Thoughts and photos from my 2nd trip to Iraq
Posted: September 24, 2007
1:00 a.m. Eastern



One of several helo trips around Al Anbar
Stars and Stripes reported last week about my fifteen-base visit in Iraq. Unlike my United Service Organizations tour last year, our goal this year was to also visit many outlying posts where celebrities don't often go. This trip was also unique because we were able to meet some Iraqis citizens and the Iraqi army.
So, for several days, we were transported around the Al Anbar province and beyond, from Fallujah to the furthest western border of Iraq with Syria, and from Al Qa'im to Ali al Salem in Kuwait. Most bases we visited several hours and some overnight, talking and eating with the troops.
What we found, however, at every location was unexpected and to some degree caught us off guard.

The crew who flew

'Team Norris'
I was honored again to travel abroad with Lt. Gen. James Amos, Gen. Bob Magnus and their aides Col. Pete Vercruysse, Maj. Mike Olness and Maj. Dan Shipley. But after just one day in Iraq, we split up into two teams with the purpose of covering more of the country's territory.
"Team Norris" consisted of Scott Past, MWR (Morale, Welfare and Recreation) manager, who did a great job of planning and leading our group. Capt. and Chaplain Mike Langstrom, who oversees the chaplaincy ministry in Iraq and Afghanistan, was an exceptional host, help and leader as well. Religious Program Spc. 1st Class Donnie Roland, USN, a formidable and faithful body guard fittingly nicknamed "Juggernaut," was an exceptional example of service and defense for us all. Documentary expert Mike Slee, who has long been one of the most creative, courageous and unbiased film makers in the field, joined us as well –then left for Baghdad on another ride along assignment with the troops. Jeff Duclos, my friend and publicist who has helped me in so many ways over the years, was there for a second time as well. Last, but not least, to join our group was my prayer partner and pastor, Todd DuBord.


'Stunning' stability and peace advances


Visiting with some troops in Al Anbar
We were truly amazed at the advances (not absence) of stability and peace in the Al Anbar province. When I traveled the same area last year, there were hot spots everywhere, flooded with insurgence, imminent danger and military on high alert. Fallujah, Ramadi and even Al Asad, to name a few.
Today it is quite a different story. For example, an officer in Fallujah told me how it had been six months since a mortar was fired upon the base. At Al Qa'im, troops were telling us how good their relations were with the locals. At Ramadi, officers were testifying to their good rapport with vicinity sheiks and imams and how they had to offer little more than stability assistance in maintaining peace in most of the surrounding territories. The troops were jovial and relieved as we recollected tense stories of danger from when I was there a year earlier. At another camp, U.S. soldiers and the Iraqi army were arm-in-arm, joking and laughing with one another. And in another encampment, troops told me how they pulled together their own money to paint a local Iraqi school.



Encouraging the troops in Fallujah

Similar sentiments were shared at several of the bases. So profound were those peace and stability advances in Al Anbar that Gen. Magnus later described them as "stunning."
Despite liberal media portrayals, the surge is working. What Gen. Petraeus shared with America is true; "monthly attack levels in Anbar have declined from some 1,350 in October 2006 to a bit over 200 in August of this year."
The great news too is that our military is using the methods that are bringing the coalition and Iraqi army success in Anbar and is adopting them in other areas, including Baghdad.
Though these good reports are by no means the only reports, it sure would be nice to hear a few more of them run on our more liberal news networks. There's nothing wrong with printing negative aspects of war, but, if there's positive news, then let's print that too.


Meeting with Iraqis and the Iraqi army
Outside of meeting with the troops on the outskirts of Iraq, one of the great joys of the trip was being able to meet the Iraqi people and those being trained for the Iraqi army and police. How wonderful it was to see their smiles and hear their stories – with an interpreter of course! At one base where our military trains domestic armies, we even shot AK-47s with the soldiers-in-training at their target range. And, after shooting their guns, the Iraqis began to shoot photos of me.

Me with Iraqi and American troops
One of the officers began to speak in Arabic to me, smiling and holding his hand up to his mouth and biting as if he were inviting us to dinner. The interpreter told us what the Iraqi officer was trying to convey to me with his hand motions. In the movie "Missing in Action 2," he wanted to know, "Was that a real rat you had in your mouth?" I told him, "It was a real rat!" It was a scene in which a bag is placed over my head with a rat in the bag and I am hung upside down by my ankles with a rope. I finally killed the rat with my teeth. We all began to laugh hysterically when we saw the disgusted look upon his face, realizing I had put a real rat in my mouth!
It truly was an awe inspiring event to see large groups of Iraqis and Americans enjoying one another and even laughing together… in a war zone!


The great American dilemma Of course, no one is naïve enough to believe the battles are anywhere near over. There is no Pollyanna-like view of war. Casualties remain vivid reminders of its painful and hellish nature. Again, as Gen. Petraeus put it, "The situation in Iraq remains complex, difficult, and sometimes downright frustrating, [but] I also believe that it is possible to achieve our objectives in Iraq over time, though doing so will be neither quick nor easy."


The great majority of troops concur. Their morale is up – way up! These young men and women are making a difference there, and they believe in due time that they can win the day and the war and give the Iraqi people full ownership of their land. The courage and sacrifice of soldiers like 21-year old Cpl. Raymond D. Hennagir and his platoon are vivid examples of just how brave these patriots are.


I'm not saying whether this war is right or wrong. All I'm saying is that we are committed, and progress is being made. Let's win this war and bring our troops home!


A mom's letter to me about her son in Iraq
Before we even returned to the states, my official website was receiving e-mail from the family and friends of our servicemen and women thanking me for going abroad.
Cindy Jackson's letter is just one example. I think it will touch your heart. It did mine.

• Dear Mr. Norris, an honorary Marine, This past Friday, Sept. 14, you visited with Marines at Camp Fallujah in Iraq. My son was one of those Marines, and I know by the smile on his face that his spirit was uplifted that evening. God bless you for your efforts in supporting our troops. I hope you were able to hear of the great success our guys are having in making Fallujah a safer place. As a marine mom AND an American, I thank you from the bottom of my heart for caring about our guys and gals over there.
  Until we meet in heaven,
  Cindy Jackson
  Proud mom of Cpl. Andrew P. Jackson

Thank you Mrs. Jackson. And, most of all, thanks to your son and all who serve the cause of freedom, here and abroad. They are the real heroes.
(Next week I'll be discussing the most powerful and overlooked forces in the war, in an article I'm titling "Angels of war.")