A French Soldier's View of US Soldiers in Afghanistan

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**Ahtman**

Las origine

A little long (for this) so spoilering for space purposes.

Spoiler:

What follows is an account from a French ISAF soldier that was stationed with American Warfighters in Afghanistan sometime in the past 4 years. This was copied and translated from an editorial French newspaper.

A NOS FRERES D’ARMES AMERICAINS

"We have shared our daily life with two US units for quite a while - they are the first and fourth companies of a prestigious infantry battalion whose name I will withhold for the sake of military secrecy. To the common man it is a unit just like any other. But we live with them and got to know them, and we henceforth know that we have the honor to live with one of the most renowned units of the US Army - one that the movies brought to the public as series showing "ordinary soldiers thrust into extraordinary events". Who are they, those soldiers from abroad, how is their daily life, and what support do they bring to the men of our OMLT every day? Few of them belong to the Easy Company, the one the TV series focuses on. This one nowadays is named Echo Company, and it has become the support company.

They have a terribly strong American accent - from our point of view the language they speak is not even English. How many times did I have to write down what I wanted to say rather than waste precious minutes trying various pronunciations of a seemingly common word? Whatever State they are from, no two accents are alike and they even admit that in some crisis situations they have difficulties understanding each other. Heavily built, fed at the earliest age with Gatorade, proteins and creatine (Heh. More like Waffle House and McDonalds) - they are all heads and shoulders taller than us and their muscles remind us of Rambo. Our frames are amusingly skinny to them - we are wimps, even the strongest of us - and because of that they often mistake us for Afghans.

And they are impressive warriors! We have not come across bad ones, as strange at it may seem to you when you know how critical French people can be. Even if some of them are a bit on the heavy side, all of them provide us everyday with lessons in infantry know-how. Beyond the wearing of a combat kit that never seem to discomfort them (helmet strap, helmet, combat goggles, rifles etc.) the long hours of watch at the outpost never seem to annoy them in the slightest. On the one square meter wooden tower above the perimeter wall they stand the five consecutive hours in full battle rattle and night vision goggles on top, their sight unmoving in the directions of likely danger. No distractions, no pauses, they are like statues nights and days. At night, all movements are performed in the dark - only a handful of subdued red lights indicate the occasional presence of a soldier on the move. Same with the vehicles whose lights are covered - everything happens in pitch dark even filling the fuel tanks with the Japy pump.Here we discover America as it is often depicted: their values are taken to their paroxysm, often amplified by promiscuity and the loneliness of this outpost in the middle of that Afghan valley.

And combat? If you have seen Rambo you have seen it all - always coming to the rescue when one of our teams gets in trouble, and always in the shortest delay. That is one of their tricks: they switch from T-shirt and sandals to combat ready in three minutes. Arriving in contact with the enemy, the way they fight is simple and disconcerting: they just charge! They disembark and assault in stride, they bomb first and ask questions later - which cuts any pussyfooting short.Honor, motherland - everything here reminds of that: the American flag floating in the wind above the outpost, just like the one on the post parcels. Even if recruits often originate from the hearth of American cities and gang territory, no one here has any goal other than to hold high and proud the star spangled banner. Each man knows he can count on the support of a whole people who provides them through the mail all that an American could miss in such a remote front-line location: books, chewing gums, razorblades, Gatorade, toothpaste etc. in such way that every man is aware of how much the American people backs him in his difficult mission. And that is a first shock to our preconceptions: the American soldier is no individualist. The team, the group, the combat team are the focus of all his attention.

(This is the main area where I'd like to comment. Anyone with a passing knowledge of Kipling knows the lines from Chant Pagan: 'If your officer's dead and the sergeants look white/remember it's ruin to run from a fight./ So take open order, lie down, sit tight/ And wait for supports like a soldier./ This, in fact, is the basic philosophy of both British and Continental soldiers. 'In the absence of orders, take a defensive position.' Indeed, virtually every army in the world. The American soldier and Marine, however, are imbued from early in their training with the ethos: In the Absence of Orders: Attack! Where other forces, for good or ill, will wait for precise orders and plans to respond to an attack or any other 'incident', the American force will simply go, counting on firepower and SOP to carry the day.

