(If you wanna see a photo of me in Afghanistan herding some goats, please go to my blog.)
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I just got an e-mail from an irate Marine mom. "Imagine that your son is a Marine stationed in Afghanistan and he gets fire-bombed by some wild Taliban driving an explosive-packed minivan into his convoy," she wrote. "Then imagine that the convoy, with no support element to back them up, starts to take small arms fire. Then imagine that the Marines fight back after they have been attacked." Okay. I can do that. That's pretty much what happens to Marines in hostile territory. I saw that movie about Iwo Jima. I've lived with the Marines in Iraq. I can visualize that.
"And then imagine," continued the Marine mom, "that the Taliban accuses them of firing on civilians and that the top Pentagon generals support the Taliban's claims instead of the troops' version of the story -- and then Bush nominates for promotion the head of the special-ops command who did not follow the #2 rule of Marine leadership that even the youngest corporals know by heart -- to take care of the welfare of your troops?" Now THAT'S hard to imagine. Did things really happen this way? Was this Marine company really left out to twist in the wind by higher-up bureaucracy?
"I am telling your right now," the MM continued, "if the enemy sees weakness on the part of our leadership from the Commander-in-Chief on down, and the generals start throwing Marines under the bus to save themselves and please the top dogs and hold onto their jobs, then we have lost the war in Afghanistan -- not because of the guys on the ground, like the ones that you have met and praised, but because that the Commander-in-Chief on down to the generals threw them under the bus." Whew. This Marine mom is TRULY irate!
Apparently the Marines involved in this March 4, 2007 incident in Afghanistan were part of a well-trained, 120-man company which had fought in Iraq but had been pulled out of Iraq and sent to Afghanistan as special-ops forces under the direction of the Army. Then, according to this Marine mom, what happened next was that when the spit hit the fan and a Marine convoy was attacked by Taliban, the Marines fired back in self-defense, killing several of the attackers. However, according to the MM, the Taliban then cried "Foul play!" and charged the Marines with killing innocent civilians. "And then the generals in the Pentagon took the word of the Taliban over the Marines. Please, Jane, can you look into this and write about it? Please?"
Who me?
For the past three weeks, I'veI tried to really hard to get out of writing about this incident and ahve done everything I could to stall this Marine mom off. After all, what do I know about what went on in that part of Afghanistan? I've only been to Kabul. Once. But, in the end, how can one possibly ignore such a desperate plea from a genuine bona fide Marine mom? One cannot. So I started to do some research. I HATE research! Thank goodness for Google.
Here's an Associated Press report of the incident:
"The company, on its first deployment following the 2006 creation of the Marine Special Operations Command, was traveling on Highway One in Nangahar province, returning to its base from the Pakistan border, on March 4 when an explosives-rigged minivan crashed into their convoy. According to a report issued by Afghanistan's Independent Human Rights Commission, which cites witness accounts, the Marines fired indiscriminately at pedestrians and people in cars, buses and taxis in six different locations along a 10-mile stretch of the road."
And here's the American Forces Press Service account:
"The five-vehicle convoy was moving through a crowded market place near Bari Kot, located in the Muhmand Dara district, when militants attacked the convoy from several directions with small-arms fire and a vehicle-borne bomb, officials said. Coalition forces returned fire, and along with Afghan police and army forces, secured the area and provided immediate on-site medical attention to the wounded civilians."
And according to Leatherneck Magazine, "In November, Maj. Gen. Dennis J. Hejlik, the commander of the Marine Special Operations Command, said the Marines responded correctly when they were attacked and that he disagreed with Kearney's decision to pull them out of Afghanistan. The Defense Department's inspector general has since opened an investigation into Kearney's actions, responding to concerns raised by Rep. Walter B. Jones, R-N.C., who said the Army had 'discarded the presumption of innocence.'"
So. Who dunnit? Did the Marines over-react under pressure or not? I still haven't got a clue.
But then I read where the Marine top brass had held a court of inquiry into the matter, the first one since the tragedy at Parris Island back in 1956. Okay. We gots a COI delving into this matter. That means that I'm off the hook and don't have to pull out all of my super investigative powers and deep-throat sources and moles to find out the truth. The Court of Inquiry should tell us what happened, right?
Stillwater is a freelance writer who hates injustice and corruption in any form but especially injustice and corruption paid for by American taxpayers. She has recently published a book entitled, "Bring Your Own Flak Jacket: Helpful Tips For Touring Today's Middle East". According to Ms. Stillwater, "It's a fabulous and entertaining book. I loved writing it. And I hope that you will love reading it too." It's available at http://www.amazon.com/Bring-Your-Own-Flak-Jacket/dp/0978615719 or you can special order it at any independent bookstore.
with people like that MM around you will neve resolve the problems of staying within the rules of war. She is a part of the problem rather than a part of the solution. She just can't bear to think of her little boy as a mass murderer of women and children. Well Ma'm maybe you'd better wake up or you will be living in a fog for the rest of your life wondering why your son is in prison for 20 years on a charge of murder.
by
Archie (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 973 comments)
on Monday, March 31, 2008 at 3:23:38 PM
