Carol Barkalow

About the Author: Carol Barkalow is a special assistant to Army Chief of Staff General Carl Vuono. A 1980 graduate from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York, Barkalow is the author of In the Men’s House, a book about her West Point experiences.

Iwent to Saudi Arabia on temporary duty after the air war started. I volunteered and was picked up by the 24th Infantry Division (Mechanized) on the day it started its eight-day move to its positions before the start of the ground war. I was lucky in that I didn’t have to weather all the months in the desert that preceded the war. The 24th ID had been in the desert longer than any other unit.

The first thing that struck me about the...