Bowling for America... in The Philippines?

Filipino soldiers stand at attention near a Philippine flag at Thitu island in disputed South China Sea on April 21, 2017. Erik De Castro/Reuters

So, when it was all over, China brought nothing. The EU team brought balloons. The Belgians brought cheerleaders. But the Americans brought… home the trophies. U-S-A!!! U-S-A!!!

For a few months in late 2019, I served what turned out to be my last “deployment” in the U.S. Army. I put the word “deployment” in quotes because the mission involved me living out of a nice hotel in downtown Manila, and wearing civilian clothes to work every day. That was a far cry from the tents, dirt, heat, and incoming rocket fire I was used to in my previous overseas assignments. Our mission was the Joint U.S. Military Assistance Group-Philippines (JUSMAG-P), and this was a legitimate gem of an assignment. The work was meaningful, the conditions were good, and most importantly, the team was excellent. I was one of a group of mostly junior officers from the Army, Navy, and Air Force who had temporary duty as liaison officers in JUSMAG. I arrived as the “new guy” in October of 2019, coming in as an Army lieutenant colonel to a liaison element already consisting of an Army major, two Marine captains, a Marine staff sergeant, an Air Force captain, and two Navy lieutenants.