Another Side of Col. Lehr

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“We do a lot more bullying — a lot more stick than carrot — than in a western culture. They understand power here. Fear. Intimidation. Artillery for days at the trigger point sends a message… Get your shit together, and we will help you, as opposed to hinder you,” Col. Lehr told me, as we picked through a farm-turned-insurgent-hideout. “There are certain levels you have to sink to, in order to get business done.”

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Today, at the end of his deployment in Diyala province, Col. Lehr, the commander of the 4th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, said he still believed in that strong-armed, high-explosive approach.

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It “sends a significant message,” he said in a conference call this morning. “It’s just like if were started shooting artillery rounds into your neighborhood… It would quickly get your attention.”