COLUMNS

G'day from the Sentinel Team

I received some interesting items in the office this week. Firstly, Brigadier Jim Wallace's thoughts on the "Warrior's Code," secondly, on the same theme, notes from Dr. Dave Grossman, retired West Point Officer and author of "Trained to Kill"

The Presidential Prayer Team have also sent us some letters from US soldiers in Iraq, which seem to nicely compliment PM John Howard's comments on the progress being made over there.

Between them these items examine the preparation a soldier receives before enlistment, during training and whilst positioned on the battle field. I found them fascinating and hope that they will encourage you to stand in faith with our Soldiers ... in fact all of the Coalition Soldiers, at this time.

As an expert in the areas of human aggression and violence, Dr. Grossman also speaks very strongly about the dangers of violent video and computer games. His thoughts on this topic are included below.

Under His Banner

Bev Holmes-Brown

Protecting Our Young People

A Healthy Knowledge that we are ALL Answerable to God is Society's only viable restraint.

We have all been shocked by the torture of Iraqi prisoners not least, I believe, the Leaders of the Coalition.

In a recent Canberra Times article, Brigadier Jim Wallace asked, "whether societies lack of absolutes is eroding the highest principles of the warrior code."

He turns our attention to the environment that creates a soldier, before he joins the Defence Forces, saying :

"The ANZAC came to the army with the bushman’s very practical experience of life and death. But today’s recruit comes with a conditioning to violence itself. Computer games trivialise not only the act of killing, but also the infliction of pain. They compete in the search for more graphic and unusual means of creating havoc and suffering, and as sure as McDonalds ads help create fat kids, [the computer games] help create potential sadists and torturers in uniform." (From ACL Website

Dr. Ted Baehr, is dedicated to training Christian Families to be wise in what their children are exposed to.

He's written an excellent article called "No Restraint" that introduces us to Dr David Grossman, author of "Trained to Kill" and a former Officer at West Point.

Dr. Grossman explores the reason that US soldiers were caught up in the perverse torture of prisoners :

"... most people, nearly 90%, have a built-in inhibition to killing. After the battle of Gettysburg, 90% of the guns that were picked up had not been fired. He said that people were willing to die for their beliefs but not kill for them.

His [Grossman's] job in the army was to break down these inhibitions and teach people to kill. He does so by desensitizing them and giving them classical and operant conditioning, which even causes them to delight in successful killing. Now, our troops have a 90% kill rate.

However, Dr. Grossman points out that if you use these psychological techniques to train men or women to kill, you must also build in internal restraints, and the restraints are what are missing today.

The only viable restraint is a moral compass, which comes from a healthy knowledge that we are answerable to the God who created us.

As the Bible teaches, "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding." (Proverbs 9:10)

The troops we’ve seen in pictures and on videos come from a postmodern culture where they have no such restraint. They’ve been trained to kill – their inhibitions have been removed – but the necessary checks and balances are missing.

You can read this full article on ChristianNewsToday.com

Violent Video Games are Harmful to Children

"The impact of visual, violent imagery on children has been identified as the key variable responsible for an explosion of violent crime around the world."

Note : I found a interesting web link of a former Statement by Dr. Grossman, U.S. Army, (Retired) Before the New York State Legislature ... (1999)

It begins ... "My expertise in the area of human aggression and violence includes service as a West Point psychology professor, a professor of military science, the author of a Pulitzer nominated book and numerous peer reviewed encyclopedia entries on this topic.

It is my professional opinion, and it is the opinion of major experts in this area (such as the American Medical Association (AMA), the American Psychiatric Association (APA), the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), the American Academy of Mental Health, and the Surgeon General), based on extensive research, that violent video games are harmful to children. Legislation to rate these games, and enforcement of the ratings in order to keep the violent games out of the hands of children, is essential to the safety and security of the population of New York. The games that permit a child to hold and aim a gun, and fire it at humans, are particularly harmful, since these devices teach shooting skills. They are firearms training devices at best, and murder simulators at worst.

