Escape in Iraq. Thomas Hamill’s war & peace

SURVIVAL ISSUES:
WAR ON TERROR & WEALTH INEQUALITIES


Who could forget the unsettling image on television April 10, 2004 of a wounded American civilian sitting next to an armed black-masked insurgent in an Iraqi enemy vehicle? He wasn't turtled up with a protective Kevlar helmet and flak jacket. It was a nightmarish image that begged the question - Why did he put himself in harms way?

Just recently I had the incredible opportunity to spend a day with this man who was unexpectedly thrust into the international limelight. If in 2003 a list had been made of the people most unlikely to be held hostage by Iraqi terrorists, Tommy Hamill would have been a good candidate.

Tommy was a dairy farmer and truck driver at home while the conflict raged in Iraq the fall of that year. He is the kind of man that helps his neighbors. Macon, Mississippi has a population of 2,410. "I live in a town where you can put $20. on the table with no fear of theft," Tommy proudly told me. The residents of this piney backwoods town in Noxubee County pitch in to help each other get by in their world. Tommy, A volunteer fire fighter, was an integral and much-loved part of the community.

As a farmer, his typical routine consisted of ten hour days on the 135 acre family farm, as well as the other 100 acres he leased to grow additional hay for his cows.

Times were difficult. Tommy's wife Kellie faced expensive heart operation. Kellie's emergency surgery did not take place until Tommy was in Iraq. He had to turn home for her surgery. When milk prices dropped, Tommy told me he took a second job driving a truck to make the bank note.

Tommy's friend told him about an opportunity to earn $15/hour, tax free, driving truck. All expenses would be paid including medical, room and board. Kellogg Brown & Root (KBR), a subsidiary of Halliburton, offered a one year contract. Guaranteed supplementary income for one year was music to this farmer's ears.

There was a catch. He'd be driving supply trucks in the war zone of Iraq.

Ultimately, Tommy desired to do what was best for his family. He and Kellie decided that accepting such a lucrative job offer was the best option. Also involved in the decision to work in Iraq was the fact that Tommy is a patriot. In fact, as a young man he had planned to become a Marine until it was determined he could not join the Corps due to a health issue. Supporting military efforts in Iraq would be an unexpected way to fulfill his high school dream. Additionally, Tommy decided this was an opportunity to help his own family and as well as other families in Iraq.

Tommy Hamill witnessed history being made in Iraq.

From October 2003 to April 2004 he witnessed first hand the positive signs of regime change in Iraq that benefited so many people. "I saw more kids walking to school as the days went by," Tommy remembered. There were other improvements. "When I arrived I saw no satellite dishes, but the dishes popped up on all the roofs," Tommy continued, "TV is a stepping stone to seeing what's going on in the rest of the world. We're free in the United States. You can demonstrate if you disagree with the government. You can make a living here (in the U.S.). In Iraq it's once a peasant always a peasant."

Tommy said the insurgents had an opinion on which U.S. presidential candidate would be best for their hope to keep a totalitarian government in Iraq. "I had conversations with Iraqi insurgents," Tommy said, "They said, Kerry good. Bush bad." Tommy believes that the January 2005 free election in Iraq would not have happened if Sen. Kerry won the presidency. "They'd be afraid to go out and vote if Bush lost."

Though Tommy endured many long days and difficult circumstances in Iraq, he took pride in his service to his country, his family, and the people of Iraq. An able driver and respected leader, Tommy received the promotion to convoy commander after serving six months in Iraq. As a Christian, he knew that God led him to that specific place for his benefit and to help the people around him.

Good Friday, April 9, 2004, was met with fear of anti-Christian actions. It was the anniversary of Iraq's first liberation birthday. The region expected militant attacks.

Tommy reported to the 6 AM security briefing for convoy commanders at Camp Anaconda, to ascertain if the routes were still open. "All roads were red," said Tommy, "but later they turned to amber, and we waited for the Army Reserve 724th Transportation Company security unit to join us." The convoy was on its way to Baghdad with the .50-caliber machine guns and Mark-19 grenade launcher equipped trucks riding shotgun.

