Applicants for the Iraqi Police also go through some physical determination to prove they are in good shape.  Iraqi citi-zens served as interpreters.  Said Caleb, "Some of the interpreters spoke really good English.  Some had broken English.  Some could hardly speak English at all."
He added another ironic note, "People who had planted roadside bombs would show up to serve as Iraqi Police."
How do you trust someone who easily plays both sides of the fence?  "You can't trust them," replied Caleb.  "I didn't trust a single one of the Iraqis.  They're greedy.  It's partly related to where we were stationed.  It's related to Ramadi."
"The number of IPs continues to grow," said Caleb.  "A lot of our IPs got killed because they wouldn't retaliate like we would."  It might go without saying that it's hard to fight against your own, and yet Saddam Hussein massacred hundreds of thousands of his own countrymen - men, women, and children.
Caleb goes on to state that progress is being made in Iraq.  "Saddam Hussein was the weapon of mass destruction."
Paragraphs under headlines do not always inform us or remind us that genocide was another reason for going into Iraq, not just weapons of mass destruction. 
Is there hope for democracy in Iraq?  "I don't know," said Caleb.  "It's a tough question.  It's too early in their develop-ment stages to say.  There has been a lot of progress.  A lot of our military bases have been handed over to the Iraqi Army.  They are good at their job ... but I wouldn't trust them with my life."
"They believe God is in control," explained Caleb, "so if they fall asleep while we're on shifts for 24/7 patrol, it's not a big deal to them.  God is in control and what happens, happens.  It's their culture.  It's their religion."
Paragraphs under headlines might not tell us that it's more than a military conflict in Iraq.  It's about ideas and beliefs that characterize a people and their way of life.  Some of those ideas focus on the intentional destruction of others - Christians, for example.

Doug Fisher said that his son will be offered a Bronze Star after his return to the army base in Kansas.  "Caleb is too humble to talk about it," said the father, "but I'm proud of him and I can say it.  I will say it.  They told me that if it wasn't for Caleb, the insurgents would have taken out 20 to 30 American lives.  I'm darn proud of him.  He doesn't go around bragging."
Upon prompting, Caleb tells the story in his own words:  "We were under attack one day.  They launched mortars and shot at us.  We took part in eliminating a mortar team.  I saw three people.  I engaged them and confirmed them.  I killed one of them.  We stopped them from attacking our station.  It's the first time I killed somebody.  I'm the only person in my company with a confirmed kill.  It's weird, all those emotions.  The best thing to do is make yourself numb to everything."
Did Caleb ever see fellow Americans get killed?  "No," he said.  "I didn't see any of our guys get killed.  But it happened while I was there.  A roadside bomb killed someone in a Humvee."
Paragraphs under headlines might tell us that Sunnis are fighting to regain the power they had under Saddam, and that the Shiites are responsible for revenge killings. 
The democratically elected Prime Minister of Iraq is a Shiite.  Shiites are the long oppressed majority and were the principal victims of Saddam.  The Shiites and Kurds populate most of Iraq's oil-wealthy land. 
Mr. Fisher stated, "It's all about oil."  In that vein, President Bush said in his January 10^th, 2007, speech that the Iraqi parliament will pass legislation to share oil revenues among all Iraqis.

Military service was not Caleb's first career choice, but at the age of 21 when he enlisted, it seemed like the best choice for the time being.
"After high school I worked for a couple years with my dad in Hvac to make some money for college," he said.  "I wanted to go into law enforcement, but then Dad got hurt so I helped my mom a while ... and I got to thinking I could get a free education and a job in the military police if I joined the army now, and then I could get a degree in law enforcement afterwards."
Caleb's dad suffered a tragic fall and twisted his leg so badly in 2004 that the bones were shattered.  His leg had to be amputated below the knee.  Also, his shoulder was severely damaged and unable to be restored to normal usage.
Mr. Fisher is a big guy.  He was a professional wrestler for many years and is familiar with Jesse the Body, among others.  Shelley, Caleb's mom, is a petite lady who was a professional singer.  The two met and married out in California and moved to Carver County several years ago.
Now Shelley is a student at Henne-pin Technical College to become a nurse.  "I feel highly skilled in that area because of Doug's injuries, so I might as well get a degree to go with it," she said.
The Fishers also have a daughter, Hillary, 27, who is married and expecting her first child.  Shelley is elated and points to a wall plaque in their living room that reads:  "Every time a child is born, so is a grandmother."

Caleb enlisted for five years of active duty in the military police of the United States Army.  He's got two years of active duty under his belt and three to go, plus three more years of inactive reserve.
Click here to continue The Eyes of a Soldier.