Title: U.S. Soldiers In Afghanistan Charged With Keeping Body Parts As Trophies Source:
[None] URL Source:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4KzWx8zquHo&feature=youtube_gdata Published:Sep 10, 2010 Author:Staff Post Date:2010-09-10 12:02:46 by Horse Keywords:None Views:370 Comments:32
I can see going to war to defend your country. If I was of age and my country needed me to defend her, I wouldn't wait for a draft notice. I can understand the position of those that have been drafted into a-constitutional disasters such as the one we were forced to endure in Vietnam. And while I can't countenance volunteering for any of our current imperial adventures, I know many people who have. I forgive them, the ones I've known at least, because I feel their hearts were in the right place as far as their sense of patriotism goes.
However, those that commit crimes in uniform have nothing but my contempt. Killing the innocent and the unarmed, desecrating bodies, and threatening fellow soldiers with harm or death is evidence of an army that is slowly sinking into barbarism. If what they say about these fellows is true, I could care less what happens to them. They can jolly well do a stiff sentence at Leavenworth. That goes in equal measure to the men that sent them into those hell holes. They are fully as responsible in my book.
Well, I'll only say this: Whatever men have to do when they go to war, most don't resort to what these men are accused of. That should tell us that there are things that most of us rightly recoil from.
The position that these things are done in war as a matter of course don't wash with me, and I don't believe they wash with most folks.
Our society, as jaded as it is today, will speak on these things. That is as it should be.
As long as our guys don't burn their precious Koran, anything goes.
Unfortunately that is true.
Some grunt shoots unarmed civilian, no one knows, no problem. Someone finds out, off to prison.
Then, a fighter pilot is standing ten miles off, shoots a missile, kills a dozen women and kids. All a mistake, fortune of war etc and WE NEVER KNOW THE NAMES OF THE PILOTS.
The grunt is packed off to prison with a tenner. The pilot gets a DFC.
Col. Tibbets vaporized thousands in less than a minute, men, women, children, mostly all innocents. He received a medal. War is horrible.
Some grunt shoots unarmed civilian, no one knows, no problem. Someone finds out, off to prison.
Then, a fighter pilot is standing ten miles off, shoots a missile, kills a dozen women and kids. All a mistake, fortune of war etc and WE NEVER KNOW THE NAMES OF THE PILOTS.
The Apache attack helicopters involved in the incident are identified as Crazy I got to thinking about what you said and wondered whether the names of the crew of the 2007 Apache Attack featured in the video that Wikileaks got released were ever revealed.
I came across this in an article posted on wired Wired:
U.S. Military Releases Redacted Records on 2007 Apache Attack, Questions Linger
Horse 18 and 19, of the 1st Battalion, 227th Aviation Regiment. The names of pilots, as well as those of investigating officials, were redacted in the Central Command report. Brig. Gen. Vincent Brooks, who reviewed the findings, ordered that “members of the press be encouraged to wear identifying vests or distinctive body armor within the MND-B AOR,” or Multi-National Division-Baghdad area of responsibility, although he directed that such action be “passed to PAO [public affairs office] for coordination through CPIC [Coalition Press Information Center].”
Read More http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2010/04/military-releases-report-on-2007-apache-attack-and-questions-linger/#ixzz0zBSvFAJa
In the comments section below this article I found this post by a soldier that I think is germane to the discussion.
Posted by: spookmag | 04/7/10 | 5:06 pm |
I served in Iraq and know the rules of engagement in War. Don’t fire unless fired upon. There are clearly no muzzle flashes coming from the people on the ground. The people don’t scatter for cover, they don’t take any kind of attack position in the buildings. Most don’t even look up at the helicopters at any time before they are fired upon. The camera man with the telephoto lens is the only one even paying attention to the choppers. No matter what has happened earlier that day leading up to this event, you take ever opposition one at a time. The judgement was poor, the guys sound like trigger happy Call of duty gamers begging command for a “roger to engage”. I have personally heard of this situation in 2007 and was told by several fellow soldiers that there were tote bags full of can goods (not grenades) and yes there were a couple of AK’s, but what people don’t understand is everybody has a gun over there. We walk the streets with Iraqi people carrying guns all day. We can’t do anything until they oppose us with aggressive action. It is normal everyday life to have people walking around with guns in Iraq. The bottom line is the rules on engagement exist for our protection as well as the protection of civilians. And those rules were clearly ignored by these pilots. They led command to believe that these people posed a threat to get the authorization to use their weapons and “lite them all up” as they said in the video. After that they laugh about a hummer driving over a body. The men in the van were helping the helpless as they were cut down as well. Just like us they don’t leave anybody behind. The children that were injured in the van were supposed to be taken to an American medical facility and where then rerouted to an Iraqi one where they would not receive the care that they needed. If we shot the kids we should have treated them. I agree that this so called war is a shame. I was not fighting for anyones freedom in my 2 tours. I was never made aware of what we were really fighting for over there but it certainly has nothing to do with the freedom of the people stateside. Iraq had nothing to do with the September 11th attacks, which was the reason this war began. Yet the man who was responsible runs free in another country hundreds of miles away from Iraq. The more our country noses in everybody else’s affairs and hops on every chance of dictating another country the more terrorists we create. This war is about resources (oil) and nothing else. The longer we occupy Iraq, the deeper we root ourselves in their government. We want everyone to be just like us and if they are different, then they are a threat. This video is just one of a hundred situations that happen every day in Iraq. This one just got leaked and the others remain covered up. Unfortunately I have had to participate in actions not too unlike this one and am still trying to live with it day to day now that I’m home. America’s Neo conservatism is disgusting to me. The majority of our population believes that America can do no wrong, that if we do it “its’ ok”. What happened to us on 9/11 happens every day in the middle east and most of it is done by our troops. But it’s OK if we do it. Its not murder if Americans do it. I think that this way of thinking is inhuman and would make the men and women, and the God that is country was founded upon ashame of us.