The abandoned gas cans which Tommy sighted along the side of the road warned ominously of what was to come. Unknown to the drivers, the convoy was about to enter an eight mile long kill zone on the Abu Ghraib Expressway. Tommy's world was about to change forever.

"I heard rifles and the roar of rockets," Tommy recalled. "We were in the middle of a well planned and executed attack." Tommy was riding on the passenger side of his fuel truck. Bullets piercing the cab of Tommy's truck tore shards of metal from the door and thrust them into his right forearm. "I looked down to see sheets muscle tissue hanging from my right arm," Tommy said, "I kept my mind on my job. I worried about my men."

Six of Tommy's drivers died that Good Friday, and one is still missing. Left standing in the middle of a frontage road, he was grabbed by his attackers and whisked away. Tommy clung to his faith for strength to accept his fate without fear. "I felt God wanted me to live," Tommy stated, "He had a plan for me. I didn't show any fear to the crowd who were shouting and hitting me."

The masked captors blindfolded Tommy and moved him repeatedly over the next 24 days between empty huts and family houses. The conditions ranged from dark rat infested huts with clay floors, to primitive rural homes. "I must have been in the homes of my captors because I met the wives and children," recounted Tommy, "They eventually fed me what the family ate. Stewed tomatoes, rice, cucumbers, leaven bread, and a tea called shaay.

Tom and his captors began to bond. "I tried to earn their respect. I sensed it the first week." Tom observed that the insurgents thrive on instilling fear and terror. "I wouldn't let them see that in me."

The guards watched CNN and told Tommy that his family cried for him. But as the days of captivity increased, coverage of the massacre diminished. Tommy's captors scoffed United States culture as the weeks went by. "America forgot you," said the Iraqi guard, "Only Michael Jackson." The Iraqi hit his head indicating disbelief, "Nothing but Michael. Nothing but Michael."

The Iraqis did not know how Tommy measured on the scale often used by our materialistic society to evaluate people: his educational background, his job success, the size of his car, or the amount in his bank account. However through their short association together, Tommy's actions proved to them that he was a good man and worthy of respect. Though their verbal communication was limited, they showed him unexpected kindnesses during their twenty four days together. His captors continued to treat Tommy considerately.

As the days of captivity rolled by, the relationship between captor and prisoner grew. Tommy named his three guards Larry, Curly, and Moe. "We discussed religion," said Tommy. "Every day they asked if I were Muslim or Christian. I said I was a Christian." These insurgents seemed to accept Tom's religiosity, even though they didn't pray the same way. Tommy respected Islam, and he suspected the insurgents respected his Christianity. These Muslims sensed his character and showed him kindnesses.

Unfortunately, the Guards on Death Row, as Tommy named them, did not treat him so kindly. They shackled his hands and legs at night and threatened to kill him.

When Tommy's shattered arm become severely infected by the end of his first week in captivity, his captors arranged for medical care." I was blessed that an Iraqi doctor arrived to fix my arm," explained Tommy. "I had local anesthesia, and I focused on the children in the room during the operation." Tommy felt a particular bond with the young son of one of his captors. The 12 or 13 year old boy watched the operation with worry on his face. Tommy commented, "I hope I changed the kids to think we're good and not bad."

The contrast of incarceration experiences between Tommy and the imprisoned insurgents in Abu Ghraib prison are striking. Not only from the standpoint of treatment, but by the outcome. His captors reciprocated the regard which Tommy first demonstrated towards them. It is important to remember the humanity of our enemies. Especially in the midst of impassioned conflict, the ability to demonstrate respect towards people we oppose will often provide a better outcome than ever thought possible. It certainly did for Tommy.

