Both marched in and stood at parade rest.
“You have both represented your units admirably and I want to thank you personally for your contribution to this very challenging mission. There are no losers here, just winners. I have made my decision and I don’t see any reason to delay. Congratulations Corporal Warren…”
I just hung my head, majorly disappointed.
“You are NCO of the Quarter. And Ramirez…have a seat Sergeant,” the Captain said.
How could I contain myself, I was so full of emotion. I wanted to lose my bearing just long enough to do a back flip and get a high five from Ramirez. Nothing else mattered. He pulled it off. He absolutely nailed it. When no one was looking, Ramirez winked at me.
“Corporal Ramirez. Who would you like to pin on your Sergeant stripes?” The Sergeant Major asked.
“Gunnery Sergeant Thompson and…Captain Shaffner,” Ramirez responded with excitement in his voice.
“Well I am sure we can arrange that,” said the Sergeant Major.
I just needed to break the news to Captain Shaffner…delicately.
Before we made it back to the Operations Center, everyone already knew the verdict, including Captain Shaffner.
He wanted to speak with me in private. He wanted to know what strings I pulled to get Ramirez promoted. He also said that he would try to overturn Ramirez’s promotion because he was “not eligible.”
“Sir, Corporal Ramirez has requested that you promote him to Sergeant during the ceremony,” I said.
“That’s cute…real cute. If I get my way there will be no promotion and if there is…I won’t have anything to do with it!”
Then the phone started to ring.
Captain Shaffner was so pissed, he just let it ring.
“Just what kind of fitness report do you expect to get from this deployment Gunnery Sergeant Thompson?”
“A fair one,” I responded.
“The last Gunnery Sergeant that butted heads with me got promoted to Master Sergeant; apparently I didn’t mark him low enough. That won’t happen again,” the Captain said.
I knew I had to watch my back now. I was just waiting for the Captain’s next move. It didn’t take long.
The Captain had to be clever in dealing with me. I wasn’t stupid enough to let him railroad me without a fight. So he got me the best way he knew how. He took me off patrols and stuck me in the office on nights working 1900 to 0700. Then he re-designated Corporal Ramirez as non-essential personnel and scheduled him to fly out in two weeks. Working nights was impossible in Mogadishu because no one could sleep through the daytime heat for more than a couple of hours at a time. Working nights meant I didn’t see much of Ramirez except for when he got off patrol. I had one day off before he left and we played spades for hours. We experienced so much together in such a short time, I knew I was going to miss him. That night, my rash came back, in the exact same place, on my left hip. The morning before he left, Ramirez woke me up and told me he was leaving. I stood up and he gave me a bro hug.
A part of me was leaving too…my sanity. I began to harbor ill feelings toward Captain Shaffner. He was responsible for the heaviness I felt in my heart.
Ramirez saluted me as he left my quarters. He was gone and I had to accept that.
Chapter 35: The Cover Up
29 January 1993
I was working nights and sometimes I drew comics strips for the day shift to help keep me awake and to lighten things up. Many of us became uneasy because Bosnia was starting to flare up and we needed a break between hostile deployments. Anyways, the Colonel came in unexpectedly and summoned me into his office.
“Gunnery Sergeant Thompson. Over the last week, I have noticed my safe has been unsecured at least three times. I need to know that our classified material is always protected especially during a deployment. I want you to be my witness.”
“Witness to what sir?”
“I am removing this confidential document and I will place it in my middle desk drawer. In five minutes, I will recall the entire office and demand an inventory. Maybe this will make them more security conscious,” the Colonel said.
Within ten minutes all Operations Center personnel were recalled and sitting in the briefing room waiting for the Colonel to speak.
“Three times this week, I found my safe unsecured. Security has to be uppermost on everyone’s mind. I need an inventory conducted right now to make sure nothing has been lost,” the Colonel demanded.
Captain Shaffner jumped at the opportunity to conduct the inventory.
“Will do, sir. I have it for action! The Corporal and I will do a thorough inventory and brief you on our findings,” Captain Shaffner responded as he stood.
Immediately I approached Warren.
“Warren. If you have any problems come and get me…please,” I asked politely.
“Gunnery Sergeant Thompson. I don’t take orders from augmentees,” Warren snidely remarked.
“If you don’t, you will pay and you will pay dearly,” I warned him.
“Is that a threat?” Warren asked.
“No. It is a courtesy that you don’t deserve,” I remarked.
