Pat Proctor deploys to Afghanistan

Pat will deploy this week with the 1st Infantry Division (the storied "Big Red One"). The division will assume responsibility for eastern Afghanistan during this critical period in America's decade long war. See the full story at FoxNews.com. An excerpt...

“The headquarters spent a year in southern Iraq, returning to Fort Riley in January 2011, but has never deployed to Afghanistan. ‘We had to wrap our heads around a different country, a different people,’ said Lt. Col. Patrick Proctor, the division's chief of plans. As part of that effort, key officers on the division headquarters staff visited Afghanistan in September, October and December to be briefed by U.S. and Afghan officers and get a better lay of the land. Proctor and [division commander, Major General] Mayville made a final visit last week.”

To read more about the deployment, see the 1st Infantry Division Post, 16 March 2012.

To post a message for Pat as he leaves and keep up with the latest developments in eastern Afghanistan, go to Pat's FaceBook page.

Also check out Armchair General magazine beginning in May 2012. Pat will be writing a series of “Dispatches from the Front” over the course of his deployment.

Military Times Review of "Task Force Patriot"

J. Ford Huffman, a staff writer for Military Times, has written a review of Task Force Patriot and the End of Combat Operations in Iraq. Here's an excerpt...

“In his detailed narrative, Proctor, an Army lieutenant colonel, is not afraid to admit a 'fatal assumption' or a 'serious flaw' that leads to his unit’s realization that 'it was time to start from scratch,' again and again. Frustrations with local politicians, State Department representatives and local business practices get in the Army’s way, but the officer is persuasive.”

To read the entire review, click here.

Task Force Patriot is published by Government Institutes Press, an imprint of Rowman & Littlefield. The book is now available in stores, or you can order it on Amazon.com or at Barnes & Noble.

"Ten Years of GWOT" published at Journal of Strategic Security

The Journal of Strategic Security, a publication of Henley-Putnam University, has published an article by Pat Proctor and colleague Dave Oakley, called "Ten Years of GWOT, the Failure of Democratization and the Fallacy of 'Ungoverned Spaces'."  From the abstract:

"October 7, 2011, marked a decade since the United States invaded Afghanistan and initiated the Global War on Terrorism (GWOT). While most ten-year anniversary gifts involve aluminum, tin, or diamonds, the greatest gift U.S. policymakers can present American citizens is a reconsideration of the logic that guides America's counterterrorism strategy. Although the United States has successfully averted large-scale domestic terrorist attacks, its inability to grasp the nature of the enemy has cost it dearly in wasted resources and, more importantly, lost lives. Two of the most consistent and glaring policy flaws revolve around the concepts of filling "ungoverned spaces" and installing democracy by force."

To read the article, click here.

Pat Proctor at the 1st Division Museum

Pat Proctor's appearance at the 1st Division Museum at Cantigny Park, in Wheaton, IL in December 2011 is now posted on YouTube.

Pat talks about his new book, Task Force Patriot and the End of Combat Operations in Iraq, the future for Iraq, and the United States' challenges in Afganistan.

This talk coincided with the release of Task Force Patriot, published by Government Institutes Press, an imprint of Rowman & Littlefield. The book is now available in stores, or you can order it on Amazon.com.

The video is broken up into in eleven 7-9 minute videos.  Click on the links below to see each video:

• Part I
• Part II
• Part III
• Part IV
• Part V
• Part VI
• Part VII
• Part VIII
• Part IX
• Part X
• Part XI

Special thanks to the 1st Division Museum for providing the video from which these short clips were built.

Free Preview of "Task Force Patriot"

You can now scan excerpts fromTask Force Patriot and the End of Combat Operations in Iraq at Google Books! To see a free preview, click here. 

Task Force Patriot is published by Government Institutes Press, an imprint of Rowman & Littlefield. The book is now available in stores, or you can order it on Amazon.com or at Barnes & Noble.

"Task Force Patriot" Ships

My latest book, Task Force Patriot and the End of Combat Operations in Iraq, has shipped to retailers.  You can buy it now at Amazon.com.

Task Force Patriot tells the story of an artillery-turned-infantry battalion and its year in Saddam Hussein's hometown of Tikrit, the last battalion to occupy the city before the end of combat operations. It is published by Government Institutes Press, an imprint of Scarecrow Press.