This quiet man of deep and abiding faith was determined to be a good role model. He wanted his captors and their families to see that an American man can be trusted and not feared. Tommy witnessed Saddam Hussein's style of fear and intimidation. "Saddam built palaces and buried weapons to keep the people afraid of him," Tommy said, "The Iraqis want to be free but are afraid to fight for their own country."

According to Tommy, prayer was the key to his survival. Just as God led him out of other crises, he felt God was guiding the time he spent with his captors. "I grew up tough like my father and grandfather," alleged Tommy. "Fathers teach sons how to farm. Nothing more. I've been through many traumatic experiences. I endured this ordeal because I learned a lot from my past experiences." Tommy's unrelenting faith allowed him to interact with the terrorists with an optimistic attitude. He retained hope for their future and his own.

His high-profile capture and subsequent escape has changed Tommy's life forever. Since returning from Iraq Tommy has been interviewed multiple times and offered many opportunities to speak publicly. In addition to all of this, Tommy has also managed to find time to co-author a book with Paul T. Brown, Escape in Iraq: The Thomas Hamill Story is the inspirational story of an unlikley hero of the Iraq war.

Despite all the publicity he remains a man of genuine compassion and he continues to reach out to the people with whom he comes into contact. "After telling my story, a woman asked if I would speak to her teenage son who had just experienced a trauma. I told him to be strong and he would learn from this so he could handle anything bad that comes his way in the future," Tommy recounted.

Commitment and responsibility are core values for Thomas Hamill. "I want to go back to Iraq and finish my one year contract. I said I'd give them a year," Tommy stated, I'm committed to supporting our troops and the President."

He reached in his wallet and proudly pulled out his KBR identification card. He flashed it to me with pride. Tommy is the kind of loyal employee all employers want. With his right arm not fully healed, he has contributed to the effort in other ways. Last week he spoke to 300 new KBR recruits in Houston.

During his captivity, Tommy's captors repeatedly asked him, "Why is America here, why do you come to Iraq?" His answer remained the same, "We are here to liberate your country, to bring freedom to the Iraqi people."

"The issue of weapons of mass destruction polarized everyone here," Tommy observed, "If people would pray for peace, they'd know what we have to do."

Polarization is a Lead Our Leaders survival issue that resonates with Tommy. "We're all Americans separated by two parties," he said. He shook his head when he told me about a sighting in New York City last month," Christo paid $20 million to hang miles of orange fabric. It won't feed anyone."

California's Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger vocalized the thoughts of many when he commented on Tommy's escape in Iraq, "Thomas Hamill maintained his presence of mind under terrible circumstances and kept his life because of it. His courage under fire is truly an example to all of us."

Tommy was not the only Hamill whose courage and faith would be tested. The Hamill family in Macon faced multiple challenges as they struggled to cope with Tommy's captivity. Holding up as evidence to his community's support, Tommy said, "My town came together to support me and my family. They were black and white; rich and poor. "Maconites brought food, cut his lawn, and painted the Hamill house. And they all prayed.

People close to Tommy Hamill on both sides of the ocean were praying for him.

"After a while they prayed to Allah for my fate," told Tommy. He related a poignant story of an old Iraqi woman visiting one of the houses where he was imprisoned. "She said she was praying that Allah would tell the men not to kill him."

Prayers on both sides of the ocean were answered. Allah and God felt Thomas Hamill's life was worth saving. On May 2, Tom looked out an opening in his cell-room and saw a U.S. convoy about a half mile away. "I saw my guard's rifle on the ground, but did not hear him," remembered Tommy. "I didn't hesitate. I thought if God had a plan for my life, he would protect me. I ran as fast as I could through the tomato field. I had no shoes, but I didn't feel pain or fear."

The Arabic word for "God willing" is Inshallah. Why was the guard inexplicably not outside his post at Tommy's door May 2 when the presence of the U.S. convoy was known? He'd been threatened with death so many times. Beheadings started after Tommy escaped. Why had they spared Tommy for so long?

Inshallah.

