September 11th – The Iraq I Knew

September 11th, 2001, changed The Iraq I Knew significantly. For the 10 years that followed, Iraq consumed my military service in one way or another. Book I: Into the Storm, chronicled Operations Desert Shield/Desert Storm, very conventional, textbook, force-on-force combat operations. I was very confident in our abilities because we had trained for it all our careers. September 11th changed all that forever.

September 11th and Opration Iraqi Freedom One

The Business Insider article is largely about my second deployment to Iraq which was Operation Iraqi Freedom One. The title of Book II in the series is, The Search for WMD (Weapons of Mass Destruction) which will be released in 2026 versus the 2025 date in the article.

The Search for WMD began as a result of 9/11 and the believed alliances between Iraq and known terrorist organizations. Additionally, there was a fear that Iraq may have also produced WMD.

I believe the story will be quite riveting if I can get past the anxiety I feel when I think about the events. Just like talking can be a form of therapy, so can writing.

Why Now for The Iraq I Knew?

The Business Insider article is titled, “Acclaimed Military Memoir, The Iraq I Knew, Extends Saga With Release of Second Installment: The Search For WMD.” One question from the interview was, why now? Why am I writing about these events now? I will not spoil the article for you by giving my exact answer but lets just say, ‘I’m not getting any younger.’ Also, “writing is my refuge,” and my therapy. It allows me to express myself and tell my stories in ways that I may not always be able to speak about. September 11th – The Iraq I Knew, required me to deploy two additional times that I had not planned on. So, everyone should know what happened, why it happened, and why it became The Iraq I Knew.

#theiraqiknew #businessinsider #therapy #september11th

Dr. Burl Randolph, Jr., DM, is a three-time combat veteran to Iraq, former Military Intelligence officer who served at the tactical, operational, and strategic levels, and is a retired US Army Colonel. He currently serves as the President and Chief Consultant of MyWingman, LLC, a Business Leadership & Management Consulting company that, “Helps Leaders Design Legacies That Last” (c) since 2025.