This is one of the great strengths of the American force in combat and it is something that even our closest allies, such as the Brits and Aussies (that latter being closer by the way) find repeatedly surprising. No wonder is surprises the hell out of our enemies.)

We seldom hear any harsh word, and from 5 AM onwards the camp chores are performed in beautiful order and always with excellent spirit. A passing American helicopter stops near a stranded vehicle just to check that everything is alright; an American combat team will rush to support ours before even knowing how dangerous the mission is - from what we have been given to witness, the American soldier is a beautiful and worthy heir to those who liberated France and Europe.

To those who bestow us with the honor of sharing their combat outposts and who everyday give proof of their military excellence, to those who pay the daily tribute of America's army's deployment on Afghan soil, to those we owned this article, ourselves hoping that we will always remain worthy of them and to always continue hearing them say that we are all the same band of brothers".

Much of this the various veterans reading will go 'Well, duh. Of course we do our 'camp chores' and stand our posts in good order. There's a reason for them and if we didn't we'd get our heads handed to us eventually. And, yeah, we're in shape. Makes battle easier. The more you sweat, the less you bleed.'

What is hard for most people to comprehend is that that attitude represented only the most elite units of the past. Current everyday conventional boring 'leg infantry' units exceed the PT levels and training levels of most Special Forces during the Vietnam War. They exceed both of those as well as IQ and educational levels of: Waffen SS, WWII Rangers, WWII Airborne and British 'Commando' units during WWII. Their per-unit combat-functionality is essentially unmeasurable because it has to be compared to something and there's nothing comparable in industrial period combat history.

This group is so much better than 'The Greatest Generation' at war that WWII vets who really get a close look at how good these kids are stand in absolute awe.

Everyone complains about the quality of 'the new guys.' Don't. The screw-ups of this modern generation are head and shoulders above the 'high-medium' of any past group. Including mine.So much of 'The scum of the earth, enlisted for drink.'

This is 'The Greatest Generation' of soldiers.

They may never be equalled.

Originale en français

The original had the 15th listed as the posting so it is recent, but the article it is a translation of comes from 2008. Still an interesting read.

**Asherian Command**

Wow. A frenchmen giving compliments to the United States Military. Imagine that!

Huh.

Seems like he was quite envious of the US Soldiers.

**Jihadin**

"We have shared our daily life with two US units for quite a while - they are the first and fourth companies of a prestigious infantry battalion whose name I will withhold for the sake of military secrecy. To the common man it is a unit just like any other. But we live with them and got to know them, and we henceforth know that we have the honor to live with one of the most renowned units of the US Army - one that the movies brought to the public as series showing "ordinary soldiers thrust into extraordinary events". Who are they, those soldiers from abroad, how is their daily life, and what support do they bring to the men of our OMLT every day? Few of them belong to the Easy Company, the one the TV series focuses on. This one nowadays is named Echo Company, and it has become the support company.

101st

**djones520**

A great read. Thanks for finding it.

Automatically Appended Next Post:

Jihadin wrote:
"We have shared our daily life with two US units for quite a while - they are the first and fourth companies of a prestigious infantry battalion whose name I will withhold for the sake of military secrecy. To the common man it is a unit just like any other. But we live with them and got to know them, and we henceforth know that we have the honor to live with one of the most renowned units of the US Army - one that the movies brought to the public as series showing "ordinary soldiers thrust into extraordinary events". Who are they, those soldiers from abroad, how is their daily life, and what support do they bring to the men of our OMLT every day? Few of them belong to the Easy Company, the one the TV series focuses on. This one nowadays is named Echo Company, and it has become the support company.

101st

Yeah, 4th BCT was there in 2008. E Company of the 506th was attached to them at the time I believe.

**EmilCrane**

Saw this on another forum, nice to see some respect for the US Military from other nations. I know the Aussies have a massive chip on their shoulder about the Americans and it gets a bit shameful at times.

**Jihadin**

EmilCrane wrote:
Saw this on another forum, nice to see some respect for the US Military from other nations. I know the Aussies have a massive chip on their shoulder about the Americans and it gets a bit shameful at times.

