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Some marines got a little gun happy...
Dexter:
--- Quote from: Zakk on November 16, 2004, 03:46:05 pm --- Wars are a fact of life.
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Even this unnecessary war? The only fact is that it never had to happen and wouldn't made the tiniest bit of difference to 'homeland security' if it didn't in the first place. War has to be the absolute last resort after all other avenues have been exhausted. Collateral damage and atrocities may be a sad fact of war but to wage it pre-emptively you are making innocent women and children die in your name.
Grasshopper:
Hmm, whilst I accept that different standards of behaviour should apply in the heat of battle, it's very difficult on the evidence presented to give this marine the benefit of the doubt.
Unfortunately, war has a tendency to corrupt individuals and to corrupt nations. We've seen this throughout history. That is one of the reasons why war should always be considered a last resort.
Was it really worth killing 100,000 civillians, destroying Iraq's already fragile infrastructure, and undermining the UN and the concept of international law to remove an ageing dictator who was being contained?
Iraq is beginning to look more and more like Vietnam every day.
It's all very sad.
Dexter:
--- Quote from: Grasshopper on November 16, 2004, 06:27:17 pm ---It's all very sad.
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Amen, something we can all agree on. May all of them, soldiers, fighters and civilians rest in peace.
DrewKaree:
--- Quote from: Zakk on November 16, 2004, 03:46:05 pm ---I agree that this one soldier's actions may be questionable, and it states he has been taken off active duty to look into the situation, and he may be criminally charged. That's proper process. However I feel it is harldy fair to condemn the actions of the majority of fighting men and women in Iraq, who are simply doing what their country asks of them, to the best of their abilities. Question the guys giving orders, point fingers at the administration if you like, but don't question the grunts, since they put their lives on the line day in and day out. Hats off to those who have fallen, and those who are still fighting. I'd be proud to shake the hand of any of these people. Wars are a fact of life.
Until I've been there and lived it, I won't pretend to know enough about the situation to point fingers. Let's all just hope for a swift conclusion to the conflict and to eventual peace in the whole of the middle east.
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Well said, Zakk. Thank you.
Crazy Cooter:
The police reference was just as an example to show that it's accepted that killing someone does have an effect on an individual. I didn't mean that we should be rotating them out each day or anything, I meant that we shouldn't be making those guys be on the line for extended periods. Or even in Iraq for the length of time that they currently are. This is the kind of effect that it has. It desensitizes troops until they just stop thinking. That leads to people on both sides getting killed. That's why I've screamed about the "backdoor draft" and why I say we're in over our head. We shouldn't be spreading our military so thin that we can't protect our troops both physically (equipment) and mentally (adequate leave).
I would be interested to know how long that soldier was on the line. If anyone finds that out, please post it.
"...point fingers at the administration if you like"
Heheh believe me, I've done my fair share of that. ;)