[WOSG]

"They are trying to trap us with the rules we follow ... They blanket themselves in the grey area of war," the officer said.

NOT ONLY ARE OUR OFFICERS GREAT SOLDIERS, THEY ARE ELOQUENT AS WELL.

[VOA]

The marines said that rules of engagement had been eased to allow the readier use
of tanks and artillery.

"Sir, unleash us!"

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[jimbo123]

Reporting by: Agence France-Presse (AFP)

[ErnBatavia]

I want to see a Congressional Medal of Honor come out of this action....I can't say why, but it seems like a good time to herald our troops in this manner...

[BayouCoyote]

An AFP correspondent said he saw a dog pulling at one body which had been in the sun for at least 24 hours.


Dog will hunt BUMP!!

Seriously, God bless our troops!

[dead]

Intelligence reports said Friday that insurgent snipers were taking positions in mosque minarets

Why don’t we just replace those towering minarets with six-inch tall piles of rubble?

It absolutely has to happen. Is there some sort of minimum number of dead marines we’re waiting for before we do it?

How many dead US politicians would it take before we'd flatten them?

[Eurotwit]

More than 450 dead in Fallujah according to Reuters.

[laredo44]

In the squalid streets lying between the US troops and insurgents, bodies could be seen, left where they fell as relatives were too afraid to recover them for burial.

Burial? When did they start the practice of burying the dead in that city?

[r9etb]

If they've counted 300 dead and 500 wounded, that means the actual toll is probably higher.

The salamikazes can't sustain losses like that -- but I hope they try.

[sns5151]

As I checked my email one last time before heading to bed,
I noticed I had a new message from Melissa (our daughter in-law).

Although,
as of 7:45 am on the 9th of April, I still have not heard my son's voice since Feb. 16th. when he called to let me know he was leaving for Iraqi in a day or two.
At this point in time,
NO NEWS is Good News for some of us.

Each day is the same struggles,
I fight back tears with prayers, nevertheless,
knowing
God Never Fails,
Keeps my spirits up.

Please keep not just my son LT. Robert Scott in your prayers, but all those that
keep the peace for others around the world and this country safe and free.

Semper Fi.
marine wife/mom in Chicago


The message from LT. CO. Paul Kennedy:

Dear Ladies, the last two days have been the hardest two days this battalion has faced in over 30 years. Within the blink of an eye the situation went form relatively calm to a raging storm. You've known that since arriving there has been violence; attacks have been sporadic and mostly limited to roadside bombs. Your husbands have become experts at recognizing those threats and neutralizing them before we are injured. Up to this point the war has been the purview of corporals and sergeants, and the squad they lead.

Yesterday the enemy upped the ante.

Early in the morning we exchanged gunfire with a group of insurgents without significant loss. As morning progressed, the enemy fed more men into the fight and we responded with stronger force. Unfortunately, this led to injuries as our Marines and sailors started clearing the city block by block. The enemy did not run; they fought us like soldiers. And we destroyed the enemy like only Marines can. By the end of the evening the local hospital was so full of their dead and wounded that they ran out of space to put them. Your husbands were awesome all night they stayed at the job of securing the streets and nobody challenged them as the hours wore on. They did not surrender an inch nor did flinch from the next potential threat. Previous to yesterday the terrorist thought that we were soft enough to challenge. As of tonight the message is loud and clear that the Marines will not be beaten.

Today the enemy started all over again, although with far fewer numbers, only now the rest of the battalion joined the fight. Without elaborating to much, weapons company and Golf crushed their attackers with the vengeance of the righteous. They filled up the hospitals again and we suffered only a few injuries. Echo company dominated the previous day's battlefield. Fox company patrolled with confidence and authority; nobody challenged them. Even Headquarters Company manned their stations and counted far fewer people openly watching us with disdain. If the enemy is foolish enough to try to take your men again they will not survive contact. We are here to win.

The news looks grim from back in the States. We did take losses that, in our hearts, we will always live with. The men we lost were taken within the very opening minutes of the violence. They could not have foreseen the treachery of the enemy and they did not suffer. We can never replace these Marines and Sailors but they will fight on with us in spirit. We are not feeling sorry for ourselves nor do we fear what tomorrow will bring. The battalion has lived up to its reputation as Magnificent Bastards.

Yesterday made everyone here stronger and wiser; it will be a cold day in Hell before we are taken for granted again.

Paul Kennedy and Jim Booker

[upchuck]

"They are trying to trap us with the rules we follow ... They blanket themselves in the grey area of war," the officer said.