The Statement gives a Media Violence Overview that clearly says, "The impact of visual, violent imagery on children has been identified as the key variable responsible for an explosion of violent crime around the world."

Dr. Grossman also says he has consulted with "other experts in the field of law enforcement marksmanship training" and that the heads of three of these "major national and international law enforcement training organizations ... would be willing to serve (pro bono) as expert witnesses in a lawsuit against the manufacturers of these games."

Full article is found at the Free Radical Website

The News the Media Forgot To Mention

(photo May : Aussie Troops surrounded with the comfortsof home)

The Middle East Prayer Alert asked us this week if we have heard any of the following reports from the Media :

"Has the mainline media trumpeted the good news that there has been relative peace and order for some two weeks in Fallujah under the new indigenous Iraqi patrols? "

"Are you hearing the positive interviews with Marines and Soldiers home on furlough testifying that, in their on-site assessment, over 90 percent of the members of our Armed Forces in Iraq feel good about serving there? "

Tim Winter, the New Executive Director for Intercessors For America and former Marine, is now serving as a Senior Recruiter in Baghdad helping to put together the new Iraqi Army.

He recently shared, "that while very difficult, he and those he works with in Baghdad feel that military victory and a new government are very possible -- if we do not prematurely "cut and run."

(Above photo May 2nd : Aussies on a reconnaissance to Kirkush, one of the locations that may be used to train the new Iraqi Army.

Radio 2UE Interview witt PM, John Howard

I think the great untold story is the progress that's been made with the social infrastructure. The fact that there's started to be for the first time in a generation real investment in public health in Iraq.

The fact that two and a half schools, 2,500 schools have been rehabilitated. The universities are open. Inflation has been cut from horrendous levels to about 20 per cent a year. There are 15,000 mobile phones being sold, I think, every week, whereas they were banned under Saddam Hussein. There have been municipal elections held, the courts are operating.

For the first time in 15 years Iraq has a unified currency.

Now all of these things are the hallmarks of the basic infrastructure of a modern state and they are facts that should be borne in mind of side by side with the ongoing violence, the ongoing attacks and the many other difficulties that the country faces.

But there's no doubt in my mind and those figures and facts seem to bear it out that the country's a lot better off than what it would be (inaudible).

The Following comes from a US MEDIC on the frontline in Iraq. He Says :

"Don't believe for one second that these people do not want us there. I have met many, many people from Iraq that want us there, and in a bad way. They say they will never see the freedoms we talk about but they hope their children will. We are doing a good job in Iraq and I challenge anyone, anywhere to dispute me on these facts ... ".

He lists the ways that the Army has helped the Iraqi people thus far :

• Over 400,000 kids have up-to-date immunizations.
• School attendance is up 80% from levels before the war.
• Over 1,500 schools have been renovated and rid of the weapons stored there so education can occur.
• The port of Uhm Qasar was renovated so grain can be off-loaded from ships faster.
• The country had its first 2 billion barrel export of oil in August.
• Over 4.5 million people have clean drinking water for the first time ever in Iraq.
• The country now receives 2 times the electrical power it did before the war.
• 100% of the hospitals are open and fully staffed, compared to 35% before the war
• Elections are taking place in every major city, and city councils are in place.
• Sewer and water lines are installed in every major city.
• Over 60,000 police are patrolling the streets.
• Over 100,000 Iraqi civil defense police are securing the country.
• Over 80,000 Iraqi soldiers are patrolling the streets side by side with US soldiers.
• Over 400,000 people have telephones for the first time ever.
• Students are taught field sanitation and hand washing techniques to prevent the spread of germs.
• An interim constitution has been signed.
• Girls are allowed to attend school.
• Textbooks that don't mention Saddam are in the schools for the first time in 30 years

USA : PRAYING FOR THE TROOPS

We have included letters from two US soldiers below, from the Presidential Prayer Team Website. The Prayer Team are asking us to Pray for the Troops, insisting, "These courageous men and women need our prayers!"

