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Jessica: Army used me
NY Daily News ^ | November 7, 2003 | CORKY SIEMASZKO

Posted on 11/07/2003 7:31:52 AM PST by presidio9

Jessica Lynch has angrily accused the Pentagon of using her for propaganda. The 20-year-old private, portrayed as a female Rambo after she was captured by Iraqis during a blazing gun battle, then freed by American troops, told ABC there was no reason for her rescue from an Iraqi hospital to be filmed.

"They used me as a way to symbolize all this stuff," Lynch said in an interview with Diane Sawyer that airs Tuesday, Veterans Day.

"Yeah, it's wrong," Lynch said. "I don't know why they filmed it, or why they say the things" they said.

That footage of U.S. commandos wheeling a grimacing Lynch to a waiting chopper was among the most dramatic of the war - and helped cement her image as a female warrior.

But Lynch said the true heroes were the soldiers who saved her.

"They're the ones that came in to rescue me," she said. "I'm so thankful that they did what they did; they risked their lives. ... They are my heroes."

She also disputed the Pentagon's early version of her capture by Iraqis, which suggested she had heroically defended herself - going down only after firing all her ammo.

Lynch says her M-16 jammed and she never got off a shot.

"My weapon did jam and I did not shoot, not a round, nothing," she said simply.

There was no immediate response from the Pentagon, which awarded Lynch a Purple Heart for her injuries.

ABC released excerpts of Lynch's first television interview yesterday after the Daily News obtained a copy of Lynch's authorized biography and revealed its most shocking secret - that she was raped by her Iraqi captors.

She has no memory of the rape. The book says there was a three-hour gap after her capture, a blank in her mind, during which she was assaulted.

"Even just the thinking about that, that's too painful," she told Sawyer.

Lynch said she was awakened from her stupor by searing pain.

"I seriously thought I was going to be paralyzed for the rest of my life," she told ABC.

The young soldier said at first she did not trust her Iraqi doctors - and tried to stifle her screams.

Trapped in her bed, Lynch said, she tried to tame her terror by thinking about her family, her fiancé, Sgt. Ruben Contreras, and her G.I. buddy Lori Piestewa.

After she was rescued, she learned Piestewa was dead.

In her book, "I Am a Soldier, Too," author Rick Bragg says the scars on Lynch's body and medical records indicate she was anally raped, and tells the reader to "fill in the blanks of what Jessi lived through on the morning of March 23, 2003."

Lynch says her unit was sent into battle armed only with M-16s - no grenades or anti-tank weapons - and in lumbering trucks that could not keep up with the convoy barreling toward Baghdad.

When the trucks in her unit tried to catch up, radio contact with the main convoy was lost - and so were they.

She was filled with foreboding.

"Jessi's fear of being left behind was beginning to come true," Bragg wrote.


TOPICS: Extended News; Foreign Affairs; Government; Miscellaneous
KEYWORDS: booktour; iamasoldiertoo; jessicalynch; liberalmedia
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Comment #141 Removed by Moderator

To: #3Fan
"So maybe you should be careful who you call a liar."

Did I say that, or did I say, "She's either a liar, or her brain didn't work." I'm intimately familiar with the gun. She had enough time and training on the range that she should have had no problem. As I mentioned before, kids can do it. I'm also familiar with USMC trials and evaluation reports on the guns.

"Many here who have experience with these guns say they can jam before firing."

When they post why, it will be meaningful; otherwise it's not.

142 posted on 11/07/2003 9:22:58 AM PST by spunkets
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To: spunkets
If she did say this she's dense. Her mission was logistics, or maintenance, not combat.

Then how did she get wrapped up in all of this then? Doesn't that point to more of a mistake by the military and not her own?

Not that I expect 0% accidents during a war, but there were some definate errors made in planning out a (relatively) untrained maintenance group driving around in a hostile area for so long.
143 posted on 11/07/2003 9:23:03 AM PST by lelio
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To: Chad Fairbanks; Lijahsbubbe; CyberCowboy777; Polybius; Ispy4u
Ping.
144 posted on 11/07/2003 9:23:32 AM PST by DaughterOfAnIwoJimaVet (Hard work never killed anyone, but why take a chance?)
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To: Coop
By the way, can you tell me what you're so angry about? Lynch said that the Army used her for propaganda, but I don't see where she was angry. And when she said "It was wrong", she was speaking of the Rambo story. I looks like she is just humbly saying that she shouldn't have been labeled a hero out of respect for those who are the heros.

