Fathers, Sons And Brothers: Taking Account

About half of the soldiers in the Iowa Guard battalion didn't have to go to Iraq-they volunteered. They and their families are part of a small group of Americans shouldering the burden of the war. 60 Minutes and correspondent Scott Pelley witnessed a lot of sacrifice over nearly two years.

After their tour was extended, many of the fathers, sons and brothers came to a different view of the war and at home, wives were getting used to carrying the load alone.

"My feelings about the whole deployment has probably changed because I'm just missing him so much and I just don't think anything is fair anymore, I don't think the amount of time he's been over there is fair and I haven't really seen any progress," she says.

But Shannon is making progress at home. She has started her own business, a daycare, and bought a house her husband hasn't seen. Like other wives 60 Minutes met, she's getting help for depression.

"I know I've had my share of dealing with it," she acknowledges.

"I wonder how common that is among the other wives?" Pelley asks.

"Everyone I've talked to…[it] is really, pretty common," she replies.

For the guardsmen, though, there's no moving on. They're running the same vital but monotonous missions. Many, especially the younger ones, are questioning the war. Mike Ites and his son Josh used to be on the same page.

"I have the sense here that you guys don't see eye to eye on the war," Pelley remarks.

"That would be a true statement," Mike Ites acknowledges.

Asked what he is thinking, Josh tells Pelley, "I just feel that we will be here a long time. And it's going to take a lot more time than what people think back home to fix what's going on over here. From what I see, they don't want us here."

"Mike, you disagree with that?" Pelley asks.

"Yeah, I believe that we're supposed to be over here. Progress is being made," he says. "If you go back to 9/11 and what the people did there and when the president asked 'Do you want me to after these people?,' the whole United States stood up and said in unison and said 'Yes, we do.' He says, 'This is gonna be long and drawn out. Are you really sure you're gonna stand with me?' And they said, 'Yes, we will.' Well, now there are some that aren't because the American people are a 'gimme' people and 'give it to me now.'"

"You're a little bit angry that the folks at home have turned against the war," Pelley remarks.

"Oh, you could say that," Mike Ites admits.

"More than a little bit," Pelley says.

Says Mike Ites, "As I said, I believe in what we're doing."

60 Minutes also noticed a change in the Wendling brothers, Adam and Andy.

"At home, there's a lot of misconceptions about the conflict over here. They'll be asked what they believe the war in Iraq is about they'll just say 'freedom.' They'll just spout off with something that they've heard and is easily repeatable and it's patriotic," Adam says.

That reminded 60 Minutes of what he told Pelley in Iowa almost two years ago.

When asked what the Iraq war meant to him and what he thought it was all about, Adam said in 2005, "I think it's about stepping into a situation where a lot of people didn't have the freedoms we are afforded everyday."

"If I could look back three years ago on what basically, what I believed in, what my ideals were and what I though about my life and the world, you know, I'd probably just be looking at a 180," Adam says.

"Yeah, a lot of times I wonder if we should have gotten involved to begin with," Andy says. "And obviously the situation, as it is now and the way things have changed, it's not going to be anything we can get out of anytime soon."

Pelley asked Battalion Commander Ben Correll about the mood back in the states.

Asked what he thinks when he hears that most Americans think the U.S. shouldn't be in Iraq, Correll tells Pelley, "Do I think we should be here? We are here. We've been asked to do this job and I think at this point we've invested a lot. If we do nothing, this will continue to build something that is very much against the American way of life and I think we've got to get this under control before we say its time to go home."

Many of the men are facing the question to stay in the Guard; most have re-enlisted. Denver Foote, who left a two-month-old infant and will come home to a two-year-old child, has made a decision of his own.

"I have made the decision I'm going to leave the National Guard when I get back. I'm just ready to be with my family and move on with my life. I think I've sacrificed enough for this country."