REMFs

Before you get angry with me for using this acronym (assuming you know what it means from your military days), let me give you the sanctified version: Rear Echelon Males and Females.

Here in Bagram we are "in the rear," so to speak, if that can be said in a war where there are no clear front lines. "Assymmetrical" warfare is the new term of art for insurgent wars such as this and there is technically no "safe zone." REMFs though, are all typically despised by those on the "front lines." They are seen as living a life of ease while others are out carrying the fight to the enemy. Truth be told, most REMFs hate being there and WANT to be in the fight.

So here in Bagram, where I will spend about 40% of my tour (the other 60% I will spend out visiting the guys on the front lines), there are amenities I would not have dreamed of in 2003. In Iraq we had many of the same luxuries: a Burger King, Pizza Hut, weight rooms with massive cardio sections, etc. But a SPA? Really? I didn't believe the first person that told me about it until I walked into it yesterday for a haircut.

Apparently, you can get a 1/2 hour backrub for $8, a full hour for $20, and if you want to add a facial, pedicure and manicure with the full hour, it will cost you about $50, I think. This is enough to make a self-respecting REMF feel quite guilty. Oh, and there's a coffee shop, a fried chicken outlet and stores selling all sorts of "local" wares, although I've seen a few boxes in the back rooms marked, ironically, "made in China." Many of the goods appear suspiciously similar to items I remember them selling in Iraq. We're not terribly far away but, really, hand carved elephants? Is that either Iraqi or Afghani?

Anyhow, I will continue enjoying the double-life here; on the one hand a REMF, and on the other a front line contributor. I only wish I could pull the rest of the guys out there back here for just a day, to get their backrubs and whoppers. I bet most of them would decline, though. There's too much going on down range to indulge. The warrior ethos is such that no true warrior would engage in such luxury while his buddies suffer out there. Just ask King David about the ethic portrayed by Uriah. (If you don't know the story, look it up. It's a good read.)

Blessings from Afghanistan.