I think you've been easily fooled by the liberal media.

145 posted on 11/07/2003 9:24:07 AM PST by #3Fan
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To: wku man
Therefore, do you still think I'm "bashing" Lynch

No - you hadn't even been on the thread. I pinged you so you could see what she said... It sounded like the truth you were looking for from the other thread.

146 posted on 11/07/2003 9:24:07 AM PST by HairOfTheDog
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To: presidio9
Jessica Lynch has angrily accused the Pentagon...

…she said simply.

I see a disconnect here. Jessica is simply telling her story the way she sees it and she realizes that she has been used as a symbol by people with other motives that she has. She has every right to express her opinion. I don't blame her for not being thrilled about the media coverage of her ordeal. Just because she expresses her feelings about this does not mean she has angrily accused the Pentagon of anything. I'm sure that most members of our military are not thrilled with everything that comes out of there... they would be stepford soldiers if they did. She continues to be used by the media...

147 posted on 11/07/2003 9:24:53 AM PST by twigs
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To: wku man
I'm bashing The Lie, as are most FReepers who you don't agree with.

No - check out the comments.... Most are bashing HER.

148 posted on 11/07/2003 9:25:43 AM PST by HairOfTheDog
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To: SuziQ
In the field of conflict, folklore, mythology, and legends are born.

Even if the Pentagon said that, it's an honest mistake.

By the way, the Pentagon never said the rescue operation was glamorous. It was a specops cakewalk, hard for us - easy for them. They went in, confirm she's an american soldier, and expedited to the waiting chopper. No shots.

That gives us the benefit of the doubt.
149 posted on 11/07/2003 9:25:56 AM PST by Killborn (Half Thai, Half American, 95% Conservative, 100% Insane)
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To: eyespysomething
"This one was released for the public."

Yeah, isn't it a shame that the military decided to show a success story? God forbid they should try to uplift the troops and the American people by showing film footage of the rescue of PFC Lynch, especially after hearing the news of the execution of her comrades.

/sarcasm

150 posted on 11/07/2003 9:26:54 AM PST by mass55th
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To: HairOfTheDog
Thanks for pinging me, by the way. I clicked on the link to the article and this jumped right out at me...

"Jessica Lynch has angrily accused the Pentagon of using her for propaganda."

YES!!! Let this be heard loudly and clearly across the nation! Telling the truth in the face of likely Pentagon pressure, and risking the ire of the feminazis who held her up as proof that "girls can do anything boys can, only better" shows incredible courage. Contrary to what you and others think about my stance, I've never held her in disdain, and I've told you that I was and still am very happy she was rescued. Now I know she's interested in the truth getting out, and that makes her better than OK in my book.

But...The Lie still needs to be squashed.

Scouts Out! Cavalry Ho!

151 posted on 11/07/2003 9:27:44 AM PST by wku man
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To: #3Fan
I never used the word "liar" and neither did spunkets.

I spent 22 years in the military and carried an M-16 for nine years, so I'm not exactly a novice.

I've seen people under stress forget to pull the charging handle, fire all the rounds without realizing they pulled the trigger, eject the magazine without realizing it, etc.

Although a weapon can misfeed when the charging handle is initially released, it is rare. I never experienced it and have fired tens of thousands of rounds through the M-16. When this happens it should be relatively easy to clear if the person has the minimum training.

I think that people are falsly blaming the M-16 when the problem was either very poor maintenance or lack of training.

152 posted on 11/07/2003 9:28:40 AM PST by mbynack
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To: spunkets
Did I say that, or did I say, "She's either a liar, or her brain didn't work."

Yes you called her stupid or a liar. Since she's not stupid then you called her a liar.