When he reached the 2nd Battalion, 108th Infantry, New York National Guard convoy, he said simply, "I'm Thomas Hamill." The soldier said, "We know who you are. Where did you come from?"

It's where Thomas Hamill is going, that's most inspiring.



WWWD:

To read more about Tommy Hamill and his book, and to see more photos, visit www.americanhostage.net

Please share with us your inspiring stories about Tommy Hamill.

What websites have you found with other inspiring hero stories?

My thoughts and my meditations are with you, though personally absent; and my petitions to Heaven are, that the things which make for peace may not be hidden from your eyes.
Abigail Adams, letter to John Adams, February 8, 1797, as he was inaugurated the second president of the United States.

Hardball Hucksters. What was Senator Miller about to say?

SURVIVAL ISSUES
POLARIZATION



Have you ever wanted to ask a politician a question during a TV interview? Me too.

I ease forward on the couch, jut my head toward the TV screen, furrow my brow, and grit my teeth - hoping the interviewer will ask THE question. Or in the case of a heated interview by MSNBC's Hardball with Chris Matthews one late night in August - allow the interviewee to answer the question just posed.

Yesterday, one of my fantasies came true. I spotted Sen. Zell Miller at a book signing and asked if I could interview him for this blog. He graciously consented. My first question was, "What did you mean when you said you wished you could have a duel with Chris Matthews - when he cut you off?"

Surprisingly, his gaze dropped toward the floor and he said, "I don't want to talk about it. Next question?"

My heart raced. I had not anticipated that response. My face flushed. Now what!

"I thought you'd want to get your thoughts out since he cut you off." Expecting him to be grateful to make his point, the cement wall shocked me.

That infamous interview is still etched in my mind. Sen. Zell Miller, a blue dog Democrat from Georgia, had just spoken at the Republican Nominating Convention in New York City on the night of President Bush's acceptance speech. Chris Matthews hammered the Senator, peppering him with the usual polemics such as whether he was in favor of starving children and killing old people.

Though clearly frustrated, Sen. Miller attempted to maintain the focus on Sen. Kerry's record and fitness for our critical national defense programs.

Here's how it went:

MATTHEWS: Well, it's a tough question. It takes a few words.
MILLER: Get out of my face. If you are going to ask me a question, step back and let me answer.
MATTHEWS: Senator, please.
MILLER: You know, I wish we… I wish we lived in the day where you could challenge a person to a duel.

Pundits jumped on the exchange. Don Imus on his morning MSNBC show Imus in the Morning, called Matthews' questions of Sen. Miller "idiotic" and "out of line." I was perplexed as to why Sen. Miller wasn't willing to comment on the interview.

In desperation, I gave him my list of concluded possibilities, and jokingly asked him to nod if I was close. He laughed. He must have thought I was nuts. But the noble Marine listened.

1. "Were you saying, Listening just doesn't work for you Chris, so how about settling it in a non-verbal way as they did in the old days?"
2. "Were you trying to say that there's no civility today in public discourse?"
3. "Were you trying to say that we must respect each other despite our different opinions?"

Sen. Miller didn't respond. I wasn't getting anywhere. Now it was my turn to drop my gaze in exasperation. In his graciousness, Sen. Miller began to speak, as if to lift me out of my funk.

"It was a remote interview. I think we couldn't hear each other. My 15 year grandson Bryan was with me. The interview did not go well. I regret it."

Sen. Miller's new book Deficit of Civility, published by Stroud & Hall, devotes a chapter titled “Hardball Huff” to the incident. He explained, "Since being in the Senate, I had come to detest Chris Matthews' know-it-all attitude and his bullying way of interviewing, especially when he had the person by remote and not in the same studio.”

While attempting to minimize that contentious interview, everyone standing in line to have his new book Deficit of Civility autographed, complimented the author on his speech at the Republican convention and his forcefulness during the Matthews interview.

