It remains the unofficial anthem of U.S. service members away from home at Christmas time.
The Korean War was a sharp and bloody conflict that ran from June of 1950 to June of 1953 so the end of it actually did see the troops home for Christmas, but not all of them. Some 50,000 dead Americans would never return and a permanent U.S. military presence in the country would mean a like number would be permanently stationed there.
The Vietnam war lasted more than ten years for the United States and being a conflict that was a hybrid of unconventional and conventional war doctrines it saw troops stationed in small remote locations in the mountains and jungles as well as larger garrisons in places like Saigon and Da Nang.
But wherever the troops were stationed they somehow managed to bring a little bit of home and Christmas with them. Even managing to obtain a Christmas tree and ornaments.
The Gulf War in 1991 saw U.S. and Coalition forces liberate Kuwait and give a crushing defeat to Iraq in only a few short weeks. For the the more than 500,000 American personnel deployed there the wait for war was much longer, months of waiting in anticipation left our troops in a kind of suspended animation: “Are we going or not?” was the question. And they didn’t think the Iraqi army would fold up like a lawn chair either. “Experts” talking on TV told Americans that Iraq had a tough, veteran army that knew how to fight in the desert and that we would likely take casualties in the tens of thousands.
The USO was there though as it has been since WWII entertaining the troops and Bob Hope was the general of his own small army of entertainers who often gave up their Christmas at home as well to give some holliday cheer to our troops. To one veteran, seeing Bob Hope was like living in history as he related to the USO,
“My whole unit – the 101st Pathfinder Detachment 2/17th Cav – was invited. The detachment was comprised of 52 men. We woke up Christmas morning, 1990, with an invitation at the foot of our bunks. At the time, we were living on cots in the parking garage of King Fahd International Airport in Saudi Arabia. It was under construction. We had no idea the USO would be putting on a Christmas Show, never mind with Bob Hope.
Most of us had fathers and/or grandfathers who saw the Bob Hope show during war-time and we felt that we now shared something special with them. There was a sense of history in the making. The show was fantastic. For me, it made my Christmas. Bob Hope was an icon.”
The came the September 11th attacks in 2001 and a twenty year conflict that remains America’s longest time at war. It is still on-going in places all over the world, in Africa, Asia, Europe and of course, the Middle East. It was also a long war for the troops. It was possible for a Soldier, Sailor, Airman or Marine to join up the day after September 11th, 2001 ansd serve an entire twenty year career fighting in the War on Terrorism. Indeed, many have.
The look on this guys face says it all, doesn’t it? He’s got a plate piled high with food, turkey and all the trimmings. He’s indoors and with the men and women of his unit. This is as good a Christmas will get, but it’s good enough. Christmas while deployed to a war zone is an exercise in doing the best you can with what you have. When the United States went over to an all volunteer force after the Vietnam conflict, the Pentagon found it had to spend a lot more money on accomodations, recreation and food to keep volunteers reasonably comfortable and willing to re-enlist when their contract expired. You are seeing the effect of that in the above picture. Troops sent overseas to Iraq and Afghanistan in rear areas generally report that they were pretty well looked after. The chow was hot, available, thry could shower wioth hot water and they slept indoors and on beds too. The minimum requirements of being comfortable in uniform.
During the Inaugeration of President Biden you will recall the pictures of National Guardsmen sleeping on the floor in the hallways of the Capitol building and civilians were just agast at seeing it. We thought the reaction of civilians was humorous, “Hell, they’re happy to just be indoors and warm” we thought.
In the photo below an Air Force F-16 pilot is wearing a Santa hat as he departs for a strike on ISIS positions in Afghanistan on Christmas day in 2016. As I said, you make the best of it as you can.
Right now, the U.S. military has 173,000 troops deployed to 159 countries around the world and today it’s Christmas Day back home in the states. If you are one of those troops deployed and are reading this, all of us here at SOFREP wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. We know what it’s like to miss your families and homes at this time of year too. May your bellies be full and your heads rest easy tonight as sleep brings dreams of being Home for Christmas.
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