I don't think it was silly at all. I wasn't saying the marine shouldn't be afraid, just that we shouldn't allow that fear to dictate all of our actions. Because of he acted based on fear, he shot and killed an unarmed wounded soldier. The soldier wasn't a threat to him, but fear obviously was a threat, and the result is the loss of a life.
And I'm not saying that it wasn't avoidable. I think that you and I agree more than disagree on this, except the crtical part: I don't think you should be punished for protecting your home from a reasonable threat, however wrong or tragic, and I think juries would agree (esp here in Texas ).
Yeah you are probably right. I was trying to base my position on rule of law, and once I was informed that it wouldn't be something that one could be convicted on, my support kind of fell through.
I thought your main concern was that the American do the thing the right way (even if it cost him his life) because that makes us better than the terrorists?
It is. I was basing whether he was upholding the honor of the U.S. by the rule of law. If it turns out that he did was not illegal, then I guess there isn't as much of a problem, as I initially believed. If indeed he didn't follow the proper conduct, violated the Geneva convention etc. then I do think he should be prosecuted. My argument was that by not following the agreement signed by the nation he was supposed to be fighting for, that he was dishonoring the military, and the U.S. and should be punished. If it turns out that he wasn't, then there is no honor lost.
FB, as always, your opinion was thoughtful, had merit ... and you discuss in a most mature fashion. Have you considered negotiating peace in the Mid East?
Thanks for the kind words, Cohen. I would love to have peace in the middle east, but if I was able to have any part in it, then the situation is even worse than any of us thought.
Anyone seen this...here's a blog from the guy who shot the video. Worth a read: http://www.kevinsites.net/
What a pile of BS by Sites. Of course, he was looking for a "gotcha", and now he has his Colonel Loan moment.
sh*t happens....the guy shot an innocent...this is nothing new... war leads to this kind of sh*t all the time...sadly it is hard to proove anything during war.... THE U.S NEVER WAS $UPPO$ed to be in IRAQ in the first place...Bush is using a nation to do his dirty work...this is not about being patriotic...yes you should follow your country to war...but that is what the Germans did too(they followed blindly)...you have to look at the complete picture and try to judge FOR yourself WHY your country is going to war... ...it is those many THOUSANDS of people who have been dying in Iraq since the TRADE EMBARGO placed on Iraq....many died because of lack of medicine...the U.S should have taken care of Saddam in a different manner and long time ago...they could have easily assassinated him...they did that to the leader before Saddam to put madman sadam in power....there is obviously more to it... soo many people in here do not understand the situation...and sadly many could'nt care less what the situation really is...
THANK YOU IRAQ or should i say BUSH...some spilt milk of oil made from blood. PEACE. http://www.cnn.com/2004/US/11/27/oilspill.philadelphia/index.html Ship spills 30,000 gallons of oil near Philadelphia U.S. Coast Guard helping in Delaware River cleanup CNN) -- The U.S. Coast Guard was helping to clean up an oil spill in the Delaware River near Philadelphia Saturday, one day after after a ship leaked an estimated 30,000 gallons (113,560 liters) of crude into the waterway, according to a Coast Guard spokesman. The Cyprus-flagged vessel Athos 1 was carrying about 325,000 gallons of oil. The spill was contained as of about noon ET Saturday and assessment teams were working to determine the extent of any environmental damage, Coast Guard spokesman Patrick Montgomery told CNN. "We take any amount of oil in our waterways very seriously." The vessel first called the Coast Guard about 9:15 p.m. Friday to report the leak. "When they were pulling into the Citgo facility in Paulsboro, New Jersey, they were at an eight-degree list, which means the vessel was leaning a bit," Petty Officer John Edwards told Philadelphia's WPVI-TV. "They noticed product in the water and that's when they noticed they had a problem." Paulsboro is just across the river from Philadelphia. A portion of the river, from the Walt Whitman Bridge to the Commodore Barry Bridge, was closed. The Coast Guard has hired several environmental contractors to help clean up the spill. In addition, Edwards said it was "actively skimming the water" to separate it from the oil. There was no estimate on how long the cleanup might take. "Environmental protection is the Coast Guard's long-standing mission, and we're out there with these other groups getting this cleaned up as quickly and effectively as possible," he said. The vessel was anchored at a creek. The cause of the leak remained under investigation Saturday.
Too bad the facts don't agree with you. This soldier shot by the marine was wounded and unarmed. The VC shot by John Kerry was armed and able. If you can't see the difference between shooting an unarmed wounded man, and an armed able-bodied one, then perhaps this one debate you might want to sit out.
I thought that the Kerry "war crime" revolved around Free Fire Zones-- which means that you don't know squat about whom you are shooting, right?
The Kerry war crime thing did revolve around that. The incident where Kerry personally killed someone was a different incident. In that incident the VC had shot grenade launchers at some ships in Kerry's patrol. Kerry turned his boat toward the beach and jumped out of his boat with his M-16 in hand. The man who had fired once and was preparing to fire again turned to make a get-away. Kerry chased the VC soldier into his hut, and ended up shooting the man before the VC soldier could kill him or any of his crew. That is different than shooting a wounded unarmed person.
Wow, and an enterprising young partisan manages to turn this thread into a swift boat veteran smear of Kerry, a month after the election... Congratulations, Gweenie, you truly are a king among men.
http://www.newsmax.com/archives/ic/2004/11/16/92057.shtml "In fact, the February 1969 incident was considered by Kerry supporters to be his finest hour. Patrolling the Bay Hap River, Kerry and his crew discovered they were about to be ambushed by a Viet Cong soldier who had just popped up at the shoreline with a loaded rocket launcher in his hands. With the VC about to fire, Kerry crew mate Thomas Bellodeau shot and wounded the attacker, saving the entire boat. Only then did Kerry leap to the shore to chase the wounded enemy down - finishing him off behind a hootch. When critics suggested that Kerry's actions that day were something less than heroic, they were hooted down by the press. Certainly the as-yet-unnamed Marine in Fallujah deserves, if not the Silver Star, the same slack the press cut Kerry. "