They're pissed at us for making fun of their DCU's

Not sure if I would "prance around the tulips" or wear high heels.....

**BlaxicanX**

So the French look at us the way Guardsmen look at Space Marines.

I approve of this.

**Jihadin**

BlaxicanX wrote:
So the French look at us the way Guardsmen look at Space Marines.

I approve of this.

Going to equate the French Foreign Legion to DKoK

**EmilCrane**

Jihadin wrote:
EmilCrane wrote:
Saw this on another forum, nice to see some respect for the US Military from other nations. I know the Aussies have a massive chip on their shoulder about the Americans and it gets a bit shameful at times.

They're pissed at us for making fun of their DCU's

Not sure if I would "prance around the tulips" or wear high heels.....

Hehehe yeah DPCUs look a bit naf, I used to call it the "bunny camo". Here in NZ we've just switched to multicam, looks pretty damn cool.

**motyak**

EmilCrane wrote:
Saw this on another forum, nice to see some respect for the US Military from other nations. I know the Aussies have a massive chip on their shoulder about the Americans and it gets a bit shameful at times.

Hooray for insulting generalisations, that aren't all that accurate (at least in my experience). Don't do it again. And don't confuse taking the piss with having a chip on the shoulder, which you may well be doing.

**WellSpokenMan**

I am not current on how they do things now, but a lot of Eurpoean countries including France have very short services periods in their armed forces. They used to be mandatory, but I don't know if that is the case now. To their eyes, a professional, volunteer US soldier looks quite impressive. In combat units, physical training is a religion. It doesn't take long for that lean and mean look to set in. A unit that has deployed a couple of times develops a quiet confidence that gets passed on to the fresh soldiers. A "we can handle whatever comes our way" attitude that is quite impressive to the uninitiated.

Also, and I don't mean this as slight to the French, but we take pride in our history. Those 101st soldiers know they have a lot to live up too. It means something special to wear the patch of one of the army's most storied units. You push a little bit harder for all the ones who went before you.

It's nice to see that a soldier from another country noticed. Unfortunately, those vets probably left the service and struggled to find jobs in the US. Support the troops doesn't translate into offers of employment.. Maybe they should move to France.

**trexmeyer**

BlaxicanX wrote:So the French look at us the way Guardsmen look at Space Marines.

I approve of this.

Damn, you beat me to the punch. Reminds me a bit of that WW1 picture that had soldiers of various nations and the Americans towered over everyone else.

**Da Boss**

I dunno what's in the rations you guys are feeding your troops, but they are MASSIVE!

You can always spot the americans from the bases in Stuttgart because they are hugenormous and friendly.

**Albatross**

trexmeyer wrote:
BlaxicanX wrote:So the French look at us the way Guardsmen look at Space Marines.

I approve of this.

Damn, you beat me to the punch. Reminds me a bit of that WW1 picture that had soldiers of various nations and the Americans towered over everyone else.

As I recall, the Brit in that particular pic was the same height if not taller. I may be misremembering.

**paulson games**

I visited France back when I was in high school and I found that I was a couple inches taller than most of the people I met (not towering but a bit taller) I was also into a fair amount of sports at the times so I was in good shape and had far more muscular build. I was invited to a track meet and left them in the dust. When I'm at home I was basically average height and running ability, due to practicing martial arts at the time I was really strong but not bulky. I'm 5"10 while most of my friends are in the 6ft range with a couple being 6'2-6'4 (and were marines)

While I didn't tower over people I felt like I had a much larger physical presence than the average french person, this was also compounded by the fact that so many items like doors and beds are much smaller there as many of the building are centuries old and built for people who were even shorter at that period, it was a bit odd.

**Wyzilla**

WellSpokenMan wrote:
I am not current on how they do things now, but a lot of Eurpoean countries including France have very short services periods in their armed forces. They used to be mandatory, but I don't know if that is the case now. To their eyes, a professional, volunteer US soldier looks quite impressive. In combat units, physical training is a religion. It doesn't take long for that lean and mean look to set in. A unit that has deployed a couple of times develops a quiet confidence that gets passed on to the fresh soldiers. A "we can handle whatever comes our way" attitude that is quite impressive to the uninitiated.

