of it and live long enough to join IVAW. But I feel not a shred of sympathy for the hardships they feel while continuing to fight these wars.
Though I feel that Dobson having served knows what he is doing and I respect him for his stance because he was willing to take the consequences for his actions. Hero? Nope. There are very, very few real hero's in combat or out. I only saw three or four in my life and one was an enemy soldier.
I do believe its a shame that CD saw fit to put this up on a day that has been reserved for the kids that gave their life. Its a matter of dencency and respect.
Thomas, you need to 'take your gas mask off' so that you can 'smell what you are shoveling'...................
Typical of you to be critical of free speech and press-----if you will give the name of the person or persons who "made you read" this article---no matter when it was published----I am sure that there are many who will take matters into their own hands.
And several of the posters claim that you were a "Marine ?"----------
I do not believe that----but if so---you must have been one of those "shit birds".
Good Luck Thomas, you really really really need it.
Thank you Thomas More for showing some respect to this matter. I was upset and bitter after reading this thread myself. I'm sick and tired of people blaming soldiers for everything instead of the politicians who control them in a sense.
Marine,
I salute you on this day and all who served this nation (And serve) in good faith. You know Thomas its been said that it is easy to come out the hills after the battle has been fought and shoot the wounded. (I believe Truman said something of that nature when referring to those who write editorials) Personally I never criticize the members of the armed services nor make judgments on all who serve (Or served) based on the actions of the few. I never served in the military of either of my countries (Canada or the United States) but had the privilege of meeting and becoming friends with many veterans. (Most US Marine Corps and US Navy Veterans)
Semper Fidelis (Semper Fi My Friend)
If you want to see war glorified, watch AMC, John McCain is even hosting it today (I personally am watching it, I have a special liking for WW2 history and movies). But don't look for it here man.
zionists are the scum of the earth. Just how many millions of dead are the zionists responsible for? Without the zionists Adolph Hitler would never have made it to the Reichstag. WWII would not have happened, the cold war would not have happened and today there would be peace in the middle east.
Sophie Scholl-The Final Days
...?
.....?
Another example of 2nd grade level debate I guess.
"Another example of 2nd grade level debate I guess."
Yep.... A wee bit of the topic but second grade level debate nonetheless.....
...? Do you, perhaps, have a final solution to the Zionist Problem?
How many sons and daughters of the ruling elite have served in Iraq or Afghanistan?
I'll bet not many.
Sarah Palin's son was deployed to Iraq and, I believe, is still there. Joe Biden's son is also in Iraq, both with the Army.
Liberdale
With those two being in the Middle East, that would then mean that perhaps only 98.8 per cent of the sons and daughters of the elite have managed to conveniently avoid being on a field of combat while wearing a military uniform while the overwhelming majority who end up returning to this country missing a few arms or legs, being severely burned, blinded, brain damaged and suffering from the effects of PTSD are the children of the working class and poor of this country. This brings home the point of my previous comment-
"Draft the Rich-It's Their War."
It would appear that the sons and daughters of the elite have done an excellent of following in the footsteps of their chickenhawk parents.
Hoytdouglas
Your well stated comment is reminiscent of one of my buttons that I wear:
"Draft the Rich-It's Their War."
How many of the war hawks [such as Limbaugh, O'Reilly, Bush, "5 deferments, other priorities" Cheney] have been in a combat zone while wearing a military uniform? The same answer applies-not very many.
To the best of my knowledge, British Prince Harry was the only one . . . briefly.
Excellent article and excellent comments concerning a policy that is designed to essentially take the place of what I was faced with those many years ago and that was a military draft. The military's claim that those in the military can be recalled because the country is in a "state of emergency" must be viewed as being totally bogus. Those in the IRR need to also realize that, like Matthew Dobbs, they are being used by their government for totally disingenuous reasons. Bugmenot's idea is certainly well stated as well as the proclamation of #6 [played by Patrick McGoohan] in the 1960s cult British TV classic The Prisoner:
"I am not a number. I am a free man!"
it's the price one pays when buying the lie.
Soldiers are the lifeblood of elite Vampires.
well said
So true. Wealthy elites drive American Imperialism for their own financial benefit. Propaganda is used to mask their true motives. Under-informed parents and young people are snagged into risking and often losing their lives for the benefit of elites. The grand lie is that we are fighting for freedom. When Congress became a commodity and was purchased by the elites, we lost our freedom. Abuse after abuse is heaped upon those who foolishly signed up to fight for a system that benefits the few. Risking one's life and limb to enrich the few is a game for fools. Too many American's are frozen in this mis-perception of reality and are paying for it with their lives. The moral bankruptcy of the elites can be no more graphic than this. Why is there no Cemetary of Fools?
My suggestion to anyone being called up on IRR, immediately call Courage to Resist and/or walk into the reporting station with an Iraq Veterans Against the War (IVAW) T-shirt on and a handful of literature and say,
"If you in process me, I can guarantee you that I will spend every waking second organizing young soldiers against these occupations...I'll either do it from the outside or inside, either way, you're not going to like it!"
