It's been a tough week for the Transition Teams in Afghanistan.

Some people wonder why I do the memorial posts. They posit that doing so actually undermines support for the war. I suspect it might, in people who's support for the war is already slipping. I don't intend it to fan support for the war, either, however. "Redeeming their sacrifice" is not a good reason to continue a war. If your only reason to continue fighting is to avenge the dead... well, then you're starting to sound a lot like... oh, gosh, all those people who's only good reason to kill people is because someone killed their great-grandfather 100 years ago, and so the feud must continue. Ya gotta have better reasons than that to continue the fight, and we do.

All this is inspired by the comments to Bill's Clearing Out A Cobweb post of yesterday. If you skipped it - you should read them, but one in particular inspired these words, along with the group of casualties I'm going to honor in this post.

Denizen Just This Guy said:

On thinking about this for a while, I think it's better to remember how dead comrades died, than not to remember them. Minimise the worst of the suck that way. Can't eliminate the suck, of course.

I remember people, and things, which are just gone, and which I miss horribly. Some of their going I may have been somewhat involved with. Trying not to think about it sorta works, but not very well. Thinking about it can drive one nuts. Try not to drink too much (Hah! such advice from *me*!)

Which cascaded a train of thought that ended with the lyrics of one of my favorite songs (I tend to favor dark, true enough), The Green Fields of France, by Eric Bogle:

Most especially the second verse.

And did you leave a wife or a sweetheart behind?
In some faithful heart is your memory enshrined?
And though you died back in 1916,
In some faithful heart are you forever 19?

Or are you a stranger without even a name,
imprisoned forever behind a glass frame
In and old photograph, torn, tattered, and stained,
And fading to yellow in a bound leather frame?

I guess I just don't want them to be nameless faces imprisoned forever in an old photograph.

TWO TRANSITION TEAM SOLDIERS KILLED IN AFGHANISTAN

Two Soldiers were killed Aug. 24 in Herat, Afghanistan, when the vehicle they were traveling in rolled over.

Killed were:
Master Sergeant Scott M. Carney, 37.
Sergeant First Class Daniel E. Miller, 43.

Carney was a mobilized Iowa National Guard Soldier assigned to the same transition team. He entered the National Guard in June 1991. He began serving with the 1st Inf. Div. in February 2007.

Miller was an infantryman serving on a transition team assigned to 1st Brigade, 1st Infantry Division. His home of record is Rossford, Ohio. He entered the Army in June 1986. He began serving with the 1st Infantry Division in November 2006. This was his first deployment in support of the Global War on Terrorism.

This one is an unusual one. We don't often lose Finance Corps officers, especially field grade and above. It's a very small branch, so they're comparatively rare, especially in the wild where the bullets fly. The Finance Corps is feeling this one.

THREE TRANSITION TEAM SOLDIERS KILLED IN AFGHANISTAN

Three transition team Soldiers died Aug. 27 at Forward Operating Base Naray, Afghanistan, from wounds suffered when insurgents attacked their unit during combat operations in Jalalabad, Afghanistan.

Killed were:
Major Henry San N. Ofeciar, 37
Sergeant First Class Scott R. Ball, 38.
Sergeant Jan. M. Argonish, 26.

Ofeciar was a finance officer serving on a transition team assigned to 1st Brigade, 1st Infantry Division. His home of record is Agana, Guam. He entered the Army in February 1994 and deployed to Afghanistan in January 2007. This was his first deployment in support of the Global War on Terrorism.

Ball was a mobilized Pennsylvania National Guard combat engineer serving on the same transition team. His home of record is Mount Holly Springs, Pa. He entered the Army in July 1987. This was his second deployment in support of the Global War of Terrorism.

Argonish was a mobilized Pennsylvania National Guard infantryman serving on the same transition team. His home of record is Peckville, Pa. He entered the Army in February 1998. This was his second deployment in support of the Global War of Terrorism.

To date, 125 Fort Riley Soldiers and 1 Airman have been killed while serving in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom.

Now is the time at Castle Argghhh! when we dance: In Memoriam.