Also, and I don't mean this as slight to the French, but we take pride in our history. Those 101st soldiers know they have a lot to live up too. It means something special to wear the patch of one of the army's most storied units. You push a little bit harder for all the ones who went before you.

It's nice to see that a soldier from another country noticed. Unfortunately, those vets probably left the service and struggled to find jobs in the US. Support the troops doesn't translate into offers of employment.. Maybe they should move to France.

And with all historical units, the 101st especially. It's hard to live up to the legends of those veterans like Easy Company, which certainly provides motivational material for those in the 101st Airborne in the modern day to fight harder.

Hell, I can't even think of a more famed division/unit/battalion/etc then the 101st, only equals.

**EmilCrane**

motyak wrote:
EmilCrane wrote:
Saw this on another forum, nice to see some respect for the US Military from other nations. I know the Aussies have a massive chip on their shoulder about the Americans and it gets a bit shameful at times.

Hooray for insulting generalisations, that aren't all that accurate (at least in my experience). Don't do it again. And don't confuse taking the piss with having a chip on the shoulder, which you may well be doing.

I lived in Australia from 2001 to 2007, most of my school years. I spent a lot of that time in the Air Force Cadets. During that time I was verbally abused by a superior who called all Americans fat idiots and racists, he did this in front of the entire cadet unit. I was constantly reminded by senior cadets how much better Australia's military was and how badly trained American soldiers were, and how all they were good for was friendly fire. I was bullied heavily at school just for being an american. I've had a pretty bad personal experience with Australia regarding the US military.

I still think Australia is a wonderful country and have some of my fondest memories and best friends from there, but not every country is perfect and I encountered some fairly shocking abuse there, so I think I've got a right to speak my mind.

**Ashiraya**

To be fair EmilCrane, while what happened to you was bad, it is still just an anecdote.

**motyak**

EmilCrane wrote:
motyak wrote:
EmilCrane wrote:
Saw this on another forum, nice to see some respect for the US Military from other nations. I know the Aussies have a massive chip on their shoulder about the Americans and it gets a bit shameful at times.

Hooray for insulting generalisations, that aren't all that accurate (at least in my experience). Don't do it again. And don't confuse taking the piss with having a chip on the shoulder, which you may well be doing.

I lived in Australia from 2001 to 2007, most of my school years. I spent a lot of that time in the Air Force Cadets. During that time I was verbally abused by a superior who called all Americans fat idiots and racists, he did this in front of the entire cadet unit. I was constantly reminded by senior cadets how much better Australia's military was and how badly trained American soldiers were, and how all they were good for was friendly fire. I was bullied heavily at school just for being an american. I've had a pretty bad personal experience with Australia regarding the US military.

I still think Australia is a wonderful country and have some of my fondest memories and best friends from there, but not every country is perfect and I encountered some fairly shocking abuse there, so I think I've got a right to speak my mind.

You do have a right to talk about it, but steer clear of insulting generalisations. Stick to saying the specific stuff that you said just then. Air Force Cadets, and whoever runs the individual unit, hardly speak for the Australian armed forces, let alone the rest of Australia. They may think they're a valuable part of the air fairies, and thus the rest of the ADF, but they aren't. They're cadets.

If I had gone to the US and been teased in a cadet unit about being an Aussie, then come out swinging and said "the US has terrible attitudes towards Australia", surely you'd understand why it isn't appropriate to a) tar a whole country with a sweeping generalisation and b) use someones experiences in 1 junior sort of military unit as representative of the rest of that country's armed forces/population. Right?

Also, the guy sounds like an absolute tosser who ran that unit, I've seen one, and heard of a lot more cadet units getting pineappled by having a dropkick in charge, who they just can't seem to get rid of for whatever reason.

**Jihadin**

What was the saying the Brits had for the US soldiers during WWII?
"Over sexed, over paid and over here"
banter back
"Under sexed, under paid , and under Eisenhower"

Been in 82nd, 101st, and 160th.
82nd and 101st in peace time and war.

No damn difference who was better, living up to a reputation, exceeding past combat history, and/or riding on one's reputation.
Regardless of deployments once one boots hits the ground its "Do your damn job and do it well."