"I'm a Republican, but when I heard Miller's speech I knew I could vote for that Democrat," said Logan Reed of Pawling, NY. Many in the line praised Miller's courage for criticizing the Democrat party. Reed said he respects politicians who just don’t vote their party’s line all the time.

Mark Hodge, an oil company employee from Bellaire, TX felt Miller's duel challenge was the result of provocation - not a threat. "He should have told Matthews that he was rude," said Hodge, "He could have settled the dispute without having to consent to Matthews' constant rudeness."

Sen. Miller acknowledges that style can be more impressionable than words. "I come off strong. I'm trying to correct myself when I talk. But I let others finish their sentences."

Delivery style, rather than content, appears to becoming more influential with voters. Kerry campaign manager Mary Beth Cahill said of his speech at the Republican Nominating convention, "I think Zell Miller will be the lasting impression. People remember gasoline.”

Sen. Miller believes civility of interaction with others has deteriorated in the last decade. Rather than respect being accorded to everyone despite political or personal affiliations, it is reserved for people that they “like”. "Clinton polarized Americans' lack of morality," said Miller.

Miller speculates that political bias may influence interview style. "Chris interviewed Jane Fonda last week, but didn't interrupt her,” Miller said, “So it must be what you say."

Polarization, a key survival issue here at Lead our Leaders, is the foundation to Sen. Miller's sense of duty that lead him to criticize his own party. He thinks outside the box to independently evaluate public policy initiatives. In a speech from the Senate floor in January 2004, Sen. Miller said, "So, as the sand empties through my hourglass at warp speed - and with my time running out in this Senate and on this earth - I feel compelled to speak out. For I truly believe that at times like this, silence is not golden. It is yellow."

"There's been polarization from the beginning of this county," said Sen. Miller, a former history teacher. "Our founding fathers disagreed, but they were civil and worked to do the right thing." Miller continued to make his point, "The founding fathers fought over bigger issues - small vs. big states and slavery, but despite their differences, they were able to compromise and create a system that everyone agreed upon.”

Sen. Miller told me that Benjamin Franklin was one of the most experienced men among the founding fathers. He observed a style that was challenging as the founding fathers met in Philadelphia to birth our nation. “Write with the learned, pronounce with the vulgar,” said Franklin. His humorous and conciliatory style was disarming. According to Miller, when the chamber erupted he asked the men to pause for prayer in order to calm them and re-focus.

As I listened to Miller quote Franklin, the words rang with a wisdom that transcends centuries. "I have lived a long time. The longer I live the more convinced I am of this truth: God governs the affairs of man. If a sparrow can not fall to the ground without his notice. How can a country begin without his aid? I say we should take a break (for prayer)." Miller said the founding fathers came back to the table in Philadelphia with new resolve.

In another example, he told of this happening, “Dr. Rush was only 30 years old. People asked which of the two political parties he was affiliated with - Aristocrats or Democrats. Neither - he replied - I'm a Christocrat."

Miller's stories about our polarized founding fathers captured my attention. Some things never change. The founding fathers were wary of polarization, but were not fettered by a plethora of special interests. Their stylized differences were kept in check by their common Christian faith.

Unlike contemporary politics that for all appearances is marginalized by special interests, the founding fathers focused on the best outcome for the people, and not their own reelection.

Miller pondered how our country would have been shaped had special interests controlled our founding fathers and the citizenry. He observed, “If George Soros had printed a few thousand brochures back then, he could have torpedoed us.”

Sen. Miller and Benjamin Franklin observed the process as wise men. They warned that style can be as crucial as content. Even if we disagree with someone, we can be respectful in our civil discourse.

Perhaps our national political system would function more smoothly if there was someone like my first grade teacher at Arthur McGill School, Miss Maxwell, to grade our leaders on if they “play well with others.”


WWWD:

Click here to read excerpts from Sen. Miller's book, and for a schedule of his upcoming media and book signing appearances.

Click here for more practical advice from Benjamin Franklin.

