Ah yes. Edward Pitts and the 278th National Guard Regiment out of Tennessee. Interesting stuff has come out of there. I've done some investigating, and quite frankly, I'm shocked at some of Pitts other reports and other information pertaining to the 278th.

I found a few interesting things. The Maryville Daily Times has a report which says that of the 800+ trucks belonging to the 278th (before December 8th), only 20 weren't armored vehicles. I thought that was nice. But let's take a look at an article written by Mr. Pitts on December 7th, the day before Rumsfeld spoke with the 278th. Draw your own conclusions.

278th Prepares To Enter Iraq By Adding Armor To Vehicles
By: By EDWARD LEE PITTS/Chattanooga Times Free Press
Source: The Greeneville Sun
12-08-2004

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Chattanooga Times Free Press reporter Edward Lee Pitts is embedded with the 278th Regimental Combat Team, now in Kuwait preparing to enter Iraq, and is filing articles for his newspaper. Those articles also are being posted on the Tennessee National Guard’s World Wide Web site at http://www.tnmilitary.org. The following article was posted on the National Guard’s Web site on Tuesday, Dec. 7.

CAMP BUEHRING, Kuwait — As 278th officials work to ensure that all vehicles heading into Iraq in the coming weeks are armored, some soldiers in the Tennessee National Guard unit have learned they will fly into enemy territory.

Maj. Bobbie Sprouse, the 278th's supply and logistics officer, said the regiment is to fly more than half of its soldiers to bases somewhere northeast of Baghdad.

Once at their permanent camps, the 278th is to take over armored vehicles now being used by the unit the 278th is replacing, Maj. Sprouse said.

The regiment of nearly 4,000 soldiers is in Kuwait preparing for a year-long deployment to Iraq near the Iranian border, as part of the 42nd Infantry Division. The past November tied the mark for deadliest month since the invasion began in the spring of 2003.

"The movement in (Iraq) is the most dangerous mission for the regiment as a whole," said Capt. Todd Woodruff, company commander of Service Battery, First Squadron. "They always test out the new units coming in, so we anticipate at least one action."

While some 278th soldiers were pleased about the prospect of a plane ride into Iraq, others said they didn't want to miss the ground convoy's adrenaline rush.

"That would be like going to Disney World and not riding the roller coaster," said Capt. Chris Brock, 43, human resources officer for Support Squadron.

Soldiers on the convoy are scrambling to craft their own armor for the vehicles they are taking into a combat zone. Stress levels rose late last week when nuts and bolts ran low.

Soldiers dug used ballistic windshields — which include bullet-hole sized cracks — out of trash bins and installed them on some vehicles.

”If it was lucky for one guy, maybe it will be lucky for us," said Staff Sgt. Allen Lewis, of Castalian Springs, Tenn., as he carted one off for his Humvee.

Spc. Kevin Nunley, 44, of Nashville, one of several wearing green coveralls over their uniforms at the makeshift armor upgrade shop, said soldiers would continue to apply quarter-inch thick sheet metal until they run out.

"We are gong to make it happen," he said after adding the metal to five vehicles.

Some Vehicles Upgraded

The 278th will carry a wider array of vehicles into combat than the commonly-used Humvees, which now can be upgraded with armor kits. The standard Humvee canvas doors and roofs can be replaced with steel.

Sgt. John Hughes, 43, of Athens, Tenn., said similar armor kits are available for the passenger cabs of the military's support vehicles. He said a handful of these vehicles in each of the 278th's three squadrons are getting the enhancement, including his wrecker, which was sent to nearby Camp Arifjan to be outfitted with ballistic windows, armor plating and air conditioning.

"But I've also been told I will be doing most of the recovery missions in Iraq, since mine will be up-armored," he said. "With good news comes bad news, I guess."

The collection of five-ton trucks, five-ton wreckers and other vehicles — including fuel trucks used to haul equipment, soldiers and ammunition — now sports portions of scrap metal on most doors. Thin sections of rusted metal stretch halfway across each vehicle's side windows to offer some protection without blocking the driver's view of the side mirrors.

Capt. Woodruff said he hopes the convoy displays enough force to keep insurgents away. He said he managed to “bulk up” his firepower by scrounging 12 more .50-caliber machine guns for the trip north.

Soldiers are traveling into an Iraq where insurgents attack with homemade bombs placed along the roads.

"They (insurgents) are trying to attack weak convoys, not strong convoys," said Staff Sgt. Brian Culberson, 28, of Cleveland, Tenn.

He said soldiers scrounging for extra armor are not unique to this war. He recently saw a magazine article about units in Vietnam scavenging steel for their vehicles.

"They had the same problem with convoys getting hit with guerrilla warfare," Sgt. Culberson said. "The odds of us getting hit are pretty slim, but it is still an odd." Testing Weapons

To reduce the chances of an attack, 278th soldiers now are focusing on being able to move, shoot and communicate. Tires, oils, engines and radios are checked and rechecked while weapons are dismantled, cleaned and reassembled.

First Squadron's Service Battery recently spent two days test-firing weapons with live ammunition for the last time before the convoy. The soldiers passed herds of Bedouin camels on both sides of the road on the way to one of the 17 U.S.-operated firing ranges scattered in the Kuwaiti desert.

The officer in charge of the firing range warned the soldiers that camels often wander into the line of fire and must be chased away. If a soldier shoots one of the animals, it will cost the U.S. Army $30,000.

Soldiers spread out along the practice range took as few as three and as many as 18 shots to get their M-4 rifle sights adjusted for accuracy up to 300 meters.

After firing their personal weapons, Service Battery soldiers drove several miles under cloudy skies to another range and tested the sights on the heavy guns mounted on the roofs of their vehicles. The roar of the .50-caliber machine guns blasted the air as tiny streams of red fire streaked low across the desert and kicked up dust around targets 400 to 1,200 meters away.

Elsewhere, 278th M-1 Abrams tanks practiced hitting targets less than a meter in size from about two miles away.

Back at the tents, while officers hold planning meetings late into the night, soldiers spend their evenings getting mentally prepared for the long trek through Iraq. They play cards, watch movies, write letters, listen to music or just lie on their cots.

"There will be a lot of praying the night before," said Staff Sgt. David Harris, 47, of Cleveland, Tenn.

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Contrast this with his letter back to his newspaper the next day...

I find this rather interesting.