The Enemy

                I looked at the newly assigned NCO with misgiving. The Battalion Commander and Command Sergeant Major had talked to me about him. His struggles do not bear repeating in this venue. In my mind he remained damaged goods, a drag on my section. I and my subordinates knew him, knew his problems, and were not particularly interested in helping him sort through his issues. At this time I was a fairly new captain and served as the signal battalion representative in the Division Forward Command Post; better known as the D-TAC. An aggressive one-star general called this command post his home. Hoping to receive his second star and command his own division, he did not tolerate substandard performance in any fashion.  The Operations Sergeant-Major, an old and crusty NCO, had an even smaller reservoir of patience. After a couple of exercises and significant failures followed by tongue-lashings by various senior officers, including the general, I had had enough and met with the Battalion Commander, a Lieutenant Colonel.

                In very plain language I told the Battalion Commander that I wanted to rid myself, and my section, of this boat-anchor. I detailed numerous failures that had resulted in public humiliation for myself and others. His lackadaisical approach to soldiering forced others to work harder. A constant shirker, he frequently left tasks partially completed. His laziness forced me to check on him as I would a private, consuming precious time in our fast-paced high-pressure environment. Worst of all, he was senior to the rest of the NCO’s in my section and resented the fact that I placed more trust in the others. I went on at great length, eventually running out of steam with a glare. For a long time he stared off into space, saying nothing.

                Eventually he took off his helmet, set it on the hood of the HMMWV, ran his fingers through graying hair, sighed and turned to me. “Matt,” he said, “You must stop treating SFC Smith as if he was the enemy. He’s not the enemy. He’s a member of your team. You are an officer. You must rise above personnel issues. Focus on the mission. SFC Smith is your soldier. You must fix this problem.” And with those words, he recovered his helmet, strapped it on and walked back into his command post, leaving me with a different perspective on the challenging NCO.

                Eventually we sorted out our problems; though the NCO never did really fit in very well. We did come to terms with one another. We found ways to keep the Operations Sergeant Major and the General pleased. After a rather lengthy round of field training exercises the NCO submitted his request for retirement, which was approved, and moved on out of the army and my life.  But, I never forgot my commander’s admonition, “He’s not the enemy.” Sometimes we forget who or what the enemy is. We so fully believe in the rightness of our plan or cause, we refuse to consider others as part of the team or part of the solution. Such is the case in American politics and government today.

                We expend great efforts and go to great lengths to demonize those who disagree with us or our perceived solutions. Much of what passes for news is either an extended argument or polemic editorial disguised as news. So much antagonism, so much effort expended to discredit the other all in the name of political or party purity. These efforts consume vast amounts of institutional energy to no positive effect. Being right enthralls us; much more than finding some solution to our problem. We think of the other side as the enemy forgetting who the real enemy is. Poverty is the real enemy. Hunger is the real enemy. Ignorance is the real enemy. Fear is the real enemy. Sickness is the real enemy. Joblessness is the real enemy. Prejudice is the real enemy. Securing continued power is not success. Destroying the opposition is not success. A snarky comment in a public forum is not success. We must measure success by a reduction in those things that truly threaten us.

                My commander forced me to focus on my mission, providing uninterrupted secure communications for the Division leadership in a field environment. Unimpressed by my struggles with an NCO I did not respect, he reminded me that I would be measured by mission accomplishment and nothing else. We must hold elected officials to the same standard. We must expect them to work with the other side. Of course, this will result in solutions that do not fit into our personal political world-view. But, if these solutions result in a reduction of the enemy, perhaps we might need to rethink our political world-view. Just as my sergeant was not the enemy, the other side is not the enemy. We gain nothing by encouraging or even tolerating behaviors that focuses on savaging the other side. We must keep our focus on the enemy and work on weakening them and reducing their presence in our midst.

               For those of us who claim the name of Christ; we must remember Paul’s admonition in Ephesians 6:12, “¹² For we are not contending against flesh and blood, but against the principalities, against the powers, against the world rulers of this present darkness, against the spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.” No matter their political persuasion or personal philosophy, the person on the other side is not the enemy. Christ died for them just as much as he died for you, for me. We must learn to set aside our differences and work against our common enemy and all his minions.