The Colonel saw me speaking with Warren and thought I might be tipping him off.
“Gunny, out of the area! Right now!” the Colonel yelled.
Two hours later the Colonel stopped by my sleeping quarters and advised me that Captain Shaffner was ready to brief him on the inventory results.
The Captain was surprised to see me stroll in the Operations Center with the Colonel.
“Sir. You will be delighted to know that all documents are present and accounted for,” the Captain said.
“I would like to see all your destruction reports please,” the Colonel replied.
Corporal Warren grabbed the burn report folder and handed it to the Colonel.
The Colonel perused the folder and looked at the most recent burn report dated two days prior. He showed it to me. The document the Colonel stuck in his middle drawer was added to that destruction report and it was signed by Captain Shaffner and Corporal Warren.
The Colonel then went into his office and removed the confidential document that was actually declassified six months prior.
“How is it that this document in my hand is on your destruction report Captain Shaffner, Corporal Warren? Gunnery Sergeant Thompson was my witness. I needed you to give me an honest assessment of my security posture and you both lied to me.”
I couldn’t believe that Captain Shaffner forged an official document. He took Warren down with him.
As the Colonel left the Operations Center, the Captain pulled me aside.
“You knew. You knew all the time. Why didn’t you say something?” Shaffner asked humbly.
“Sir, I tried. I really did but Warren gave me the stiff arm. I am very sorry,” I said.
All the things that Captain did to me to make my life miserable didn’t matter then. He was going to pay for lying to the Colonel and he knew it. I felt bad for him.
The next day, both Captain Shaffner and Corporal Warren were re-designated non-essential personnel and were banned from the working spaces. Captain Shaffner and Corporal Warren redeployed back to Camp Pendleton one week later. I never saw them again.
Chapter 36: Revelations
Four Years Later
I was supporting a joint exercise in Korea and there was a crowd gathered around a computer. I was curious and wondered what the fuss was. It was a new phenomenon called the World Wide Web. Tiger Woods had won the Masters his rookie season and people were reading the story on the computer. I was familiar with the internet but at that time, I was only aware of chat rooms and commerce transactions like airline tickets etc. After everyone went to lunch, I took a peek. I was impressed with the new application of the internet. It was an electronic newspaper. After reading about Tiger’s impressive victory, I scrolled down to an even more interesting story. “Semi Osman and Son Killed in Ambush.” The US was no longer in Somalia so a r
ival clan must have killed him. I wanted to see what this “Ghost” looked like. After over a year in Somalia we never got Aidid or Semi Osman. I clicked on the link and opened the article.
I wasn’t ready for what I saw and it rocked me… it rocked me hard. It was a picture of Semi Osman and his son lying dead in a jeep. I recognized the son, he was my friend Mohamed Ali. I began to reflect on the times we spent together at his residence. The whole time it was his father we were after. I assume that the arm caches he identified were his competitors. I mourned his death, and it was strange because he was the enemy. But I considered him a friend.
Chapter 37: LAX Airport: Return to the Rock
1 November 1999
“Hey Gunny T…you okay?” Warrant Officer Barnes asked as he waved his hand in front of my face.
“Sorry about that. Guess I spaced out for a moment,” I said.
“The check-in desk just announced they are looking for someone with an escort card. Do you have one?” Barnes asked.
“Yeah I think so. I wonder what’s up?” I replied.
I excused myself from Barnes momentarily to enquire at the desk.
“Yes. My name is Gunnery Sergeant Thompson and I have an escort card,” I said as I reached in my wallet to retrieve it.
“Well Gunny. We have a prisoner arriving who is AWOL. He is being flown to Okinawa to face a General Court Martial. If you wouldn’t mind babysitting we can get you on the flight to Oki.”
“Sweet. That will save me a fortune. Sign me up.”
I walked back over to Barnes and told him I got a seat on the bird to Oki. He gave me his email address and suggested that I submit for the Combat Action Ribbon supported with a copy of the videotape and his citation for the same firefight on 7 January 1993.
He wished me luck and proceeded to his terminal.
Epilogue
Present Day
Captain Shaffner was selected for Major; however, he was asked to retire upon his return to Camp Pendleton. He retired after twenty-seven years of faithful service as a Captain.
Corporal Warren was administratively reduced in rank to Lance Corporal for document forgery and decided not to reenlist at the end of his four-year contract.
