We’ve seen war in the movies, we’ve read about it in books and newspapers, watched reports on TV, but one cannot truly know what war is like unless you’ve been in it.

Now, as the final minutes tick by to the end of Bush’s deadline and war is days, hours, maybe minutes away, On Point gets inside the minds of U.S. soldiers waiting to go into battle. After endless drills, what goes through one’s mind to know the real thing is now around the corner? Fear? Frustration? Anticipation? Numbness?

Anthony Swofford who fought in the 1991 Gulf War has written about his experiences in his book “Jarhead: A Marine’s Chronicle of the Gulf War and Other Battles.” According to him, the American soldiers are feeling anxious yet confident in their military training. Click on the link above to hear Swofford read excerpts from his book.

Guests:

Anthony Swofford served in the U.S. Marine Corps Surveillance and Target Acquisition/Scout-Sniper platoon during the Gulf War and is author of “Jarhead: A Marine’s Chronicle of the Gulf War and Other Battles”

Joel Turnipseed, Lance Corporal with the Sixth Motor Transport Battalion in the 1991 Gulf War and author of “Baghdad Express: A Gulf War Memoir”