Poland and Romania I have to admit were fun to be with. Quite eager to take the fight to the Insurgents and at times over zealous.

**EmilCrane**

motyak wrote:
EmilCrane wrote:
motyak wrote:
EmilCrane wrote:
Saw this on another forum, nice to see some respect for the US Military from other nations. I know the Aussies have a massive chip on their shoulder about the Americans and it gets a bit shameful at times.

Hooray for insulting generalisations, that aren't all that accurate (at least in my experience). Don't do it again. And don't confuse taking the piss with having a chip on the shoulder, which you may well be doing.

I lived in Australia from 2001 to 2007, most of my school years. I spent a lot of that time in the Air Force Cadets. During that time I was verbally abused by a superior who called all Americans fat idiots and racists, he did this in front of the entire cadet unit. I was constantly reminded by senior cadets how much better Australia's military was and how badly trained American soldiers were, and how all they were good for was friendly fire. I was bullied heavily at school just for being an american. I've had a pretty bad personal experience with Australia regarding the US military.

I still think Australia is a wonderful country and have some of my fondest memories and best friends from there, but not every country is perfect and I encountered some fairly shocking abuse there, so I think I've got a right to speak my mind.

You do have a right to talk about it, but steer clear of insulting generalisations. Stick to saying the specific stuff that you said just then. Air Force Cadets, and whoever runs the individual unit, hardly speak for the Australian armed forces, let alone the rest of Australia. They may think they're a valuable part of the air fairies, and thus the rest of the ADF, but they aren't. They're cadets.

If I had gone to the US and been teased in a cadet unit about being an Aussie, then come out swinging and said "the US has terrible attitudes towards Australia", surely you'd understand why it isn't appropriate to a) tar a whole country with a sweeping generalisation and b) use someones experiences in 1 junior sort of military unit as representative of the rest of that country's armed forces/population. Right?

Also, the guy sounds like an absolute tosser who ran that unit, I've seen one, and heard of a lot more cadet units getting pineappled by having a dropkick in charge, who they just can't seem to get rid of for whatever reason.

Fair enough, I came across a little too aggressive in my first post, poor word choice, just had some very bad experiences. Sorry for any implied offense.

I'm older and wiser now and sort of put it down too

a) Right after the iraq war was declared and many people disagreed with Australia's involvement.
b) Kids can be little gakheads to their fellow kid.

**Da Boss**

To be fair, I think quite a lot of people have a chip on their shoulder about the American military. It's pretty common, "tall poppy syndrome" in a way I suppose. Every force likes to big themselves up, and sometimes that involves running others down.

I thought the article was quite refreshing because it didn't fall into that trope.

**motyak**

It's all good Emil, I can get pretty defensive about this sort of topic.

Shake and make up

On with the thread!

**trexmeyer**

Albatross wrote:
trexmeyer wrote:
BlaxicanX wrote:So the French look at us the way Guardsmen look at Space Marines.

I approve of this.

Damn, you beat me to the punch. Reminds me a bit of that WW1 picture that had soldiers of various nations and the Americans towered over everyone else.

As I recall, the Brit in that particular pic was the same height if not taller. I may be misremembering.

IIRC, the Brit, American, and Russian were the tallest.

**WellSpokenMan**

Jihadin wrote:
What was the saying the Brits had for the US soldiers during WWII?
"Over sexed, over paid and over here"
banter back
"Under sexed, under paid , and under Eisenhower"

Been in 82nd, 101st, and 160th.
82nd and 101st in peace time and war.

No damn difference who was better, living up to a reputation, exceeding past combat history, and/or riding on one's reputation.
Regardless of deployments once one boots hits the ground its "Do your damn job and do it well."

Poland and Romania I have to admit were fun to be with. Quite eager to take the fight to the Insurgents and at times over zealous.

I found Eastern European troops in general to be a joy to work with.

**Ensis Ferrae**

Albatross wrote:
trexmeyer wrote:
BlaxicanX wrote:So the French look at us the way Guardsmen look at Space Marines.

I approve of this.

Damn, you beat me to the punch. Reminds me a bit of that WW1 picture that had soldiers of various nations and the Americans towered over everyone else.

