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CNN Live Saturday
101st Gets in Position in Kuwaiti Desert
Aired March 15, 2003 - 15:46 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
RENAY SAN MIGUEL, CNN ANCHOR: U.S. reporters are traveling alongside members of the military in the Gulf region.
CNN's Ryan Chilcote is with the Army's 101st Airborne in the Kuwaiti Desert and he joins us by videophone -- Ryan.
RYAN CHILCOTE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: An increasing feeling here among the soldiers that they might be asked in the coming days and weeks to ship out and head north.
Now they don't have any inside information. They don't know anything that we don't know. Their commander is obviously not telling them. It would be very uncommon for a commander to tell the soldiers beneath him that -- what they are going to be asked to do before he needs to for reasons of operational security.
But there is a feeling -- an increasing feeling -- that they may be called into action soon. They're getting some indirect signs. For example, the soldiers are being told that they should not send out their laundry anymore. They have been having trouble with the laundry.
The soldiers are being told, "Look, don't send out your laundry anymore because you might not get it back in time before you have to ship out."
Also, the soldiers have been instructed now to move around the camp in what's called full battle rattle -- military colloquial for all of their gear. They are wearing their helmets, their flack jackets. They are wearing their backpacks with their chemical suits -- their gas masks. They are carrying their weapons.
So there isn't any increased threat to these soldiers here at Camp New Jersey in Kuwait. But their commanders do want them to get into the mentality of war.
Now, the soldiers are obviously reacting differently to this situation. A lot of soldiers I have noticed have been painting their assault rifles -- their M-4 and M-16 assault rifles -- a desert color, a tan color.
Other soldiers using what one soldier told me called the calm before the storm to skip out on the big lines and get up to the Internet terminals and send some e-mails back home to say, look -- we're OK. And so soldiers are getting ready. Other soldiers I noticed have been hanging out at the MWR tent, getting a little R&R watching television. Some of them that I watched just a short whole ago were actually watching CNN -- were watching "SHOWDOWN IRAQ."
And on that newscast, they saw some of the anti-war protests back home.
Well, I had an opportunity to speak with those soldiers and asked them what they thought about those protests. Let's have a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHILCOTE: Does it offend you that people are protesting against the war?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, as far as freedom of speech, and I mean, in my situation, that I may come in harm's way, kind of -- because then it's like almost back like, say, the Vietnam era, when the troops didn't get support when they came home.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHILCOTE: I guess that's all -- that's all we have. I thought we might have a little bit more.
But the soldiers actually had very varying points of view, some soldiers very disappointed at the protests, other soldiers saying, look -- that's their right. They have the right to protest. They have the right to their own point of view.
In fact, some of the soldiers even said that that's why they were here -- to fight for a freedom and to fight for the people's right to express their own opinions.
So obviously there isn't just one soldier opinion about these anti-war protests.
Generally speaking, a lot more upbeat than you might have thought they would have been. Back to you.
SAN MIGUEL: Not getting any inside information but apparently getting plenty of information from the outside. Ryan Chilcote, thanks for the report.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired March 15, 2003 - 15:46 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
RENAY SAN MIGUEL, CNN ANCHOR: U.S. reporters are traveling alongside members of the military in the Gulf region.
CNN's Ryan Chilcote is with the Army's 101st Airborne in the Kuwaiti Desert and he joins us by videophone -- Ryan.
RYAN CHILCOTE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: An increasing feeling here among the soldiers that they might be asked in the coming days and weeks to ship out and head north.
Now they don't have any inside information. They don't know anything that we don't know. Their commander is obviously not telling them. It would be very uncommon for a commander to tell the soldiers beneath him that -- what they are going to be asked to do before he needs to for reasons of operational security.
But there is a feeling -- an increasing feeling -- that they may be called into action soon. They're getting some indirect signs. For example, the soldiers are being told that they should not send out their laundry anymore. They have been having trouble with the laundry.
The soldiers are being told, "Look, don't send out your laundry anymore because you might not get it back in time before you have to ship out."
Also, the soldiers have been instructed now to move around the camp in what's called full battle rattle -- military colloquial for all of their gear. They are wearing their helmets, their flack jackets. They are wearing their backpacks with their chemical suits -- their gas masks. They are carrying their weapons.
So there isn't any increased threat to these soldiers here at Camp New Jersey in Kuwait. But their commanders do want them to get into the mentality of war.
Now, the soldiers are obviously reacting differently to this situation. A lot of soldiers I have noticed have been painting their assault rifles -- their M-4 and M-16 assault rifles -- a desert color, a tan color.
Other soldiers using what one soldier told me called the calm before the storm to skip out on the big lines and get up to the Internet terminals and send some e-mails back home to say, look -- we're OK. And so soldiers are getting ready. Other soldiers I noticed have been hanging out at the MWR tent, getting a little R&R watching television. Some of them that I watched just a short whole ago were actually watching CNN -- were watching "SHOWDOWN IRAQ."
And on that newscast, they saw some of the anti-war protests back home.
Well, I had an opportunity to speak with those soldiers and asked them what they thought about those protests. Let's have a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHILCOTE: Does it offend you that people are protesting against the war?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, as far as freedom of speech, and I mean, in my situation, that I may come in harm's way, kind of -- because then it's like almost back like, say, the Vietnam era, when the troops didn't get support when they came home.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHILCOTE: I guess that's all -- that's all we have. I thought we might have a little bit more.
But the soldiers actually had very varying points of view, some soldiers very disappointed at the protests, other soldiers saying, look -- that's their right. They have the right to protest. They have the right to their own point of view.
In fact, some of the soldiers even said that that's why they were here -- to fight for a freedom and to fight for the people's right to express their own opinions.
So obviously there isn't just one soldier opinion about these anti-war protests.
Generally speaking, a lot more upbeat than you might have thought they would have been. Back to you.
SAN MIGUEL: Not getting any inside information but apparently getting plenty of information from the outside. Ryan Chilcote, thanks for the report.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
