On Ground in Iraq, Soldier Uses Wits To Hunt Insurgents discusses Sgt. McCary’s experiences as an intelligence officer in Iraq — now that he’s back in the states. He’s not your typical soldier:
Sgt. McCary graduated from Vassar College with a degree in French literature before enlisting in the Army in 2000. Before basic training he had never touched a gun in his life. Because he had a college degree and a knack for languages, the Army sent him to its Defense Language Institute in Monterey, Calif., for Arabic instruction. He picked up the language so quickly that his instructors nicknamed him ‘the sponge.’
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In the field, Sgt. McCary learned other critical skills. One was the ability to lie. “If you are not a Muslim brother in this culture you are nothing, so I had to construct an entirely new working persona,” he says. Though he has no Arab heritage, he tells Iraqis his mother is Lebanese. He sprinkles every conversation with asides such as “Praise be to God.” When a local says he is afraid to talk because the mujahedeen will kill him, Sgt. McCary recites a phrase commonly used in Iraq: “A good Muslim fears only one person.” Then the sergeant points to the sky. As part of the ritual, the other person says, “Allah.”
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Despite the setbacks, a year in Iraq has made Sgt. McCary and his battalion a smarter, tougher, more cynical fighting force. The same tank commanders who had never worked with a counterintelligence soldier before now go out of their way to request his presence on raids and patrols. Sgt. McCary’s battalion commander nominated him recently for the Bronze Star.“You couldn’t design a better counter-insurgent,” says Maj. John Nagl, who is third in command of Sgt. McCary’s battalion. “He’s interested in other cultures, willing to question his own beliefs and mores.”