Jobs in Iraq?

[USMC302]

Wow, Molly, Molly Molly. I also provide communications for the Marine Corps, I just got back from over there last August. I agree with you on many things you said but would like to clarify a few points if I may.

Without people like me our troops wouldn't have any support. I run all the communications equipment (internet, phones, faxes, secure lines..etc) that go in and out of this base.

You know as well as I do this job is not a one person task, the military has there own highly trained troops to provide communications and to work hand in hand with the civilian contractors. We actually went in and took over for the Army on one site and expanded the communications to over 2k users in 6 months, I'm not trying to get in a pissing contest over who does more, just wanting to make the point that the military is perfectly cabaple of supporting itself without civilian aid in a tactical environment.

Without contractors I promise you 99% of our missions would fail

Are we talking the Army or the Marines? The military spends thousands of dollars training these troops for technical jobs in specialized fields, constant training is performed to ensure mission success. We did turn over to contractors when we left but we had NO FAILED missions with our Marines while our Marines provided communication. Moral was kept high as well as we had Marines able to communicate with the states on a regular basis.

At least I have a sense of pride for what I do where other people condem me for it and say how stupid I am.

I agree with you and feel the same way. You are appreciated.

. I was in the showers last night and I turned around to a chick saying "Oh, you're one of THOSE civilians aren't you?". It was really hard to miss the scorn. Military hates us

There are going to be those that are envious of you and what your doing, but please don't judge the Military as a whole from what you hear in the showers or from one base, unit or country. We don't hate you

. Where as military does a 90 day or so tour, where as military get special R&R spots and vacation spots...we don't.

Again I am unsure of what part of the military your are referring to but I assure you, The Marine Corps is no cake walk, if we are lucky enough to have the USO or MWR sponsor a vacation or R&R spot, we have always welcomed contractors along for the trip.

We get treated like dirt from the military

I am truely sorry for this, I know I can't aplogize for the entire Military, but Marines are proffesional and tactful, if you experiance something different you should report it to the Chain of Command and ensure it doesn't happen again.

CupCake , Great attitude to have!

Now that I wrote a novel, that's enough for now.