As I recall, the Brit in that particular pic was the same height if not taller. I may be misremembering.

I recall the picture as well... I thought that the only reason the Brit came "close" to the same height was due to his helmet standing so damn tall.... or maybe that was another country's soldier??

**Do_I_Not_Like_That**

Some Americans may be surprised that other nations and individuals like their military, but I've always been a fan.

My favourite FOW list is an 82nd + British Shermans for when I'm playing Market Garden missions/scenarios, and MacArthur is one of my all time favourite Generals. Can't see the fuss about Omar Bradley though. Sorry.

As for Gatorade, awful, awful, stuff

Automatically Appended Next Post:

Da Boss wrote:
To be fair, I think quite a lot of people have a chip on their shoulder about the American military. It's pretty common, "tall poppy syndrome" in a way I suppose. Every force likes to big themselves up, and sometimes that involves running others down.

I thought the article was quite refreshing because it didn't fall into that trope.

No true Frenchman would say that about America. A true Frenchman would acted in a similar manner to that annoying Frenchman in monty python and the holy grail

**squidhills**

Do_I_Not_Like_That wrote:

My favourite FOW list is an 82nd + British Shermans for when I'm playing Market Garden missions/scenarios, and MacArthur is one of my all time favourite Generals.

At the risk of being OT, I have a very low opinion of any American officer who decides to field cavalry against US veterans of WWI.

**WellSpokenMan**

squidhills wrote:
Do_I_Not_Like_That wrote:

My favourite FOW list is an 82nd + British Shermans for when I'm playing Market Garden missions/scenarios, and MacArthur is one of my all time favourite Generals.

At the risk of being OT, I have a very low opinion of any American officer who decides to field cavalry against US veterans of WWI.

I resisted the urge to bring this up, but yeah, that has always bothered me. I am also bothered by his response to the Pearl Harbor attack. After he heard the news he, tragically, did almost nothing. Hours later the Japanese decimated his air units and any hope for holding the Phillipines was lost.

Omar Bradley is famous for not generally being an epic douche. This was so much out of character for a high ranking US or UK officer that the media didn't know what to do with him.

**Do_I_Not_Like_That**

squidhills wrote:
Do_I_Not_Like_That wrote:

My favourite FOW list is an 82nd + British Shermans for when I'm playing Market Garden missions/scenarios, and MacArthur is one of my all time favourite Generals.

At the risk of being OT, I have a very low opinion of any American officer who decides to field cavalry against US veterans of WWI.

I agree that the man had his flaws (like most military commanders since war began) but if you were looking at him from a purely tactical point of view, then you can't help but admire his actions at Hollandia, and of course, Inchon. Military genius at work.

Automatically Appended Next Post:

WellSpokenMan wrote:
squidhills wrote:
Do_I_Not_Like_That wrote:

My favourite FOW list is an 82nd + British Shermans for when I'm playing Market Garden missions/scenarios, and MacArthur is one of my all time favourite Generals.

At the risk of being OT, I have a very low opinion of any American officer who decides to field cavalry against US veterans of WWI.

I resisted the urge to bring this up, but yeah, that has always bothered me. I am also bothered by his response to the Pearl Harbor attack. After he heard the news he, tragically, did almost nothing. Hours later the Japanese decimated his air units and any hope for holding the Phillipines was lost.

Omar Bradley is famous for not generally being an epic douche. This was so much out of character for a high ranking US or UK officer that the media didn't know what to do with him.

This is going way OT, but what happened to MacArthur at Pearl, has happened to a few military commanders. MacArthur's biographer, William Manchester, highlighted how Stonewall Jackson froze on the eve of Fredericksburg/Chancellorsville? Washington lost the plot at Brandywine, and Wellington froze somewhat at Badajoz (but recovered) so it has been known to happen.

anyway, back OT

I've always admired the fighting spirit and firepower of American troops, but I can't help feeling that when dealing with the insurgency in Iraq and Afghanistan, that the go forward mentality might have made things tougher. I'm not saying their idiots or anything but I've always understood counter-insurgency to be more of a 'thinking' way of fighting, rather than the battering ram approach. I could be wrong.