Good luck Phil and Godspeed

by eriposte

Phil Carter, consistently one of the more thoughtful bloggers/writers in the U.S., has been asked to go to Iraq and join the 101st Airborne Division.

Please take a moment to read Phil's announcement on this and wish him luck. As he says:

...It's an honor and privilege to deploy with such a storied unit -- a band of warriors who have nearly all deployed at least once since 9/11. I'm scheduled to report for active duty in a little under 3 weeks to Fort Campbell, Kentucky. After some period of pre-deployment training and preparation, I will deploy with my unit to Iraq.

It's difficult to describe the swirl of emotions I have now. I'm excited about this opportunity to serve, but also apprehensive about what lies ahead. I'm worried for my family and friends (this will be harder on them than me), and I will miss them terribly; but I'm also comforted by the strength they have displayed over the past few days...

Phil has produced some thought-provoking articles in the past, such as "The Case for the Draft" (with Paul Glastris in Washington Monthly), "Iraq 2004 looks like Vietnam 1966" (with Owen West in Slate), and "The Road to Abu Ghraib" (Washington Monthly).

He is a true patriot and his contributions on the web will be missed - quite a bit. Needless to say, the U.S. and the American armed forces are both lucky to have him.

Best of luck Phil! We hope to see you back soon.