Corporal Ramirez was meritoriously promoted to Sergeant on 2 February 1993. Eleven years later in 2004, Master Sergeant Ramirez was assigned to the same Air Force base in England as Mr. Thompson (Gunnery Sergeant retired, now a government employee). Ramirez accepted orders to England with his wife of four years and a newborn daughter Luz. Ramirez and Thompson remain in contact…on a first name basis.
Gunnery Sergeant Thompson submitted for the Combat Action Ribbon in December 1999 using the videotape and a copy of Barnes’ citation as enclosures. His application was reviewed and denied by a panel in Washington, D.C. In 2000, Thompson retired as a Gunnery Sergeant after serving twenty-one years. In 2012, he began writing his memoirs about his experiences in Somalia.
Mohamed Farrah Aidid was never caught by US/UN Coalition forces. Aidid was assassinated on 24 July 1996 by a rival clan. Leaders of the Aidid’s clan (Habir Gidir) named a successor who would become Somalia’s next President that same year.
The Habir Gidir Clan appointed the son of Mohamed Aidid as their successor, the former Marine Corps Corporal Hussein Farrah Aidid, interpreter/translator for Operation Restore Hope. According to press reports, Corporal Aidid deployed to Mogadishu in January 1993, and he was forthcoming about who his father was. However, as US/Coalition forces began targeting Aidid’s father, Corporal Aidid redeployed back the US.
As Marines, Soldiers, Sailors and Airmen, we are sworn to defend against all enemies foreign and domestic. In upholding that vow, we must put our loyalty to Country above all else. In honoring this commitment, we can be expected to cross many lines…except one.
Operation Restore Hope Gallery
(Courtesy of the Author)
Dedication
This book is dedicated to all the US Service members who lost their lives in support of humanitarian relief operations in Somalia from 1992-1993.
(Operation Restore Hope/Continued Hope)
LCPL Domingo Arroyo
PFC Mathew Anderson
Staff Sgt. Brian P. Barnes
LCPL Anthony Botello
CW2 Donovan Briley
SSGT Daniel Busch
CPL James Cavaco
SSGT William Cleveland,Jr
PVT David Conner
Tech. Sgt. Robert L. Daniel
SFC Robert Deeks
Master Sgt. Roy S. Duncan
Staff Sgt. William C. Eyler
SGT Thomas Field
SFC Earl Fillmore, Jr
CW4 Raymond Frank
MSGT Gary Gordon
SPC Mark Gutting
PVT Daniel Harris
SGT. Justin A. Harris
PVT Daniel L. Harris
Glossary of Terms
Ayan: Pronounced: EYE-AN
Military Leave: Vacation
Chit: Approval Slip
NCOIC: Enlisted Supervisor (usually a Staff Sergeant (E-6) or above
NCO: Corporal or Sergeant
Oorah: A battle cry common in the Marine Corps. It is most commonly used to respond to a verbal greeting or as an expression of enthusiasm.
S-1: Admin Office
Augmentee: Support staff from another unit
MP: Military Police
Skipper: Slang for Captain
Meritorious Rank: Early competitive promotion, gained from a selection board
Marine Cadence: Motivating Marine Corps running or marching songs
ROE: Rules of Engagement
Manifest: Flight roster
Fitrep: Fitness Report Evaluation system for Marines above the rank of Corporal
MRE: Meals Ready to Eat (Field Rations)
J-2: Senior Intelligence Officer in a Joint Staff (Multiple services)
J-3: Senior Operations Officer in a Joint Staff
Lance Coolie:Slang for Lance Corporal (E-3)
AWOL:Absent Without Leave (Unauthorized Absence for extended period)
Garrison: A garrison is the permanent home of a unit. Evening Colors: Retrieval of the flag from the pole during evening hours
Morning Colors: Raising of the flag at 0800
Voluntold: When a superior highly encourages you to volunteer
About the Author
The author served twenty-one years in the US Marine Corps, from 1979 until 2000. From 9 December 1992 to 21 March 1993, he supported Operation Restore Hope in Somalia. What initially started out as a humanitarian relief effort eventually escalated to a low intensity conflict. The novel Bloodlines is a fictional account based on real experiences.
Front cover image: Echo Co. 2/9 Weapons Platoon USMC, courtesy of Roland Ocampo.
Bloodlines was written in six weeks. Look for the sequel to Bloodlines titled Insider Threat.
www.new-paradigm-publishers.org
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