Commentary
“The Army’s National Training Center, next to Death Valley, has a few things going for it. Dusty, dark, miserably hot, windy, brutally cold, coyotes, snakes, spiders, never-ending sand—and many humans running around the desert training for war with little to no sleep for days. Sounds like fun.” — Author
In the television mini-series “Band of Brothers,” there is a famous episode called “The Last Patrol” where Capt. Winters (Damian Lewis) tells one of his platoons that they have been ordered for a second time to cross a river to capture Germans for interrogation. The platoon had completed the same mission the night prior and lost men. Already dealing with numerous losses from Bastogne, and with World War II seemingly ending, this mission was rightfully viewed as an unnecessary risk pushed on them by their battalion commander. Capt. Winters informed the men the mission was scheduled for 2 am, then ordered them all to get a good night’s rest; he would see them in the morning. Ignoring the battalion commander’s orders was risky, but Captain Winters knew the mission came with little reward. With a wink and nod, he departed the platoon’s headquarters.
