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24 November 2004 
Kevin Sites is the cameraman responsible for taking the video of that soldier shooting an enemy Iraqi in a mosque. His account of the story is interesting, but what jumped out at me is this:
I interviewed... Commanding Officer, Lieutenant Colonel Willy Buhl, before the battle for Falluja began. He said something very powerful at the time-something that now seems prophetic. It was this:It's not 100% clear to me exactly what Buhl is trying to say, but if it's that coalition forces should give any benefit of the doubt to the other side, or that it should risk any soldier's life when it's unnecessary (but "gentlemanly" — ugh! is there any context more inappropriate in which to raise the issue of "gentlemanliness" than war?) — if this is what he's trying to say, then I couldn't disagree more. And it's certainly not descending to the other side's level to say so. (This entry is essentially the same as a comment I made on this Shotgun post.)"We're the good guys. We are Americans. We are fighting a gentleman's war here -- because we don't behead people, we don't come down to the same level of the people we're combating. That's a very difficult thing for a young 18-year-old Marine who's been trained to locate, close with and destroy the enemy with fire and close combat. That's a very difficult thing for a 42-year-old lieutenant colonel with 23 years experience in the service who was trained to do the same thing once upon a time, and who now has a thousand-plus men to lead, guide, coach, mentor -- and ensure we remain the good guys and keep the moral high ground."
Update: Yaron Brook says the US should withdraw from the Geneva Convention:
The accused marine was completely right to kill a terrorist who he suspected was setting up a booby-trap by faking death--a common terrorist technique used in Iraq. For the marine to do otherwise would have been to risk his life and the lives of his fellow marines to preserve a committed murderer. Yet this is exactly what the U.S. government says he should have done, in the name of the 'rules of war' of the Geneva Convention....Yes. Seeing the look on Jimmy Carter's face alone would be enough reason to do this. But it will never happen, of course, because half the pro-war side probably thinks that fighting a "gentleman's war" is a good thing.America must assert its right to defend its citizens--including its soldiers--by any means necessary," said Dr. Brook. "And as a first order of business, we must withdraw from the suicide pact that is the Geneva Convention.
02:11 PM |
From a reader at NRO's Corner:
[Quoting Jonah Goldberg on the meaning of Thanksgiving:] "We are giving thanks for the soil, the land, for the gifts of providence which were bequeathed to us long before we figured out our political system."Scroll up from the link to see some predictable religious-right feedback. ("A reader" is me, btw.)Not according to the Ayn Rand Institute: "This holiday is designed to celebrate, not faith and charity, but thought and production.
"Thanksgiving celebrates man's ability to produce. The cornucopia filled
with exotic flowers and delicious fruits, the savory turkey with
aromatic trimmings, the mouth-watering pies, the colorful
decorations--it's all a testament to the creation of wealth."http://www.aynrand.org/site/News2?page=NewsArticle&id=10469&news_iv_ctrl =1021
01:04 PM |