Fog of war on HBO

NCT:

The fog of war for one Camp Pendleton unit comes to television screens Sunday when HBO airs the first of seven episodes of its blunt miniseries "Generation Kill."

The series is based on writer Evan Wright's account during the first days of the Iraq war for Bravo Company's 2nd platoon from the base's 1st Reconnaissance Battalion.

The series profiles those Marines' actions and words as Wright saw and recorded them in dispatches for Rolling Stone magazine that were later compiled into the 2004 book "Generation Kill."

In addition to depicting the troops' raw experiences, the series highlights the moral dilemmas and confusing directives ---- often referred to as the fog of war ---- they often confront, Wright said Monday.

"If the show does one thing, it shows there is a lot more confusion and a lot of moral gray areas for the guys on the frontline," he said. "It dramatizes the perspectives and the struggles the trigger-pullers face."

Filmed in Africa under the guidance of Ed Burns and David Simon, who co-produced HBO's popular series "The Wire," "Generation Kill" carries no overt political or anti-war message, nor does it show the troops as victims, Wright said.

"I hope the grunts that see it walk away laughing and shaking their heads with amazement that we portrayed their world accurately," said Wright, who worked with the production throughout its filming.

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I am not wild about the name of the series, but it sounds worthwhile. "The Wire" was an outstanding series. If these guys do as good a job with this show, it will be worth it. I think a series like this can also put the situation the Marines faced at Haditha in context. If so it will be very worthwhile indeed.

Often in war even those participating get only brief snatches of what is going on. It is too dangerous to not keep your head down most of the time. That is one reason why the UAV's have added so much to our knowledge of what is going on.