If you access the internet through a government computer system, you have access to The Early Bird, a compendium of news articles from around the world dealing with military issues. Some may be able to access it through other connects. I just know I can’t do it from home.
I’ve mentioned before how difficult it can be for our soldiers to distinguish friend and foe. They often look alike, and the only indicator is a weapon pointed in their direction. At that point it could be too late. This has almost always been the issue in the modern era, and is a big reason for friendly fire incidents. It becomes an even greater issue in urban settings, like Fallujah.
Today there is an article by James Hider, a journalist from the London Times. He follows the fight of a group of Marines who get into an ambush, and visions of Mogadishu come to mind.
And bravery is not something they want to be recognized for, contrary to what Andy Rooney wrote earlier this week.
Sergeant Sagredo does not want a medal for saving his men. ?A decoration would only remind me of what happened. This is something I want to forget. Unfortunately, if it doesn?t affect me now, I know it will haunt me later.?
Unfortunately, the London Times requires a subscription to read today’s edition. I’ll update with a direct link to the story if they open it this weekend.
Let me tell you about what’s going on in Fallujah. For one the Marines over there are the Reserves, and get in more fire fights with themselves than the Al Ramir Militia. One of my buddies was in Fallujah, and told me about what happened when they handed over the city to the Marines. “The city was fine”, and “we had no problem taking care of what needed to be taken care of.” “Until the Marines showed up.” One of the things that stuck in my mind was when he told me about the Marines doing “friendship patrols.” these patrols consisted of a platoon size element walking around the city with no body armor or kevlar helmets on. That should tell you two things; one how stupid the Marines are, and two just how safe the city was before the Marines took over control. The same thing is happening all over Baghdad. Those people are smart, they know how they can push around, and who they can not. If we ever had any problems, we knew how to take care of it.
Comment by birdie — April 17, 2004 @ 6:25 am
I can’t wait to see how your big brother, the Marine, responds to that!
Comment by Bunker — April 17, 2004 @ 11:55 am
Well the thing about the Marines getting into more fire fights with themseves is true. They had one fire fight that lasted 20 minutes and only 1 Marine was wounded. Should tell you how good marksmanship is in the Marine Corp Reserves.
Comment by birdie — April 17, 2004 @ 12:40 pm
The big issue was that there was a concerted effort to try this while there was a relief in place occurring. The size and scope of the enemy is greater than had ever been seen before, too. It wasn’t just a group of 20 or so in a single neighborhood, the bad guys put a lot of foreign fighters into service there, of which I am glad to say many of them will not be fighting anymore…
For full-fledged urban warfare, everyone in Fallujah is doing a pretty good job. They’re not trying to win the hearts and minds anymore.
Comment by Slice — April 18, 2004 @ 10:46 am