Well, maybe we should change our rules. If these scumbags try and use a mosque for cover, destroy the mosque! We'd only have to do that once or twice and they'd quit.

An AFP correspondent said he saw a dog pulling at one body which had been in the sun for at least 24 hours.

Ahhh... we all know the sun never sets in beautiful Iraq :)

[TomHarkinIsNotFromIowa]

What kind of psychopath did it take to run this country?

[PattonReincarnated]

Intelligence reports said Friday that insurgent snipers were taking positions in mosque minarets in the town west of Baghdad where hundreds have been killed in six days of fighting

Sounds like time to break out the secret weapon. Not much has be said about this weapon, but it is a non-destructive weapon that renders Islamic terrorists (in this case snipers) inoperable on mosque grounds. The weapons program has been a carefully gaurded secret, based in a remote corner of Kirtland Air Force Base in New Mexico. Sandia National Laboratories and Boeing have spearheaded in what is being called a first in weapons programs. What is amazing is the amount of time spend on the program. The development started in May, 2003 and has moved from drawing boards, to prototype, to deployment in Iraq.

Based on the KC-135 Stratotanker, the new weapon, has the designation of PF-135. Military sources have refused to publicly acknowledge the development of the PF-135. Sources close to the weapons program have stated that development was able to proceed at a "blistering" pace due to the relative few modifications to the KC-135.

Sandia Labs, in conjuction with unnamed and secret Los Alamos project, have been able to quickly adapt the world's smallest and most stable nuclear reactor as a power plant. While development efforts existed in the 1950's for nuclear powered aircraft, this project bears no relation. According to unnamed sources, the nuclear power plant is not used to power the aircraft, but to be an internal heat source.

There is much speculation over exactly how the new weapon system will work. One project scientist, with an PhD in Astro Physics from Cal Tech, and a PhD in Theology from Liberty University, has stated that the weapon will completely render any Muslim terrorist or Muslim place of worship inoperable. Information obtained in deep background, which only today has allowed be released in this exclusive report, may reveal just how this weapon fuctions. The new aircraft designation, PF, stands for "Pig Fat". It is speculated that the aircraft's power plant literally renders pig fat, which in turn when dumped from the aircraft will render any Muslim or Muslim place of worship inoperative.

[af_vet_1981]

Major Pete Farnum said: "We went into pause but the enemy kept attacking us on the western side of the city. We had to defend outsrevles so we asked for permission to return to offensive operation. This was granted." There was no further word from Bremer or the coalition's deputy director of military operations, Brigadier General Mark Kimmitt, who had earlier insisted the suspension of offensive operations was still in force.

There should be no further word from Bremer or Brigadier General Mark Kimmitt except to announce the unconditional surrender of the enemy. All terrorists should surrender or be killed. No amnesty. No retreat. No deals.

This is what the Israelis had to put up with.

[VMI70]

"Paul Bremer, the US overseer in Iraq (news - web sites), earlier announced a unilateral 24-hour halt in hostilities to enable talks..."

Trump (and any other normal person) to Bremer:

You're fired!

What the hell is the matter with this doofus?

[Natural Law]

Having spent considerable time in the middle east I have an observation that deserves some discussion and consideration. Arabs and Arab culture have an inherent conflict; they are an honor based society yet harbor a deep seated inferiority complex with respect to the west. They demand "Unconditional Respect" as a remedy. Many of the extreme positions and actions taken are for the sole purpose of provoking a disrespectful response to give them an excuse to justifiably retaliate. Even an undesirable outcome to an act of revenge is a redemption.Our problem is that as long as they are screwed up and inferior to the west they will be a problem.

That means we will have this problem for a long, long time unless we act to change them. The only realistic solution is to westernize them (aka Nation Building)as will take place in Iraq if Bush is successful.

[MinuteGal]

I heard on radio today that the dead are being buried in graves in a city stadium field.

Leni

[XHogPilot]

the CPA should gather all the prominent tribal leaders of Fallujah, Ramadi, Khaldiyah (since those towns are largely tribal ones) and give them two options; either to hand out all weaponry and ammunitions, plus any insurgents and foreign terrorists they have amongst them, or to face the consequences which could be pulling out of the area completely, halting all reconstruction and humanitarian efforts, and leaving it behind the rest of Iraq, if that's what they want.

http://healingiraq.blogspot.com zeyad: 4/5/2004

I've always found Doctor Zeyad to be thought provoking. Again he did not fail.