Spotswood grad. recalls

JEFF GRANIT staff U.S. Marine Capt. Bezan Morris speaks to students at Spotswood High School. Behind him is a banner he took home from Iraq, reading, “Yes, yes for Saddam Hussein. Death to Americans and Zionism.”

leadership role in Iraq

BY VINCENT TODARO

Staff Writer

SPOTSWOOD — U.S. Marine Bezan Morris is enjoying the relative peace and quiet of the borough this week, in contrast to the five months he spent in Iraq last year.

Bezan, now stationed in California, was home to visit his parents this week and on Tuesday paid a visit to Spotswood High School history classes. Bezan was not injured during his tour of duty, where he served as executive officer with an artillery battery station.

Morris had been stationed in Twenty-Nine Palms, Calif., just south of Los Angeles, as a first lieutenant when he was shipped overseas in early 2003. He was initially sent to Kuwait, and on March 17 moved into Iraq as the war was about to began."I was with an artillery battery station as executive officer, so basically I was the second in command," he said

As such, he was responsible for being the position commander and also had to give logistical support, including making sure there was enough food and water.

Perhaps most importantly, he was the second in command, so if anything happened to the first in command, Morris had to be ready to assume his role and responsibilities.

"In case something happened, I had to be ready to go," he said.

And in this case, going meant being in charge of more than 140 troops, he said.

The warfare for Morris actually began while he was still in Kuwait. His station started firing on Iraq from the country invaded by Saddam Hussein in the early 1990s.

The station then began to follow the American frontline troops by about 15 to 20 kilometers, he said.

"We were shooting in support," he said.

"We moved from southern Iraq to Baghdad, and shot a little into Baghdad," he said.

Morris said he was never actually scared for his life during his five months, but was afraid of letting his troops down.

"I was afraid of making a mistake," he said. "There were 140-plus guys behind me who depended on me."

He said the American military did a "pretty good job of whacking the Iraqi military," and he was pleased to see so many of the Iraqi people supporting the U.S. mission.

Morris, who was a history student of Spotswood teacher Frank Yusko and also president of Yusko’s History Club, said he was impressed by the "rumble" made from some 70 artillery pieces fired at the same time.

"It was an incredible light-and-sound show. I don’t think I’ll ever see that again," he said.

Morris, whose station left Iraq in May of last year, had joined the Marines in May 1999. He had witnessed his two older brothers, both in the Navy, traveling to so many places and decided to join the service himself.

Morris joined his first unit, stationed in Twenty-Nine Palms, in 2000.

He said as soon as he started to see units being deployed to the Mid-East near the end of 2002, he figured he would soon be there as well.

He said the biggest lesson he learned in Iraq was about the nature of warfare. Though he had studied it previously, it was much more shocking than what he read.

What startled him was "the absolute devastation that [war] can bring to both sides," he said.

"And the devastation you can bring to an infrastructure, civilians and a nation as a whole," he said.

Morris did not wish to comment on how he feels about troops remaining in Iraq at this time, saying that decision is in the hands of people more knowledgeable than himself.

Morris has one more year left in the military, and will spend it in California. He had a spell of good luck recently — he got married and was promoted to captain within the same time span.