The book, “Burnt Yellow and Red” is another in a series of exposes on modern war as experienced and seen through the eyes of the Special Forces Warrior. The author and my friend, Steve Newman knows only too well what this means. You see, we served our military careers at the very core of this world during and through the Cold War, Lebanon, Granada, El Salvador, Panama, Desert Storm, Somalia, the counter drug wars and many things that God willing will never grace the pages of a book. More importantly though he has learned the craft of putting this on paper in a way that the uninitiated can understand. He brings in this book, an opportunity for you to really begin to understand, at a personal level, what our business is all about. He provides a human face of war using a passionate yet subtle tone to engage the willful imaginations of those who live in the world of fantasy while dragging them quietly through the world of the elite warrior. Steve weaves a tale of a very personal nature, allowing you to become fully engaged in the lives of many of the characters. He offers you a bond to the story-line and characters in a very interesting way and shows you the human side of the equation.

Burnt yellow and red as colors standing alone can paint a picture of serene beauty in the hands of a skilled artist. Burnt yellow and red encapsulates an image of the horizon on a dark and eerie morning as the sun rises; promoting the forthcoming storm to all who view this awesome spectacle of nature. Burnt yellow and red are not just colors but rather the inculcation of total horror; full of sounds, vibration, acrid smells, total destruction and the portal for souls to pass from this earth. Burnt yellow and red, not just the title of a book they are also the triggers for the memories of those who have experienced war in its most terrible forms. Modern warriors, Special Forces warriors, know all too well just how much burnt yellow and red touches the very fabric of their souls.

If one were to take the time to read the tapestries promoted in this expose of war, one would begin to appreciate, at least in some small measure, the depth of humanity that sits just beyond the horizon in whose hands the protection of freedom has been placed by the many who live in relative comfort. Steve, a seasoned and articulate Special Forces warrior, pens to paper a story based on fact. This story is not just any story. It is the story of men, true patriots all, thrust into a world both ancient and destructive. It is a world of dark intrigue with moments of humor, moments of testing, moments of caring and moments of complete and unadulterated horror. It is a story of human emotion, one in which the reader can feel the very presence of each soul in this story. It is a story that the reporter is ill equipped to articulate in any form and one where the cold images projected on the screen cannot do justice to the events that they display. This is the story of men who go where others dare not tread, a story of men who share a bond deeper than any other on earth. Welcome to the world of the “Quiet Professionals.”

High above the clouds the aerial artillery waits for the team to grant them access. The killing field below is like no other in history, blinded by reality.[i]

BURNT YELLOW AND RED
Thomas A. Gluzinski, CW3(R)
Warrior Poet

U.S. Army Special Forces, Special Operations Technician (Retired)

[i] Thomas A. Gluzinski, contributing author, “De Oppresso Liber,” from the poem “Preparing the Way,” page 26, Old Mountain Press, 2542 S.Edgewater Dr. Fayetteville, NC 28303, 2006.