Afghanistan - Tough times but the troops "love it"

Here's something you don't read everyday, especially from the AP.

The report talks about the heat and tough conditions our troops fight under but still love what they're doing.

"Spc. David Valdiva is beet red from exertion, soaked in sweat and looking near collapse as he lugs 90 pounds of gear, including a 30-pound machine gun. "It's an honor to carry the gun," he says, uncomplainingly. "

And

"Does it suck carrying all that stuff? Roger that," Wilson said Thursday. "They don't show that in Hollywood. They don't show you getting dehydrated."

The senior noncommissioned officer in the company, 1st Sgt. Russell Jacobs of Edgar, Neb., said the Army is a 24/7 job.

"You bust your ass from time to time," said Jacobs, 46, who is a 21-year Army veteran. "When you're deployed for a year at a time, it's a hard year."

But despite the lack of water, the heavy labor, extreme heat and constant jokes about craving a cold beer, many soldiers stuck on this mountaintop say they love it.

"As much as the Army sucks, I still love it," Lassally says. "When you get put into situations like these, you don't sweat the little stuff anymore."

But the AP, like most media outlets, mischaracterizes the current situation in Afghanistan.

"During the past few months, Taliban fighters have stepped up suicide bombings and ambushes across the country, particularly in the south, in a bid to derail Afghanistan's U.S.-backed government. "

No, the increased attacks are a response to "...Operation Mountain Thrust. It is the largest offensive against the Taliban since the government of that radical Islamic group was ousted nearly five years ago. "
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