1. Morris 1
Brooke Morris
English 101
Professor Bolton
8 April 2013
Annotated Bibliography: “Death on Call”
Since the war on terrorism began, American and other allied troops have been
fighting to save the lives of innocent people around the world. One of the first Special
Forces Groups deployed to Afghanistan main objective is to wipe out the Taliban forces.
These few men are highly trained men using new precision technology. The technology
used in “Death on Call” is a hand-held GPS receiver which displays soldiers’ current
location on Earth and the operator programs the target coordinates into it. After
calculating the distance between the two, the information is then relayed to the pilot,
who transfers it to the bomb that will be dropped from the plane (Casey 67-68). This is
great piece of technology to have until the battery dies, which happens in the story
“Death on Call.” The operator quickly changes the battery, but when it powers back up
he is not aware that the screen displays their own coordinates as the enemy. The
target coordinates are received; the Special Forces Group and about two dozen
Afghans are bombed by their own airplane. There are very few survivors. This brings
me to my argument that even though the U.S. military is one of the most highly trained
militaries in the world and assist in training other countries’ militaries, they can still make
mistakes that could have been prevented. Every American should care about this
because these are the people who protect them from terrorism and their freedoms as
Americans.

2. Morris 2
Dorr, Robert F. Alpha Bravo Delta Guide to the U.S. Army. Ed. Walter J. Boyne.
Indianapolis: Tekno Books, 2003. Print.
U.S. diplomat Robert F. Dorr wrote the book Alpha Bravo Delta Guide to the U.S.
Army. In this book, he describes every aspect of the army. Every war that the U.S. has
been a part of is described in his book from the War for Independence to the Modern
Era including after 9/11. He also goes on to explain the hierarchy of the army and the
weaponry that has evolved over time. The training of the armed forces has evolved
from being militias of untrained men to very well trained men and women: “the
Americans (the Colonials, the Rebels) fought in unconventional ways, often not because
of genius, but because they were unfettered by military practices and traditions” (Dorr
17). During the War for Independence the militias were untrained fighting against a well
trained British army.
This book was written recently in 2003. The book is edited by Walter J. Boyne a
retired U.S. Air Force officer. Boyne has extensive knowledge of the history of the
armed forces. This book is purely facts and not based on opinions. Therefore, I believe
this to be a credible source for information about the evolution of the army.
I will be using the source in my research essay to support my argument that the
U.S. Armed Forces is one of the most highly trained militaries in the world. The
advancement of the military is important in my argument because it proves that the
countries with no military or countries with a poorly trained military have a chance to
become a well trained military like the U.S.

3. Morris 3
Ibarra, Jose, and C.E. Taylor. “Why International Military Education and Training?
Cooperation Training Helps Operation Iraqi Freedom Partners”. The DISAM
Journal 28.1 (2005): 138. Military & Government Collection. Web. 5 April 2013.
This journal article informs about the different training and military education
programs the U.S. has in place to help other countries. Programs like the International
Military Education and Training (IMET) and Foreign Military Sales (FMS) assist other
countries in training their military in return for allies in periods of conflict. Training is an
important base for developing militaries, “training is the foundation on which all modern
militaries are built” (Ibarra 138). Modern militaries are well trained.
I believe this to be a reliable source because it was published in 2005, shortly
after President George W. Bush decided to hold off on the hunt for Osama Bin Laden
and focus on getting the Iraqi military ready to fight for their people.
I will use this source to support my thought that the U.S. military is one of the
best militaries in the world so, they can train other armies. El Salvador is one of the
countries the U.S. trained, “half of the officers and a quarter of the non-commissioned
officers from El Salvador’s latest deployment to Iraq were trained by the United States”
(Ibarra 138). The more militaries the U.S. trains the more possible allies they will have.
Iraq: The Making of an Army. Minoru Films, 2006. Films On Demand. Web. 05 April
2013. <http://digital.films.com/PortalPlaylists.aspx?aid=3503&xtid=51923>.
This film on demand was about how the American soldiers train the Iraqi soldiers
and the difficulties that are involved. One of the difficulties is the language barrier. The
Iraqi’s do not understand the Americans and the Americans do not understand the
Iraqi’s.

4. Morris 4
I find this to be a credible source because it gives interviews with American
soldiers informing the viewer how it is to train Iraqi men for their military. In the film
President George W. Bush gives a statement about the war in Iraq: “as we pursue the
terrorists, our military helping train Iraqi security forces so that they can defend their
people and fight the enemy on their own.” Without training Iraqi men for their own
military, the war will be pointless because the terrorists will still be active with no one to
defend the innocent people when the U.S. withdraws their troops.
I will use this source to support my idea that training other militaries is vital.
Without the Americans, many countries would not have trained militaries. Even though
the U.S. military is not perfect and makes mistakes, it is one of the best in the world.
Knapik, Joseph J, Bria Graham, Jacketta Cobbs, Diane Thompson, Ryan Steelman,
and Bruce H. Jones. “A Prospective Investigation of Injury Incidence and Risk
Factors Among Army Recruits in Combat Engineer Training”. Journal of
Occupational Medicine and Toxicology. (2013): n.pag. Academic OneFile. Web.
4 April 2013.
This journal article evaluates the risk among different army recruits. Studies
have been conducted on risks like older age, previous history of smoking, participated in
sports or no physical activities, and if they have previous injuries.
I find this to be a trustworthy source because it presents all of the results from the
studies. All of the risks stated in the paragraph before affect how an army recruit will
perform in the rigorous fourteen week course.

5. Morris 5
I will use this source to support my thesis that soldiers need to be trained to know
what to do when technology fails. The Special Forces Group and Afghans could have
been spared if their fourteen week training involved what to do in situations like in the
story “Death on Call”. “The United States (US) Army Combat Engineer (ENG) course is
a physically intense, 14-week course designed to develop basic soldiering skills,
introduce Army values and lifestyle, and impart engineering knowledge and skills that
are used in combat operations” (Knapik, par. 1). This fourteen week basic training for
Army Combat Engineer’s should involve learning a basic procedure on what to do when
technology stops working.
Shenk, Gerald E, and Henry L. Dethloff. Citizen and Soldier: A Sourcebook on Military
Service and National Defense from Colonial America to the Present. Routledge,
2011. eBook Collection. Web. 5 April 2013.
This eBook describes in detail the history of the military from the seventeenth
century to modern era-war and after 9/11. It explains how the defense during the
colonial times evolved into the military we have today. The defense during colonial
time, in the seventeenth century, was a group of untrained men who protected their
communities, “the Virginia Company expected its male settlers to be armed and
prepared to defend themselves” (Shenk 8).
This is reliable source because it gives factual information from the colonial time
period to modern-era of military. History never changes; there are not different versions
of this information.

6. Morris 6
I will use this source to support my idea that the U.S. military has evolved. The
military went from untrained settlers to there being trained Reserves and National
Guard, “an essential element of that mobilization would be the highly trained Reserves
and National Guard” (Shenk 173). The Reserves and National Guard train once a
month and two weeks out of the year to keep their training up to date.