This is what we created in Iraq:
FORT HOOD, TEXAS - Minutes after fatally shooting an unarmed and cooperative Iraqi civilian, an Army squad leader urged a fellow soldier to falsely declare that the killing was in self-defense, court-martial witnesses said Wednesday.Spc. Charles Pannell, who complied by initially misleading investigators, was recommended by the squad leader for an Army commendation medal, but the concocted story unraveled and the request for the combat valor award was withdrawn, testimony showed.
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Military prosecutors contend Werst was distraught that his company commander had been killed the previous day in a mortar attack. They contend he discarded standard operating procedures on Jan. 3, 2004, when his squad detained Ismail because he was on a list of “high value targets” suspected of aiding the insurgency.
what did you expect? when you rally 100,000 young men into a fire of protecting our country from the taliban–woops, i meant saddam– then stick them half way around the world and drop them into a war with no clear victory and no end in sight, with guns?
for some iraqi’s and middle easterners in general, this is probably the most exposure of the US they have ever had, and no doubt al-jazeera (sp?) is putting our best foot foward in their daily reports.
where are my flowers? where is our statue of GW in the middle of Bahgdad, signifying the great western liberator? if there were car bombs going off on a daily basis here we’ve had federalized the national guard, if not declared martial law by now. how can we not expect the iraqis to be pissed? how can we ignore decades of tribal friction and merely assume iraqis would be content to model our way of life?
how is Rumsfeld still in office? How are there no impeachment hearings? When did it become more important for republicans to win than to do what’s right? did they ever care? is it more important to stay in power than to use it wisely? are stem cells and terri shaivo really more important than the Vietnam of our time?
update: my posts at blogsforbush.com are still being censored, with no reason given (and they were good ones too). will try deleting my cookies and using another name and email address next…..