Jeremiah 51 1-5 in real time

[Guest J3B]

Jeremiah 51

The severe judgment of God on Babylon

1 Thus saith Jehovah: Behold, I will raise up against Babylon, and against them that dwell in Leb-kamai, a destroying wind.

2 And I will send unto Babylon strangers, that shall winnow her; and they shall empty her land: for in the day of trouble they shall be against her round about.

3 Against him that bendeth let the archer bend his bow, and against him that lifteth himself up in his coat of mail: and spare ye not her young men; destroy ye utterly all her host.

4 And they shall fall down slain in the land of the Chaldeans, and thrust through in her streets.

5 For Israel is not forsaken, nor Judah, of his God, of Jehovah of hosts; though their land is full of guilt against the Holy One of Israel.

Jer 51:1-5 (ASV)

'This is like right out of a science fiction movie'

By NAHAL TOOSI

of the Journal Sentinel staff

Last Updated: March 25, 2003

Southern Iraq - The four Marines kept cleaning their weapons, but the sand kept flying back into them. They lay in their fighting hole and looked toward the horizon, which at that moment was 10 feet away.

The Marines were on alert because there were rumors that Iraqis were roaming nearby, and every few feet along the perimeter of this camp, troops were stationed. Yet, it was comical at times to be "on the lookout," because the sandstorm wouldn't let them look at anything.

At one point, Lance Cpl. Matthew Hatcher, 22, leaned back, shook his head, exposed mud-crusted teeth and asked the question of the day: "Where does the wind come from? Where does it come from? It just doesn't stop. It just doesn't stop."

It hadn't stopped for almost two straight days. And it seemed it never would.

Tuesday was quite possibly the worst day, weather-wise, that the 6th Engineer Support Battalion had encountered since arriving in the region almost two months ago. The wind whipped violently at tremendous speeds. Its dancing partner, the sand, was inescapable, even inside the best-set-up tents, even inside noses and mouths.

On the desert ground outside, the storm left ridges shaped like waves. Underneath the ever-moving sand a hard, gray surface was exposed. At times, a bit of rain mixed in to make things even more miserable. The sand clouded up the air so much, the sun was easy to look at. It looked like the moon.

The storm meant many Marines at a camp here were stranded in their tents. Not that that was fun either: Imagine being in a structure that feels as if it will collapse at any moment.

"Personally, I think this is like right out of a science fiction movie," said Gunnery Sgt. Rod Richards, 34, of Morton, Ill.

The sandstorm, which is expected to continue for another two days, also delayed a lot of work for the battalion, whose primary mission is storage and supply of bulk fuel and water. Heavy equipment operators managed to accomplish some things, including shoring up sand berms that the wind eroded, and communications and command functions also continued.

Security, too, was in full force due to the rumors of Iraqis in the area, though as of late Tuesday, there were no reports of any being found. Earlier in the morning Tuesday, at least one Iraqi had surrendered to military police nearby, an event that has not been uncommon in this war.

Times passes slowly

For Hatcher and his fellow Marines handling security, the hours went by dreadfully slowly, and the wind never ceased to amaze them with its strength. It managed to carry away a lot of four-letter words from this bunch.

Around them lay several different kinds of weapons: M-16s, handguns, an MK-19 (a grenade launcher), knives and more. They wore chemical protection suits, helmets, protective vests, goggles and mouth covers. It still didn't feel like enough protection from the storm.

The Marines questioned the need for the security.

"I don't ever believe anything they say anymore," Hatcher, of Springfield, Ill., said of the reports. "There's people walking around in the desert in this sandstorm? I just have a hard time believing it."

Lance Cpl. Jared Leggett, 19, of Kahoka, Mo., and Cpl. Matthew Clark, 22, of Tinley Park, Ill., managed to smoke some cigarettes during the torturous wait.

It helps pass the time, they said.

"How do you get the matches lit?" asked Lance Cpl. Michelle Glass, 20, of East Peoria, Ill.

"Very carefully," Leggett replied, adding, "I've been chain smoking."

Hatcher found a dirt-covered piece of spicy pound cake in an open Meal Ready to Eat bag nearby. He stuck it in his mouth and chewed.

"It tastes like anything else in my mouth," he said.

After a few hours, the Marines looked around them and realized there were no other security teams on the outside of the sand berm. Everyone else had moved to the interior.

"Maybe they decided there isn't anything out there," Hatcher said. "Or maybe they decided that if there were, they wouldn't see us anyway."

A key news event on the minds of the Marines lately has been the NCAA Basketball Tournament. No one here seems to know how things are shaping up for the Final Four.

Even in moments of pure despair, they found humor. At one point, Leggett and Hatcher did their own takeoff of a scene from the movie "Office Space."

"This ranks right up there with one of the worst days of my life," Hatcher said.

"No, no, this is the worst day of my life," Leggett said.

"Wait till tomorrow," Hatcher said.

A few minutes later, two higher-ranking Marines stopped by and told the four to set up separately inside the berm. The wind wasn't better there either.

[Guest TwoBombs]

Jer 51:27

[Guest J3B]

The intent of the focus of my post was Jeremiah 51 1-5 not 27-29. But thanks for the contribution.

[Guest TwoBombs]

Oops