The War in Iraq and what we learned from it

Sharky’s and “The Golden Boy”—Military Justice Abandons the Vulnerable to Protect the Powerful

by Thomas J. Brennan April 28, 2022August 8, 2025

The Marine Corps has hidden the track records of attorneys whose misconduct and disregard for the rule of law has jeopardized the welfare of Marines.

The F/A-18 Hornet Mark Fox flew when he faced a MiG during Operation Desert Storm being restored to display at the Naval Aviation Museum in Pensacola. Photo courtesy of Fox.

Newsroom

30 Years On, Veterans Recall the Desert Storm Air War

by Kelly Kennedy January 21, 2021February 10, 2026

People tend to remember Desert Storm as a short, easy war. Compared with the “forever” wars, that makes sense: a 100-hour blip in the annals of history.

Two voters in Kirkuk in Iraq’s first election of a democratic government since the fall of Saddam Hussein in 2003 display their ink-stained fingers in 2005. Photo courtesy of the Defense Department.

Reflections

“I Still Find Hope”—Purple Fingers, Steel Rain, and Getting “Messy” in a Combat Zone

by Joshua Manning October 28, 2020July 15, 2025

Service members have voted by mail since World War II. “My nation trusted me,” writes Joshua Manning, who cast ballots while deployed to several countries.

Reflections

“I Hope She’s Scarred for Life” — Recalling My Time as a Blackwater Mercenary

by Morgan Lerette October 21, 2020July 15, 2025

Blackwater employees were “integral” to rebuilding Iraq, but with limited oversight, contractors had “no ethical obligation” to the country’s citizens.

Hunter Lu, back toward camera, shares a toast with his mother, father, and grandfather. Photo courtesy of the author.

Reflections

An Army Interrogator, His Grandfather, and a Bond Across Two Wars

by Hunter Lu October 7, 2020July 18, 2025

“My parents, like most Chinese immigrants, valued education as the ultimate achievement,” writes veteran Hunter Lu. “The military was for dumb people.”

An Iraqi man out on patrol with U.S. soldiers takes a break beneath a bridge. Photo by Nathan S. Webster.

Reflections

A Journalist’s Favorite Image Mirrors a Loss

by Nathan Webster September 23, 2020July 18, 2025

A journalist learns of death that paralleled the moment he took his favorite picture.

Master Sgt. Darryl Sterling, 332nd Expeditionary Logistics Readiness Squadron equipment manager, throws trash into a burn pit at Joint Base Balad, Iraq, in 2008. Photo by Senior Airman Julianne Showalter, courtesy U.S. Air Force.

Newsroom

“It’s so inaccurate”—How the VA Is Failing to Track Veterans Burn Pit Claims

by Kelly Kennedy August 7, 2020July 18, 2025

VA figures show an astonishingly low rate of approval of burn pit claims: Of the 10,588 claims, 2,360 veterans had their benefits granted and 8,228 were denied.