and articles like this one, posted a few hours ago on MSNBC, don't help matters. When our own media blasts the actions of an American Marine, before any investigation results have even been released, they give a voice and thus, credibility, to hostile Arab media here in America. A Marine is now deemed guilty before he has even been charged. Ever since I heard this story making the rounds yesterday I have been shaking my head, because it has been crystal clear from the beginning that this Marine was not going to get a fair shake. An embedded reporter was in a situation that he should not have been - there have been numerous reports of booby trapped dead bodies in Iraq, with insurgents who pretend to be dead, then blow themselves up or shoot the soldier or soldiers on the scene. This is WAR people - how can we fight a war with non-military journalists looking over the shoulders of our soldiers, just waiting for them to make a mistake, or make a questionable judgment call in perilous situations? How many of our soldiers fell victim to the very same tactics in past wars in Vietnam and Japan? These tactics are not new, they are vile and dangerous and our soldiers must be able to protect themselves and others in their unit without fear of media reprisal. I think that video cameras have no place in active war zones, period. This reporter was lying in wait, and apparently he finally got what he wanted - the video of the week.
That videotape should never have been released publicly - it has only served to inflame anger in middle eastern nations that already despise us, and it will continue to undermine our efforts in Iraq. This, even as the gruesome murder of Margaret Hassan has been largely ignored by the MSM throughout the world, in favor of this "chilling video" (as it is described by our own MSNBC). This video is "chilling"? No, sirs, I beg to differ - the videos of the beheadings of innocent hostages is chilling and horrific. The video of the Marine reflects a soldier protecting himself and his unit in an uncertain situation. The Iraqi he shot was an insurgent, not an innocent bystander - we know nothing of his intentions toward the Marine, and frankly, if the Marine was in doubt about his safety, he had every right to defend himself.
As reported in the Mercury News, the enemy "playing possum" is not new, and it is happening over there now:
Marine Lance Cpl. Jeramy Ailes, 22, of Gilroy was killed Monday in Al-Fallujah by small arms fire.
``They had finished mopping up in Fallujah and they went back to double-check on some insurgents. From what we gathered, somebody playing possum jumped up and shot him,'' said his father, Joel Ailes, who learned of his death Monday evening. ``It's extremely hard.''
Much more on this at the Belmont Club. Check it out. (with thanks to the Corner for the Belmont Club ht.)
Pray for our troops, this is only going to get worse before it gets better.
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