Tales from the Front
Combat Journalist Ron Martz Lectures USF ROTC
Clayton Martin
Issue date: 12/26/05 Section: News
- Page 1 of 1
Tampa-
On Thursday, November 17, University of South Florida alumnus Ron Martz, author of "Heavy Metal" and journalist for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution visited the USF campus to speak to all of the Reserve Officer Training Corps branches, collectively known as the Joint Military Science Leadership Consortium, or JMSLC.
Martz spoke of his experiences during Operation Iraqi Freedom, where he was embedded with the tankers of Task Force 1-64, Charlie Company. He spoke of the hazards of everyday life on the offensive and the satisfaction of the troops on their job well done.
He showed video footage of the April 5, 2003, Thunder Run, the first U.S. armored recon patrol into the city of Baghdad. During the presentation of the video he remarked that the high-pitched whistling sounds heard in the footage were, in fact, rocket-propelled grenades flying overhead, proving that the mission of a combat journalist is indeed dangerous and exciting.
As an ex-Marine and veteran writer, also embedded in both Bosnia and Kuwait, Martz spoke of his deep respect for the work of the military and his distinct pleasure in tagging along for the wild ride. At the young age of sixty years, he could not yet say whether Iraqi Freedom would be his last embedded assignment but, given the opportunity for another, he would not decline.
On Thursday, November 17, University of South Florida alumnus Ron Martz, author of "Heavy Metal" and journalist for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution visited the USF campus to speak to all of the Reserve Officer Training Corps branches, collectively known as the Joint Military Science Leadership Consortium, or JMSLC.
Martz spoke of his experiences during Operation Iraqi Freedom, where he was embedded with the tankers of Task Force 1-64, Charlie Company. He spoke of the hazards of everyday life on the offensive and the satisfaction of the troops on their job well done.
He showed video footage of the April 5, 2003, Thunder Run, the first U.S. armored recon patrol into the city of Baghdad. During the presentation of the video he remarked that the high-pitched whistling sounds heard in the footage were, in fact, rocket-propelled grenades flying overhead, proving that the mission of a combat journalist is indeed dangerous and exciting.
As an ex-Marine and veteran writer, also embedded in both Bosnia and Kuwait, Martz spoke of his deep respect for the work of the military and his distinct pleasure in tagging along for the wild ride. At the young age of sixty years, he could not yet say whether Iraqi Freedom would be his last embedded assignment but, given the opportunity for another, he would not decline.