More Advance Praise for "Task Force Patriot and the End of Combat Operations in Iraq"

The positive reviews for Task Force Patriot and the End of Combat Operations in Iraq continue to roll in! Here is what Brig.Gen. H.R. McMaster, PhD., author of Dereliction of Duty: Lyndon Johnson, Robert McNamara, the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and the Lies that Led to Vietnam had to say:

“As we approach the twilight of the war in Iraq, it is widely acknowledged that the public understands too little about the experience of soldiers who have been engaged in that conflict over the past eight years. In Task Force Patriot and the End of Combat Operations in Iraq, Pat Proctor sheds light on the political, human, and psychological dimension of that experience, recounting how he and his soldiers fought across an area the size of New Jersey to achieve an outcome consistent with our interests and worthy of the sacrifices so many have made. This is a compelling account not only because it helps explain the American military experience in Iraq, but also because it reveals the difficulties that our soldiers are likely to confront in future conflicts.”

Check back with the Task Force Patriot Review Page often to see the latest reviews as they come in!

New Website launched for "Task Force Patriot and the End of Combat Operations in Iraq"

The website for Task Force Patriot and the End of Combat Operations in Iraq has launched .  You can see it at:

http://www.taskforcepatriotbook.com

At this Website you will find additional resources related to the book, including multimedia content such as pictures and video taken during Task Force Patriot's last tour in Iraq, as the last combat force to occupy Saddam Hussein's hometown of Tikrit. You will also find the latest reviews and news related to the book and my appearances to promote it.

Task Force Patriot will be publish by Government Institutes Press, an imprint of Scarecrow Press. The expected release date is in December 2011.

For more, click here.

"Fighting to Understand" published in Military Review

The city of ad Dawr did not seem to be responding as we expected. Security was always good in the city—until U.S. forces entered. When the Proud American Soldiers entered the city of ad Dawr, they encountered uniform animosity from the populace. The unit that preceded us in ad Dawr, Bravo Company, 2d Battalion, 35th Infantry Regiment, received small arms fire nearly every time they entered the city. Despite Task Force Patriot’s heavy engagement with the leadership and a significant surge of Commander’s Emergency Relief Program (CERP) money, it was not long before our battalion met with the same reception. This violence finally culminated in tragedy when Corporal Tony Carrasco was shot and killed in ad Dawr on 4 November 2009.

Pat recounts his 2009-2010 deployment to Iraq in "Fighting to Understand," which appeared in the March-April 2011 edition of Military Review.

To read the full article, click here!

Armchair General Review of "Media War"

The interactive history magazine, Armchair General just posted a review by Peter Suciu of my first full-length book, Media War: The Media-Enabled Insurgency in Iraq.

"A fascinating book that news junkies will appreciate deeply."

To read the full review, click here.

Media War is available for the Amazon Kindle and as a Google eBook.

ProSIM announces the publication of "Media War" as a Google eBook

“In Operation Iraqi Freedom, insurgent and terrorist groups have demonstrated the capability to use small, relatively insignificant tactical attacks, amplified through the megaphone of the media, to dramatic effect on the will of the American public to prosecute the war. This capability has neutralized the overwhelming advantage the US military has in firepower in Iraq by bypassing it completely. Recent trends (including Israel’s abortive war in Lebanon in 2006) suggest that this capability is proliferating and will characterize every enemy the US military faces for the foreseeable future. Left unchecked, this capability will weaken the United States’ ability to project military power for all but the most finite, decisive future conflicts.”

ProSIM Company is now a Google Books partner! Their first entry at the Google ebookstore is my first full-length book, Media War: The Media-Enabled Insurgency in Iraq. This book is the culmination of over two and a half years of study of the US military, the insurgency, and the media in Iraq, including lessons learned from my first, six-month tour in Iraq working on the front lines of the media war.

To get Media War: The Media-Enabled Insurgency in Iraq at the Google ebookstore, click here.

Approaches to the War on Terrorism

A Usenet newsgroup discussion about my latest book, Media War: The Media-Enabled Insurgency in Iraq has turned into a quite lively debate about approaches to the War on Terrorism. You can check out the conversation here:

"ProSIM Co.'s newest release"

The discussion starts to heat up around post 30.

The lines in the above discussion get kind of blurred between my role as a game developer, writer, and military professional, so I feel compelled to add the standard disclaimer:

"The views expressed on this blog and in the link above are those of the author(s) and do not reflect the official policy or position of the Department of Defense or the US Government."