DHG: Interview with Cadet Matthew Barry
Matthew and Nicholas Barry, the sons of GPD Chief of Police Louis and his wife Diane Barry, are West Pointers. Now stationed in Lexington, Kentucky, Nick graduated from West Point last year. He is now part of a specialized engineering unit. Matt is in his third year, and from the sound of this article, he loves it. This is the kind of story that a small town newspaper does well. DHG reporter Stephen Hill does an excellent job here:
Matthew L. Barry, home in Granby on two weeks' leave after completing his third year at the academy, said cadet training and classroom discussions have shifted as a result of the conflict, with more emphasis on urban warfare, interaction with civilians and military ethics. Training exercises have shifted from foxhole construction for defensive positions in a woodland environment to clearing rooms in an urban setting, said the 2004 graduate of Granby Junior-Senior High School. In academic classrooms, students talk over the current debate in Congress about benchmarks for war progress tied to spending and the possible impacts of reduced appropriations for the war. Military ethics has taken a new focus, Barry said, with long discussions about the infamous prison Abu Ghraib, incidents of military misconduct and cover-ups. Cadets are taught to stand up for what is right and to be responsible for the soldiers serving under them, he said. 'They want to educate us as much as possible so we don't make the same mistakes,' he said.
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