Week 2 at Pasab

Hi Guys,

There are tons of humanitarian things being done here. Some can be talked about and others are out of my 'clearance' because they involve the movement of military people and civilians that are involved with them. So, if I sound like I'm beating around the bush...I am! The Captain (CPT) I work with is also a nurse. She is working hard on a 'birthing kit project' which involves putting together the gear for delivering a healthy baby. I goes much further than just the equipment though...the medical people are also working with pregnant mothers and training mid-wives. This is harder than it seems- there are multiple barriers...language is hard, but is overcome with some excellent translators...usually from Afghanistan. Then there is culture...this is a bit harder to pinpoint. You have traditional roles of the people within our AO (Area of Operation) and these specifically prohibit the mixing of males and females outside of a family unit. Let alone the contact of Afghani women with western men. So the whole thing has to be done by the women of the 10th Mt and affiliated military units.

Afghanistan has one of the highest infant mortality rates in the world. Something like 25% of the kids born here do not make it to their 5th birthday. One woman in seven will die due to complications of pregnancy/childbirth. The kit contains a clean blanket for the baby and the simple delivery tools and cleaning agents for making birthing a safer activity. The scrounger in me looked at the list of stuff in the kit and most can be found here...not that they will turn down any donation of blankets and infant clothes, but the hardest single item to obtain is an 'ud Wmbillical clamp'. I'm blogging on this to see what we can come up with. 10,000 of these wouldn't be too many! SPC David W. heard that out of every 1000 kits distributed an additional 275 kids are saved...I'll check that one...I think that is over and above the normal survival rate for the area.

The US Army is helping out with water issues for irrigation and drinking. The land hasn't been surveyed for a whole lot of stuff and through the efforts here a lot of the logistical work relating to what flows where and who 'owns' it are being cleared up. I wrote to Cornell University today to see if they were still interested in coming over to work on agriculture projects here. There is so much they could do that is way beyond my simplistic approaches to the various areas I'm working in. Just the Ag Center at Pasab could use an entire team from Cornell to establish growing practices that would lead the LN's (local nationals) to a more self reliant lifestyle. The lack of self reliance is based in a couple of factors: first off many of the farmers are sharecroppers living on someone else's land and used to that land owner being the source of their needs. Secondly, the poppy crop is a factor. Farmers will often borrow money against the future earnings of their opium and if they have a 'bad' year then they are indebted to the 'drug lord/banker'.

One of the things I'm working on is to begin to figure out what kinds of crops would bring the local farmers similar profit without the risk of growing the poppies. I've been working with our 'terp (interpreter) code name: Maverick (we don't use his real name because it could cause problems for him and his family if the Taliban got a hold of it) to figure out how to begin this process. We both agree that medicinal botanicals and spices like saffron are the way to go. If we had an organization like Cornell working here the ag center could be used to experiment with the best way and which seeds to plant. The question is a matter of which ones will grow and how best to market them. It does the locals no good if the growing of gensing or goldenseal or black cohosh or valerian or purple cone flowers if someone controls the price and gives them essentially nothing for their work. So the problem is multifaceted...to develop a replacement crop and to simultaneously develop a fair market for the products. Don't get me wrong it will take some bribes and graft, but making sure it doesn't become extreme.

As for me, I'm doing fine. I miss my family and food that gives me a regular bowel movement. I miss flush toilets...all we have here is porta potties. I miss my privacy a bit...I sleep in a tent with a bunch of other guys and, I guess if I was more serious about privacy I'd hang a sheet around my bed area like a lot of my tentmates...maybe later. They could do with some paving around here, too. The roads are dusty and covered with fine dirt and golf ball to fist sized stones. It makes walking a bit hard, especially at night. The place has very few lights and if the moon isn't up it is really hard to see where you are going. I try to remember to carry a flashlight and wear a reflective sash...sometimes I actually have them both with me when it is dark. They regularly wet the roads down to keep the dust to a minimum, but it still gets over everything, especially computer screens.

My projects are gathring a bit of interest...many find the concepts amusing and are willing to lend a hand just for the break in their routines. I work with a combination of US Army and local people...mostly army at this time but the ratio is slowly changing. I am scheduled to visit the IDF facility...I don't know what the "I" stand for but this is a camp for "D"isplaced "P"ersons from southern Kandahar. THeir homes were taken over by the Taliban and destroyed by a combination of forces. The US Army is trying to help them out...some local resistance to them being here, but the displaced persons have a slightly higher educational background than the locals and this seems to be easing the tension...in other words the displaced peopel can contribute positively to the area, so it isn't so bad.

I think my blood it thinning out. I'm finding the air conditioning in the buildings too cold for me...I'm buying a blanket at the PX (Post Exchange) on my way home from the office tonight. I haven't found out where to watch tv either...I know it is here, but I still find myself looking for a bed at 8:30 (2030) or 9pm (2100) and can read in my kindle, or listen to Harry Potter on my I-Pod.

Have a great day! Love, -Jim-