A Firefight in a Faraway Place

Culloden - The winners' side

Today's topic is battlefields. Add to the list a place called Jaji, a remote rock pile in eastern Afghanistan where two men of the Vermont National Guard died during a firefight Sunday.

The men, Spec. (actually sergeant, posthumously) Southworth and Sgt. Deluzio, belonged to the Vermont National Guard, elements of which are co-located at FOB Gardez along with the Provincial Reconstruction Team to which Kelley belongs. Their missions are entirely separate, however.

The PRT is out to win hearts and minds, to put it simply. The Guard, which is designated a "maneuver"  unit, is a combat unit. It hunts bad guys and sometimes kills them. The Captain writes that the fallen men were flown back to Gardez en route to Bagram and beyond and that a formation was held to honor their sacrifice. A tough day on the FOB, no doubt.