They Called Us ""Lucky"": The Life and Afterlife of the Iraq War's Hardest Hit Unit
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From the Arizona Congressman, a ""powerful"" and ""searing"" (PW) chronicle of the eternal bonds forged between the Marines of Lima Company, the hardest-hit unit of the Iraq War
At first, they were โLucky Lima.โ Infantryman Ruben Gallego and his brothers in Lima Companyโ3rd Battalion, 25th Marines, young men drawn from blue-collar towns, immigrant households, Navajo reservationsโreturned unscathed on patrol after patrol through the increasingly violent al Anbar region of Iraq, looking for weapons caches and insurgents trying to destabilize the nascent Iraqi government. After two months in Iraq, Lima didn't have a casualty, not a single Purple Heart, no injury worse than a blister. Lucky Lima.
Then, in May 2005, Limaโs fortunes flipped. Unknown to Ruben and his fellow grunts, al Anbar had recently become a haven for al Qaeda in Mesopotamia. The bin Laden-sponsored group had recruited radicals from all over the world for jihad against the Americans. On one fateful day, they were lured into a death house; the ambush cost the lives of two men, including a platoon sergeant. Two days later, Rubenโs best friend, Jonathon Grant, died in an IED attack, along with several others. Events worsened from there. A disastrous operation in Haditha in August claimed the lives of thirteen Marines when an IED destroyed their amphibious vehicle. It was the worst single-day loss for the Marines since the 1983 Beirut bombings. By the time 3/25 went home in November, it had lost more men than any other single unit in the war. Forty-six Marines and two Navy Corpsmen serving with the battalion in Iraq were killed in action during their roughly nine-month activation.
They Called Us โLuckyโ details Ruben Gallegoโs journey and includes harrowing accounts of some of the warโs most costly battles. It details the struggles and the successes of Rubenโnow a member of Congressโand the rest of Lima Company following Iraq, examining the complicated matter of PTSD. And it serves as a tribute to Rubenโs fallen comrades, who made the ultimate sacrifice for their country.ย
With its gripping accounts of some of the war's most costly battles, They Called Us 'Lucky' is a must-read for anyone interested in military history and the politics of war. It offers a firsthand perspective on the Iraq War and the struggles faced by soldiers like Ruben Gallego, who served in the hardest hit company of the hardest hit battalion of the war and occupation.
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Ruben Gallego (D, AZ) represents the 7th District of Arizona in the U.S. House of Representatives. A son of Hispanic immigrants, Representative Gallego was the first in his family to attend college, graduating from Harvard University with a degree in international relations. While an undergrad, Gallego enlisted as an infantryman in the Marine Corps Reserve. Corporal Gallego deployed to Iraq in 2005, where he and the other members of Lima Company, 3rd Battalion, 25th Marine Regiment, saw some of the fiercest fighting of the war. Elected to Congress in 2014 as a Democrat, Gallego is a member of the House Committee on Veteransโ Affairs and the House Armed Services Committee, where he serves as chairman of the Intelligence and Special Operations subcommittee. Gallego lives in Phoenix, Arizona, with his wife and son.
Jim DeFelice is the co-author, with former U.S. Navy SEAL Chris Kyle, of the multi-million-copy bestseller American Sniper, the source for Clint Eastwoodโs film starring Bradley Cooper. His other books include Omar Bradley: General at War; Rangers at Dieppe; and West Like Lightning: The Brief, Legendary Ride of the Pony Express. He lives in upstate New York.