From St Sgt. Robb C., a Marine stationed in Fallujah.

Good morning to you all.

The Lord has once again blessed us with another beautiful sunrise over Iraq. I still find amazing the peacefulness and the beauty of the sunrises and sunsets here, amongst all the fighting and violence here. It just goes to prove that God continues to reveal His presence to us, even when there are those who chose to ignore it.

The Marines continue to keep their spirits high, and adapt to the challenges they are faced with daily. I am amazed how these young men and women that I am surrounded by perform their duties with no thought to the hazards they are facing.

It humbles me to watch the grunts come in to our camp for chow and hopefully a quick shower. They come here some bandaged from wounds they received, cammies cut away from the injury site, dirty, sweat stained, unshaven, and smiling and laughing over a hot meal that they are sharing with fellow Marines.

For a brief time they are allowed to relax, catch a breath, and reflect on events with their comrades, that only they would comprehend. I have said before there are going to be many heroes out of this, and I see them each time they roll in.

The Marines are grateful for your support and prayers. The Lord truly has His hand in this, and I for one am grateful that we have a Commander-in-Chief who has the courage to display his faith in the Lord and determination to see this fight for the freedom of Iraq and its people to the end.

We have been blessed on many fronts as citizens of the U.S. I look forward to the day when we can stand together with our Iraqi neighbors and talk about the freedoms, we of two nations share together. What an awesome work it would be to kneel in prayer to Jesus with an Iraqi brother in Christ. I pray that the fighting will end soon and the process of rebuilding and establishment of democracy may resume here in Iraq. I for one am honored to be here serving my country and preserving democracy, and in true Marine Corps fashion any clime and any place.

Your brother in Christ,

Robb

Folks,

Would ask that you pass this on to those around you....You may have seen in the media the past two days that several of the units scheduled to be redeployed from Iraq have been halted in their redeployment efforts and returned to Baghdad to assist in quelling the uprisings spurred by Muqta al Sadr. In some cases, units were literally pulled off the tarmac while waiting for their flights home.

I have talked to several in the desert who are more than willing, no, driven to return north to combat an organization which is directly responsible for the deaths of several of their fellow soldiers. To those who've been recalled, this is duty, and one that is motivated by the loss of friends in combat. They take this on like all the hardships they've endured over the past 14 months without hesitation, question, or retort.

However, to the spouses and family back in the states, the prospect of losing their loved one for and additional 90-120 days is in some cases overwhelming. Change is always difficult. But to have a loved one seemingly ripped from your grasp only days before their return is placing some precariously on edge.

Please pray for the safety of our men and women overseas, that they would maintain their focus on the task at hand and professionalism which has characterized their service thus far. Pray for their families who've endured so much hardship, thus far, and are being asked to give more.

For those who would dissent, pray for them and if given the opportunity remind them that the freedoms they enjoy have been bought and paid for by the blood of soldiers who were willing to give all they had so that others could enjoy the same freedoms. The foundations which have made this country great are embodied in this right, but the resolve which makes us greater is the direct support of those who've prosecuted our national interests abroad.

Fantastic advances are being made [in Iraq], and our commitment to this region is absolutely strategic to our national interests for a multitude of reasons. Whether for economic or national security reasons, the future of Iraq and the Middle East are of vital interest to America and her allies.

It is absolutely imperative that we stand together in support during these critical times to ensure the future of our great nation and those who would stand with us. History, not the media, will laud those who persevered in times of trouble.

God bless our brave men and women in uniform.

Respectfully,

Clark Major, U.S. Army

This letter was first published in the Camelback Bible Church "In Touch" newsletter.

If you would like to Adopt One of the US troops for Prayer, then visit the Presidential Prayer Team Website and follow the links.

They will ask you to login in before issuing you with the name of your adopted troop. Once you have confirmed your details the site will generate a prayer certificate that you can print out and put on your wall to remind you to pray.
Presidential Prayer Team Link

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