Iraq Agriculture Advisor: To the Soldiers I Served with

Monday, September 1, 2014

To the Soldiers I Served with

Iraq Deployment 2005 - 2006

Support to the PA National Guard in Ramadi May 2006

Support to the 172nd BDE

Base Marz- Mosul Nov 2005 - April 2006

Support to Marines and 3rd COSCOM

Bases in Al Hilla, Barquba, Fallujah, Normandy, TQ, and Baghdad

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Agriculture Advisors are diplomats working with the most basic of elements which builds communities providing the foundation for civilizations. Agriculture as part of a country’s economic program does not have the prestige of governance, the weight of rule of law or the essential cornerstone given by security and often falls far short of the gathering riches provided by many industries. But working in agriculture the diplomat is closer to common man and the country’s original culture. While the diplomat must have a sincere interest in other cultures and empathy for the needs of poor and needy people the diplomat must never lose sight of his actual mission to address our nation’s interest.

In our current world protecting our nation from the new asymmetric threat will require the expertise brought by agriculturists to work with governments and local peoples to reduce the dissatisfaction in distressed communities. Dissatisfaction if left to simmer would become a breeding ground for insurgencies. The attempt to date in Iraq has been as much a trial and error approach as apposed to the national programs based on decades of experience working within our own county with its familiar customs and values. Organizing programs for foreign countries is far more difficult. Still it must bring agriculturists with the correct skills into the diplomatic teams to help fragile countries during times of crisis. Addressing this new requirement in the battle against the new asymmetric threats will be paramount.

In a simple phrase, when diplomats are successful our soldiers do not have to fight.

Do not try to do too much with your own hands. Better the Arabs do it tolerably than that you do it perfectly. It is their war and you are to help them, not win it for them. Actually, also under the very odd conditions of Arabia your practical work will not be as good as, perhaps, you think it is.

T. E. Lawrence
August 20, 1917

Iraq Agriculture Advisor

Monday, September 1, 2014

To the Soldiers I Served with

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