BBC Website: "Your Reaction to Margaret Hassan's Murder"

To bring our own despotic leader to justice? Probably throw
flowers over the tanks.

riccip

 

You would be best advised to do just that. The Beeb's man on the
spot filmed an action where the Yanks, having given clear warning
to surrender, tossed a grenade into a room to finish off it's
remaining resistance. The insurgents pretend to surrender in
order to lure the Yanks in before blowing all and sundry to
paradise. You see someone moving. Is he injured or about to
trigger explosives? Shoot first, ask questions later. At least
this GI will live to see the ensuing witch hunt.

riccip

 

See any contradiction here?

There's a nice quote from Major Dick Winters, the commanding officer of
the unit in Band of Brothers:

"I firmly believe that no-one should be allowed to judge a combat
soldier, except another combat soldier."


--
<8P Wizard
Suzuki GS550 "I like that. Nicely shite" - TOG
Golf GTi 16v
ANORAK#17b BOMB#19 BOTAFOT#138 BREast#5 COFF#24
COSOC#8 DFV#11 STG#1

 

tallbloke says...

He's a soldier, he's trained to kill those who pose a threat. All
Iraquis pose a threat.

I still don't agree with them being there though.

 

Nice, but misguided.

 

Champ says...

I'm disgusted by the way they've flattened Fallujah and then claim
they've liberated it for the people. Great, if the people had a city to
go back to, not a fucking bomb-site.

 

"Jeez, It's a pity we had to destroy this town in order to save it."

 

@z14g2000cwz.googlegroups.com:

Thankfully you'd prolly get thrown out of the army before you got the chance
to bring it into disrepute.

 

I see a G.I. who should have had the day off peeling spuds or something.

So we have a soldier who says soldiers should only be judged by soldiers

See any tautology here?

 

And judges by other judges. Err...

 

@news.zen.co.uk:

Better soldiers with better leadership

 

So who did they go to liberate?

Now they've killed about one each they should **** off home again.

 

tallbloke says...

I wish they would, and bring the British troops home with them.

 

That's no fucking excuse. There are ways and means of seeing if people
are wounded and dead. What that fucking Yank has done has :

a. Completely blown any chance of shortening the war out of the water
b. Showed the gung-ho tactics of the fucking yanks that have no fucking
idea on how to conduct a battle/war
c. Broken a number of articles of the Geneva convention. Ah, but it's
not a war, is it? So that's alright, isn't it.

It's no fucking excuse and I hope that **** that shot the poor bastard
gets the fucking same.

 

Arse. He probably got kicked from the server for that.[1]

[1] see www.americasarmy.com

 

tallbloke wrote:

I live in Coventry. Your point is?

 

Combat soldiers <> criminals. Someone's got to do it.

The point Winters was making was that, if your opinion is to carry
weight, you have to have experienced the situation in order to know what
it's like.

We're all sitting here very safely, and most of us have no idea of what
it's like to go around knowing that there are armed people lurking
around trying to shoot you/stab you/blow you up.

For us to debate the rights and wrongs is fine and healthy, but we also
need to exercise a bit of humility. If we sit in our armchairs and allow
ourselves to slip into pontificating on what the guys out there should
do, our opinions may not be of great value. At the very least, it's
worthwhile to try to understand what it's like, for both sides.

--
<8) Wizard
Suzuki GS550 "I like that. Nicely shite" - TOG
Golf GTi 16v
ANORAK#17b BOMB#19 BOTAFOT#138 BREast#5 COFF#24
COSOC#8 DFV#11 STG#1

 

I can see the sense of that. I can only think that his commanding
offcier took the view- rightly or wrongly- that this situation was like
when you fall off a horse, and it's important to get back on as soon as
possible.

Certainly no tautology, nor IMHO any other sort of logical fallacy.

For the merits of the issue, see my reply to Champ.

--
<8P Wizard
Suzuki GS550 "I like that. Nicely shite" - TOG
Golf GTi 16v
ANORAK#17b BOMB#19 BOTAFOT#138 BREast#5 COFF#24
COSOC#8 DFV#11 STG#1

 

Lozzo wrote

Whilst I sympathise with what you say I do wonder what would be a better
method to take a town, lay siege to it perhaps?

 

Invite them in for a chat over a cup o' tea and biccies.