Kaboom (50 page)

If it weren't for William Clark, my agent,
Kaboom
would still be nothing more than a defunct blog forever lost in the e-seas. The impact of his vision for the project, combined with his calming influence over this impatient young writer, cannot be overstated. And to my publisher John Radziewicz, editor Bob Pigeon, and the entire Da Capo operation, I again thank you for this opportunity. Bob's passion for this book often superseded my own, which was no small wonder.

So to those I mentioned, and to the many others I didn't—Sláinte.

—NEW YORK CITY OCTOBER 2009

A, Sergeant First Class

Abbas the Beard

questioning

search for

Abu Abdullah

Abu Adnan

Abu Ghraib

Abu Mustafa

Adams, Samuel

Afghan war, politics and

Air assaults

AK-47s

fire from

al-Juma, Qusay

al-Maliki, Nouri

al-Qaeda

al-Qaeda in Iraq (AQI)

al-Sadr, Muqtadah

Alcohol

Ali Babas

Ali the Beard

Ali the Prince

Alpha Company

TOC of(photo)(photo)

Anbar

Anwar, Lieutenant

on Ali the Beard

meeting with

night with

photo of

AO.
See
Area of operations

AQI.
See
al-Qaeda in Iraq

Area of operations (AO)

Armed Forces Network

Articles of Confederation

Asaib Ahl Haq

Assassinations

Assassin's Gate

Awards, clusterfuck with

Axel, Staff Sergeant

banter by

Chem-Light and

detainees and

at ECP

Haydar and

microgrants and

photo of

return of

B, Sergeant First Class

Bad Boys platoon

Badr Corps

IEDs and

JAM and

Baghdad Gates

Banana-Hands, Sheik

bodyguards of

chai with

encounter with

evenings with

on peace

Sahwa and

set up by

Barriers, cultural/social/cultural/ training

Barry

Bassam

Battle of Basra

Battle of Karbala

Battle of 73 Easting

BCGs.
See
Birth control goggles

Beanie Babies

handing out

Big Army, Middle Army and

Big Country, Sergeant First Class

bomb and

Bronze Star for

Gravediggers and

Hot Wheels incident and

leadership by

microgrants and

Mustafa and

night patrol and

photo of

recommendation for

ROTC cadets and

security scans and

Shaba and

Smitty and

sniper rifle and

Suge and

Trash Village and

on Van Wilder

Big Ern, Specialist

Das Boot and

at ECP

fobbits and

IP attack and

photo of

Van Wilder and

Birth control goggles (BCGs)

Bisel, Sergeant First Class

Blackwater

Blog piece

axing of

support for

Body armor

Boob al-Sham

deputy mayor of

police

Boom-Booms

Boondock, Staff Sergeant

Banana-Hands and

bomb and

borrowing policies of

call signs and

city dump and

counter-IED mission and

Daraji and

detainees and

dominoes and

embracing the hate and

Fadl and

future terrorists and

Gravediggers and

in Hawaii

Haydar and

IP attack and

joking by

locals and

mortars and

Mustafa and

New Years and

night patrol and

Nour and

photo of

reassignment for

ROE and

ROTC and

snow patrol and

Suge and

Trash Village and

Brady, Tom

Bravo Troop

Shaba and

Bremer, Paul

Brooke Army Medical Center

Buffalo Bills cheerleaders

Bulldog, Staff Sergeant

dominoes and

drill sergeant school and

on garbage

Gravediggers and

Haitian Sensation and

Hot Wheels incident and

IP attack and

joking by

Mustafa and

night patrol and

photo of

reverence for

rockets and

stealth and

wrath of

Bulldozer (IP)

Bush, George W.

C, Sergeant First Class

polls and

toy RPG launchers and

Camp Bucca

Camp Liberty

Camp Patriot

Camp Taji

Camp Victory

Car bombs

Care packages

Cavalry

jokes about

Chai

drinking

Chain of command

Checkpoints

in Saba al-Bor

Sahwa

Sons of Iraq

Cheech, Sergeant

fobbits and

IP attack and

locals and

night patrol and

rockets and

Chem-Lights

Chemical Ali

Children

heat and

letters from

lives of

photo of

toy RPG launchers and

Christmas

Clay, Captain

leadership of

Rant and

replacements and

Clusterfucks

Coalition forces

counterinsurgency and

private contractors and

Cold-Cuts, Specialist

Gravediggers and

mosque raid and

night patrol and

redcon-1 and

shootout and

snow patrol and

Cold Warriors

Combat Action Badge (CAB)