Please share with us an example of how a “style change” improved your communications during a challenging conversation.

I place my faith in the individual development of character. Human nature changes very little. Eleanor Roosevelt, Radio broadcast, NBC, December 23, 1932.

The Pope passes - the Prince marries: As the empire turns

SURVIVAL ISSUES:
POLARIZATION & WEALTH INEQUALITIES





Two ceremonial events took place at the end of this week that captured worldwide attention. The funeral of Pope John Paul II and the wedding of the United Kingdom’s heir to the throne offer contrasts in contemporary cultures and leadership styles.

This papacy was repeatedly analyzed on TV and in voluminous ink before the funeral of Pope John Paul II yesterday. In contrast, Prince Charles’ wedding to Camilla today failed to capture the interest of people outside of Britain.

While both the Roman Catholic Church and the British monarchy have waned in political influence in this era of democracy and freedom of religion, the personality of Pope John Paul II helped to draw international support and attention to the Church once again in a way that the heir to the British throne has failed to do for the monarchy.

Indicators show that people worldwide, especially in Latin America and Africa, are returning to the Church, while the British monarchy is judged by some to be irrelevant.

The Pope carved a place in history as a statesman while British leadership efforts have faded into the background.

Pope John Paul II had a consistent diplomatic strategy – talk to people in their country using their language. He was willing to engage in dialogue with world leaders, even when consensus was inachievable. He struggled to ameliorate the ideological polarization of international leaders, a phenomenon which Lead Our Leaders identifies as an impediment to successful cooperation towards solving our world’s problems. He was steadfast in his commitment to peace and justice.

The Pope’s ten-city visit to the United States in 1987 is an example of his cross-cultural effectiveness. He chose the multicultural city of Miami as his first stop. “I come as a friend. A friend of American and of all Americas: Catholics, Orthodox, Protestants and Jews, people of every religion and all men and women of goodwill,” he said at the airport on September 10.

It was John Paul’s legacy as an effective statesman that will earn him a place in history as a peacemaker. He appealed to non-Catholics and secular humanists who respected his immutable stance against injustice. Leach Walesa, former president of Poland credits the pope’s visit to Warsaw in 1979 as a catalyst for toppling communism in 1989.

In terms of interfaith relations, John Paul II was the conscience of the Roman Church. He was the first pope to visit a synagogue, and worked to establish relations between the Vatican and Israel. He honored victims of the Holocaust and condemned anti-Semitism as a sin against God and humankind. John Paul also sought to improve relations with the Muslim world. He was the first pope to step inside a mosque. More significantly, he apologized to a Damascus crowd in 2001 for misdeeds of the Christian church during the Crusades.

In marked contrast to the magnanimous concessions of the Catholic Church under John Paul II’s Papacy, Queen Elizabeth and Prince Charles have yet to apologize for injustices suffered in countries they colonized.

In death, as well as in life, the Pope continued to bring people together. The 100 statesmen, diplomats, presidents and kings who gathered in St. Peter’s Cathedral for the funeral were testament to the Pope’s influence in the secular realm.

Outside, mourners in a crowd of 600,000 displayed banners in St. Peter’s Square that read “santo subito” – saint immediately. Church rule typically requires that a person be dead 25 years before sainthood can be conferred. Perhaps Pope John Paul II’s followers are so urgent for immediate beatifiction because they have already recognized his first Pope John Paul II’s first miracle– his ability to engage people worldwide in dialogue.

Aside from his stringent theological views, Pople John Paul II will be remembered for his historic role in the collapse of communism and his travels to second- and third-world countries where he advanced dialogue between disparate leaders.

In a time where many U.S. political groups have so polarized themselves as to render themselves impotent, we look to Pope John Paul II as a model of diplomacy.

The image of Israeli President Moshe Katsav shaking hands with the leaders of Israel’s arch-enemies, Iran’s Muhammad Khatami and Syria’s Bashr al-Assad, are proof of Pope John Paul II’s miracle.