The Information-Age Marine

'(Originally published in the New York Time Select on March 22, 2006 - link)

It wasn’t long ago that hand-written letters from deployed service members were like gold to their families at home, and vice-versa. News traveled at a snail’s pace, and the information a service member read in correspondence with his loved ones was sure to be weeks if not months old. The information age has changed all that for good. I’m sure my wife appreciates my e-mails, but I don’t think any happy dances are transpiring as she checks her inbox, although I could be wrong.

In this war of fully operational bases amid an insurgency, the infrastructure present for the deployed marine is immense. Remember, we have been here for just short of three years. Camp Falluja has almost all the connectivity one could want. AT&T calling centers and D.S.N. (defense switched network) telephone lines connect our voices to home as often as we can make time to call. E-mail is provided for most deployed marines, and is available to all through internet cafes, allowing our written thoughts to be transmitted just as easily."
Midnight in Iraq