I'm intimately familiar with the gun. She had enough time and training on the range that she should have had no problem. As I mentioned before, kids can do it. I'm also familiar with USMC trials and evaluation reports on the guns.

Others here with as much experience as you say it can jam before firing in dusty conditions because of closer tolerances.

When they post why, it will be meaningful; otherwise it's not.

Closer tolerances is what they said.

153 posted on 11/07/2003 9:28:58 AM PST by #3Fan
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To: TheCrusader
Thank you for saying it so well. I think she's a remarkable young lady from a remarkable family. They exhibit the character and fortitude that built our great nation!
154 posted on 11/07/2003 9:30:00 AM PST by twigs
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To: mattdono
"Ok. So, this is all an elaborate scheme by the U.S. government, including the President, the Pentagon, the Army, etc.."

She should be grateful that she's alive so she can vote for Senator Byrd.

/sarcasm

155 posted on 11/07/2003 9:30:07 AM PST by mass55th
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To: mattdono
"However, in her effort to deflect the praise of being a hero, she necessarily made it out like the Pentagon had some elaborate plan to "use" her and her rescue. And that's just wrong for her to do."

I remember being 19 years old, and if you think I don't know anything now, you should have seen me then. Perhaps you remember being 19 too.

What do people expect from a teenage girl who was suddenly placed into combat, saw all her friends die, and suffered a devastating accident that broke her legs, ankles and injured her spinal cord? As if that's not enough she was anally raped by Islamic pigs and dumped into a dungeon "hospital" with no medicine or real doctors to treat her. She lie there hungry, thirsty, raped, broken and bleeding for days, praying and calling out to God for help. She then returns home to find out that everyone and their grandmother were hyping and embellishing her story in an attempt to USE her for their own political or financial gain. This gal feels used and abused, and who the h-ll can blame her?

Lastly, let's not forget that she was sold up the river by the feminists who told her that a girl can be a strong soldier and is equal to men on the battlefield. There is not one conceivable way in which this young gal was not raped by somebody. Jessica Lynch's real story is that WE ALL used her. She was used by feminists to prove that females can be good soldiers, she was used by conservatives to prove that females should not be soldiers. She was used by the news media to sell newspapers and T.V. air time, and she was used by the Pentagon to help further the war effort. She was left behind by the main convoy, and was anally raped by her pig-faced Iraqi captors. She is still suffering from her severe wounds, and from memory loss. And none-the-less she has maintained enough courage and integrity to tell them all to go pound sand up their arses. What is there to not like about this gal?

156 posted on 11/07/2003 9:30:38 AM PST by TheCrusader
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To: Owl_Eagle
Feminazis want females in the military to destroy it. they are socialist who hate all military operations, as it gets in the way of the Worker's Paradise.

Real women like Lori Piestewa, Jessica Lynch, and others ruined that dream for them when they served with dignity and honor all the while espousing American values.

Now Lynch must go. I predict a gradual move by COW to demonize women in the military.

No bets please, I'll probably lose.

But if I'm right, I want to be recognized as a sage. :)
157 posted on 11/07/2003 9:30:58 AM PST by Killborn (Half Thai, Half American, 95% Conservative, 100% Insane)
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To: Stewart_B
For the ones here who have chosen to condemn Jessie Lynch just remember a certain Col. West is fixing to have one broke off in him by the Army.
158 posted on 11/07/2003 9:31:09 AM PST by Stewart_B ("You can get more with a kind word and a gun than you can with a kind word alone.")
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To: DaughterOfAnIwoJimaVet
Gee daughter, you missed all the threads detailing Lynch's torture that you and your friends argued with me about happening a few months ago but you manage to make it to this bashfest. Still agree with Gunrunner that Lynch got excellent care by the Iraqis?
159 posted on 11/07/2003 9:31:20 AM PST by #3Fan
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To: honeygrl
So what were they supposed to do? Demand the media shut up about it? I don't think they have that power.

Hmmmm, when she was talked about on the newshows, why wouldn't they clarify the story? I think the decided to let it stand if it was in fact media hype. We don't know for sure and it may have been initiated by the pentagon.

160 posted on 11/07/2003 9:31:49 AM PST by joesbucks
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