Dobson and guys like him are the real heroes. No disrespect to the troops over in Afghanistan and Iraq, but it is a pretty one-sided conflict--the best-armed soldiers in the history of the world, backed by powerful air support and high-tech weaponry, against people armed with home-made bombs, RPGs and AKs. But to go against this government, and say "Nope. You can't do this to me. You don't own me," takes unbelievable courage. So does saying that the war in Afghanistan is simply wrong and illegal, in a society that is so jingoistic that such comments, even from a guy who's been there, are seen as treason.
Dave Lindorff
www.thiscantbehappening.net
Visit Dave Lindorff's website at www.thiscantbehappening.net
In "reality" (most Americans cannot define the word acurately) every soldier,sailor,marine or airman who is serving in either 'theatre' are in violaton of international law, the Uniform Code of Military Justice, the Code of Conduct, as well as the US Constitution (another one of those 'convenient documents').
Having been one of those 'fools' who volunteered to serve in another illegal war of aggression, the Vietnam era, as a US Marine, I have little sympathy for those who have served or are so stupid as to allow themselves to be 'forced' to serve even in a support position, in this latest illegal war of aggression. If you can't learn from the mistakes of others---you are doomed to repeat them---always at your own risk.
The true 'hero', (americans seem to love their 'heroes' in much the same manner as the Greeks----then again most americans are not aware of what happend to the Greeks)
in this entire asinine venture---is Lt. Ehren Watada, US Army, who refused to serve precisely because these are illegal wars. He was acquitted, and still waits for several other charges against him to be dismissed; but he stood his ground, and did not become the criminal that so many others have. As a result, he is not held up in any esteem by the public, while so many who 'play the fool' are------What a country!
It is so typical of this forum, as well as so many others that there have been but just a few articles about him. While at the same time, many readers of CD and 'commenters', have confessed to sending money to Mr. DeChristopher for his legal defense. An 'American Hero' who committed several felonies and played a stupid game when he did, only to be made a "hero".
This is why I often say; America's only reason for existing may have been to serve as a horrible warning to history; 'the Americans had it all'----and pissed it all away.
America, my people will ride our horses through your empty cities; and you will have emptied them.
Good Luck America, you really need it.
Feelings on the conflicts aside, I don't think our presence in Afghanistan or Iraq violates international law at present, since they're in both countries now by signed agreements with the internationally recognized governments of those countries.
You will of course share the citations with the readers.
Neither countries "invited" the USA---and both now have 'appointed' heads of government----and the USA lead the appointments.
If you are going to go into area of law which you obviously are not well informed in, you might wish to have some 'citations'---
The logic you used here is typcially flawed "American Logic"---which there is no true defintion of----in any dictionary----but dictates the lives of millions of people world wide.
"Information is knowledge, and knowledge is power" Shaka Zulu 1877
Good Luck you really need it.
http://graphics8.nytimes.com/packages/
pdf/world/20081119_SOFA_FINAL_AGREED_TEXT.pdf
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20090516/wl_sthasia_afp/afghanistanunrestciviliansusnato_20090516120712
Do you deny these agreements were signed by the legally authorized parties? I am saying at present, not in the past, the U.S. military presence doesn't violate international law, both host governments have consented to it by signed agreements. Make of that what you will.
Thats like claiming Germany "Legally Occupied" France because of an agreement signed with the Vichy Governmnet.
Only if the Vichy government was internationally recognized as the legitimate government of France, which it wasn't. International recognition sadly has little to do with morality...was the Taliban moral? Nope, but they were the internationally recognized government of Afghanistan for a time. So was Saddam and the Ba'ath Party when it came to Iraq.
Hey DL...
What do know about the CIA training and Saudi funding of the Mujahadeen to fight the Russians in Afghanistan in the eighties...?
While the Wahabbists became Al Qaeda and later used by the CIA for ethnic cleansing in Bosnia in the nineties, the afghani war lords were cacheing $$$billions of weapons given to them by the CIA for a future war... For they knew that the Americans would abandon them after Russia pulled out, and would eventually invade the AfPak region themselves... So the warlords are heavily armed with US weapons, not exactly defenseless... They have rocket launchers and networks of underground caves and tunnels as well... And a three thousand year history of defeating every single empire that has attempted to control their high altitude rugged terrain... (just ask the British)
Another thing to consider is that it is a typical tactic of an empire to arm their enemy covertly, in order to justify the slaughter of civilians who are defending themselves... Hence the $$$billions of weapons that went "missing" in Iraq and afghanistan...
An astute analysis.
Thanks 7son...
I finished reading part I of Collateral damage... All 59 pages (incl. Footnotes)...
This is a must read for anyone interested in learning who was behind the collapse & looting of the Soviet banking and industrial infrastructure, Iran-contra, al qaeda, 9-11, and the current economic class warfare/crash... And why...
URL is snipped below... Just put them together...
Www.scribe.com/people/
documents/2169400-ep-heidner