Afghanistan

Forward Operating base Ma'Sum Ghar (MSG)
Layka and I enjoying our morning coffee together

me and my boys at Spin Buldak
sniper-Elliott

Camel Spider
Duco in his vehicle
Monitor Lizard

Caves in southern Afghanistan

Afghan bowls made from rosewood.

Afghanistan clothing allowed me to move freely among the Afghan population with my interpreter

Stock piled weapon inside Alexander's castle

Alexander the Greats castle in the of Qalot in east central Afghanistan near the

Pakistan border

For those of you whom do not know me, my name is Hollis Crawford. I have been in law enforcement for twenty-eight years. In that time I also trained and handled K-9's, which leads me to Afghanistan.

In 2004 I contracted to a company that was providing explosive detection dogs to the military in Afghanistan. Once I arrived at Kandahar Air Field, I was assigned a dog, trained with that dog for a week in order to get certified and then was assigned to work missions with the various military forces at Kandahar, The U.S., Canadian, Romanian, etc. and later was assigned to a F.O.B. (forward operation base) called Lagman, located in east central Afghanistan near the Pakistan border. My duties there were pretty simple......check every vehicle entering into the FOB. This is where I also worked the U.S. E.O.D. teams (explosive engineers). They would receive intel on a weapon cash and I would take my dog and go with them to find it. Once it was located, they would either B.I.P it (blow in place) or we would load it up and stock pile it inside Alexander the Greats castle, which was a very interesting piece of history.

Afghanistan's history has been written in war. It has been fought over for the trade routes for silk and other products coming from other countries as well as for military positions, the most recent being the war on terror.

A lot of the country has been mined for various reasons. To protect farm ground, water sources, electric facilities or to keep people out of areas such as training camps as well as the above mentioned locations. It is estimated that 1200 afghan people, per week, are either killed or maimed from land mines. Most being woman and children going to and from water and crop sources. We are clearing these mine fields as quickly as we can. But it is a very slow and difficult task, do to the fighting.

We are re-building schools and building medical facilities. We are now teaching reading, not only the children, but the elders as well. We are also providing medical treatment to them. Some receiving it for the first time in their life. These are some of the things that the Taliban did not want and had outlawed during their rein, along with T.V., radio, kite flying and electricity. The Taliban wanted the Afghan people sick and uneducated in order to get them to strap a bomb vest on and kill as many people as they could as well as themselves because this was what the "Holy Karon" said to do. Now, after learning to read for themselves, they are learning that the Taliban have been lying to them.

Because of the many oppressions put on the Afghan people, Afghanistan has been stuck in the 14th century. Most all of the country is without power. There are only two paved roads in Afghanistan, one running north to south and the other east to west. All the housing are mud huts. There is not any running water and most have no water at all. No electric and no food. Therefore, we are also building wells. But it should be noted there is not any good water to be found in Afghanistan. this is due to the mass graves throughout the country and the way the people are buried.

Alexander was the only one who ever really conquered Afghanistan. And while there, he had six, known, castles built. I have gotten to see three of them. They were built in the 14th century and still stand today, altho some have been badly damaged from weather and the wars. We are now using these castles for bases ourselves.

In 2006, after the company I was working for lost the contract, I signed on with the new company and was assigned to work with the Canadian Military. I was stationed at FOB, Ma Sum Ghar (MSG), located in southern Afghanistan and the birth place of the Taliban. Fighting was fierce and on a daily basis. The Taliban did not want to loose this ground. But they were no match for the Canadian tanks and LAV's (light armored vehicles) and have been either captured or killed fighting. However, the area from Ma Sum Ghar to the Iran and Pakistan borders still contains some of the worst fighting.

I hope this help people to understand some of what is going on in Afghanistan as well as Iraq. The Afghan and Iraqi people love us and do not want us to leave for fear the next big gun will just start killing them all over again. Headway is being made. It is going to take years tho to bring Afghanistan up to speed.

War is never a good thing. Lives are lost on both sides and families are torn apart. But, I would rather fight terrorism where they live instead of on our own soil. They have already shown us that they can reach us here, as in the 911 attacks. This can not be allowed to happen again. So try to imagine not having the rights and things you have. Be thankful for having them and thank the ones, both military and contractors for helping keep you safe and enjoying your rights.

movie put together from all the dog handlers photos

movie of how we used the pressure plate IED's

and bottom video is one of the dust storms at Spin Buldak