Combat outposts

explosion at

photo of

photo at

Commandos, National Police

photo of

Communications

Concertina wire, photo of

Counterinsurgency

bastardized

counter-

joys of

microgrants and

politics and

precision targeting in

principles of

success for

tedium of

Curly, Sergeant Major

D-Wizzle, Sergeant

Daffy Duck

Daraji, Ali

capture of

questioning

Das Boot, Private First Class

Big Ern and

CAB for

call sign of

children and

dead dog and

Doc and

at ECP

Estonian soldier and

night patrol and

photo of

water pipe and

Day of Ashura

Dear John tales

Democracy

Demolition, Captain

departure from the military

EFP and

Deployment

end of

surviving

Desert Storm

Detainees

photo of

Dirty Jerz, Lieutenant

East Hussaniyah and

Gunslingers and

joint-patrol and

leadership of

Qusay and

Discipline, lack of

Divorces

Diyala Province

Doc

call sign of

Das Boot and

dominoes and

fobbits and

garbage and

Haydar and

Hot Wheels incident and

photo of

Suge and

Tunnel and

Dominoes

Dragunov sniper rifle

Dust storms

DynCorp

E-mails

East Hussaniyah

Eastwood, Clint

Economic problems

Eddie

Abbas and

Anwar and

Saif and

Sitting Bull and

translating by

EFP Alley

EFPs.
See
Explosively formed penetrators

Eisenhower, Dwight: military- industrial complex and

Elections

Afghan

protecting Iraqi

U.S.

EOD.
See
Explosive Ordinance Disposal

ESPN

Estonians

Executive officers (XO)

Explosive Ordinance Disposal (EOD)

detonation by

Explosively formed penetrators (EFPs)

attack with

hunting down

Facebook

Fadl

Fasting

Field grade officers

Cold War and

described

generational gap and

terps and

First Amendment

First Cavalry Division

Flashback, Specialist

patrol and

Playboy
of

rockets and

FNGs.
See
Fucking new guys

FOB.
See
Forward operating base

Fobbits

Forever wars

Forward operating base (FOB)

photo at

return to

Fourteenth Cavalry Regiment

Fourth Infantry Division

Fragos

fragmentary orders and

merry fucking

Friendly fire incidents

Frowny-Face, Captain

Christmas and

contractors and

detainees and

EFP attack and

HUMINT and

parade grounds and

polls and

questioning and

release forms and

show-of-force mission and

State Department official and

Fucked up beyond all recognition (FUBAR)

Fucking new guys (FNGs)

Fuego, Sergeant

Daraji and

Haydar and

IP attack and

joking by

photo of

Gaul, Sean: death of

General Order No.

Generational gap

Generator, explosion of

Geneva Convention

Ghazi (Haydar's son)

Ghost tanks.
See
Strykers

Global war on terrorism (GWOT)

Golden house

Gonzo, Specialist

Obama speech and

Tupac/Notorious BIG and

Goo, Lieutenant

Grand Canal

Gravediggers

bomb and

briefing(photo)

Camp Taji and

children's letters for

Christmas and

counterinsurgency and

Hot Wheels incident and

leadership for

mission of

night patrol and

operational tempo and

photo of

security by

Shaba and

snow patrol and

vehicle-maintenance refit by

Great White Hope, The

departure from the military

high life and

Green Zone

photo of

Grunberg, Arnon

Guinness socks

Gunslingers

Christmas and

patrol with

GWOT.
See
Global war on terrorism

Haitian Sensation, Specialist

Arabic language and

Bulldog and

FOB and

Hot Wheels incident and

IP attack and

mosque raid and

photo of

return of

Smitty and

Hajjis

Halliburton

Halloween

Hamid

Hammer, The, Major

Hammerhead, Sergeant First Class

Christmas and

holidays and

Rant and

replacements and

Hands of Victory

photo of

Hawaii

leaving

return to

Haydar, Sheik

Bassam meeting and

military posture/mannerisms of

Suge and

water-plant contract and

Heat, dealing with

Helicopters

photo of

training with

High-value target list (HVTL)

Holidays

bizarre

Muslim

Hooah

Hot Wheels, Private

Banana-Hands and

Bon Jovi and

generator explosion and

leadership of

photo of

Hottest Latinas, debate about

Human intelligence (HUMINT)

Humanity, losing

Husayn

Husayn, Major

Hussaniyah division of

JAM and

market

patrol in

photo of

raid in

and Saba al-Bor compared

sewer politics of

Shias in

Hussayn the Star

Hussein, Saddam

Iran-Iraq War and

statues of(photo)

IA.
See
Iraqi army

IEDs.
See
Improvised explosive devices