Testimonial: Army Major Paul Barnes, Columbia College 90

MATURE – Army Major Paul Barnes, Columbia College 90

As I write these words, I am sitting in one of Saddam’s former palaces in Baghdad, Iraq—a long way from College Walk, and not just in terms of physical distance. I did not come to the military by way of ROTC. When I was at Columbia, I did not even know that it was possible to be a part of ROTC. When I was in high school, I applied to West Point, but was put on their waiting list and then offered a spot at their prep school in New Jersey. By that point, I had already accepted at Columbia. But in the back of my mind, I still had the notion of serving in the Army: I liked the idea of being a part of something bigger than myself, of serving my country, and of the discipline involved.

I spent my junior year studying in London and because I was a terrible procrastinator, I had not done all the work I was supposed to and had not received all the credit I should have. So the spring of my senior year back at Columbia I found myself taking 22 credits in order to graduate on time. That spring, as I was taking all those classes, I went to a recruiter in Harlem—I rode my bicycle there—to inquire about enlisting in the Army. He drove me up to the Bronx to take some tests. But then I came down with mononucleosis from my heavy workload and decided not to join the Army right away, opting instead to sell wine on Madison Avenue. That summer, Saddam Hussein’s forces invaded Kuwait.

It was not until March of 1991, as the ground portion of the Gulf War was coming to an end, that I finally enlisted in the Army. As an enlisted soldier, I trained to be a Russian linguist, the Army sending me to the Defense Language Institute in Monterrey, California. A couple years later, I put in my packet to go to Officer Candidate School to become an officer. I spent four years as an Infantry Officer before transferring to Military Intelligence.

As with any career choice, the military has negative and positive aspects and is largely what you make of it. But it has provided me with some great opportunities. As a new second lieutenant, I led a platoon of over thirty soldiers not far from the DMZ in Korea. Currently, I head a cell made up of thirteen officers from ten different countries. Our job is to examine various aspects of the situation here in Iraq from a non-American perspective. One of the strengths of the military—as well as of Columbia—is its diversity. Although it is an all-volunteer force, it is made up of men and women from all parts of the country and from all backgrounds. This diversity is vital to ensuring that the military continues to represent the highest ideals and aspirations of our nation.

Paul E. Barnes, Major, U.S. Army

Columbia College 1990