The small-town girl who ended up on every channel (Lynndie England – Leash Girl)

The Baltimore Sun via SMH ^ | May 7, 2004 | John Woestendiek in Fort Ashby, West Virginia

[dead]

Lynndie England loved a good storm. During tornado warnings her mother would have to drag her back inside the house. Her teachers say she wanted a career as a storm-chaser.

Now, the perfect storm has found her.

From hometown hero to the reviled woman holding the leash . . . US Reserve
soldier Lynndie England with an Iraqi prisoner in Baghdad's Abu Ghraib prison.
Photo: The Washington Post

The petite 21-year-old army reservist from the quiet crossroads town of Fort Ashby in West Virginia is the most visible character in the controversy over the abuse of Iraqi detainees at Abu Ghraib prison. She is the thumbs-up girl, the pixie-ish, T-shirted soldier, smiling, pointing and posing for the camera with naked and humiliated inmates.

Soon after the release of the photographs, Terrie England was on the telephone with her daughter while watching television.

Full story ...

[fooman]

Had we just killed these prisnors, we would have then been on Terra Firma in the wonderful world of moral equivalence.

[WOSG]

"As one earlier poster said, we judge ourselves by OUR standards,"

Nobody is arguing that.

"We treat our prisoners humanely, period. There is no excuse for this behavior, period. Would you want OUR soldiers treated this way, merely because they are enemy combatants?"

if you know what happened in Gulf War I, our soldiers were treated quite a bit worse - some were regularly beaten, the sanitary conditions were awful, men forced to wallow in their own feces. You DO know btw that last year, when some of the soldiers were captured, some were executed?

I am *sure* - even with this exceptional and unacceptable case of abuse - our soldiers would rather take the average treatment the US is giving the enemy soldiers over the actual treatment of our soldiers by saddam's men that took place.

[Docbarleypop]

It is just too sureal for me to comprehend. I would not be suprised if these were staged or doctored.

[AmericanInTokyo]

There is BOUND to be a Saturday Night Live, or MAD TV takeoff on her this coming Saturday night.

I'll bet a six pack on it. She is getting her 15 minutes of fame (and probably a year in the slammer).

[cake_crumb]

You've got that right.

[WOSG]

we're on the same page... Frankly, I was chastizing some in the 'no big deal' corner early on. It is a big deal, and it has alas provoked some antipathy in Iraq, but IMHO the Bush administration has gone above and beyond to express the needed regret, condemn the acts, and act to correct it.

Therefore, the catcalls from Congress and the media have the ring of opportunism...


"I've been saying the same things for days and getting flamed for it by hyperventilating FReepers, most of whom I've never seen post before."

hmmmm, interesting final comment, I'll keep my eyes peeled..

[bullseye1911]

I ran out of gas. I had a flat tire. I didn't have enough money for cab fare. My tux didn't come back from the cleaners. An old friend came in from out of town. Someone stole my car. There was an earthquake! A terrible flood! Locusts! It wasn't my fault, I swear to God!

Or the Homer defense: "I swear I would have never done it if I thought I'd get caught!"

[Dead Corpse]

I'd love it if our prisoners were treated that way. So far we've found them executed, chopped up, burnt, and rarely in one piece.

Not holding my breath with these fanatics. They'll die a thousand times over for their cause. Pain and suffering have no meaning for them as they see themselves as martyrs. This humiliation, and forcing them to stay alive to endure it, may actually be the only way to get through to them.

[twigs]

Some day I'm going to stand before the Judge and he's going to ask me about my heart and my behavior based on His standards. He's not going to ask me what the other guy did. I hate what these people are doing to us as much as anyone, but I'm not called to holiness based on who they are. But I am based on the One who died for my lack of holiness, my sin. And He died for their sins too.

[Nov3]

Amen

[WOSG]

Yes, there is irony here. This nonphysical humilation-abuse make *great media copy*. Funny thing how a sexual/depravity angle just revs up the 'interest' level.
Had the soldiers beat the tar out of prisoners and never taken pictures, we wouldnt have a media firestorm.

[Antoninus]

Is it my imagination or does this "soldier" have a giant head on a tiny body. She is very bizarrely proportioned. Something looks wrong with this photo....

[af_vet_rr]

It's war. If my child were riding in a Hummvee around Fallujah waiting for a roadside bomb to send him to me in a plastic bag, I would care even less about "hazing" in a prison full of terrorists.

You wouldn't have a problem with your child engaging in sexually deviant acts, all the while hamming it up for the camera?

One of my children is in the military, as are two nephews and a niece. Two of them are in Iraq. You would not find them forcing men and women into sexually deviant (homosexual, s&m, etc.) positions such as we have seen, no matter if they are terrorists or not.

There is no excuse for that kind of behavior.

The fact that that woman's family is criticizing President Bush and others, about his speaking out against such deviant/sinful acts speaks volumes about their household and how they raised her.

[rogercolleridge]

Same reason why people rubberneck at traffic accidents...

Oh yes, now I see.

[WOSG]

"Damned right. This girl does not look like she is enjoying it. The pic was staged, she didn't tear his close off, ravage him, then put a leash on him. I'd bet the intent was to photograph him, so he can see the pic later in an attempt to break his sense of self worth. Once he betrays himself, he will betray his comrades...and that will save our sons and daughters."

That theory indicates that she would be ordered to pose. And maybe they got the women in the pics to increase the humilation. This is good and bad ... good, that our guards are probably not sadists or creeps, bad that someone thought this act was an approvable or valid treatment. no wonder Karpinski wanted to blame mil intel. officers.

Also indicates that it would be unjust to throw the book at this female private and not the officers in charge. She was a pawn.

[AppyPappy]

You wouldn't have a problem with your child engaging in sexually deviant acts, all the while hamming it up for the camera?

Their dad did it. Put it in perspective. These people were fed to dogs and plastic shredders a few years ago. Yeah, it's stupid but it doesn't rise to the level of "torture". It's hazing.

[Antoninus]

As a side note, where was the outrage in the Arab community when Saddaam was doing worse than this to his OWN people??

Difference--there were no pictures. And even if there were, the media wouldn't have run them.

[cake_crumb]

"Therefore, the catcalls from Congress and the media have the ring of opportunism..."

That's exactly what it is. The actions were bad enough, the pictures were worse. The fact that the events in Abu Graib took place last fall, an investigation began a day later, and CBS got it's info from the military report on the investigation & punishment proves it. The media barely gave it any coverage when it first came out. NOW, they've got pictures. The hyped "outrage" is all the more disgusting because they're trying to score political points from human humiliation. Then again, what else can we expect from a bunch of people still trying to score political points from the murders of 3,128 people.

[rintense]

She looked like she was enjoying smoking that cigarette and pointing to male genitals. Sorry my ass.

[AD from SpringBay]

The whole thing seems a bit out of context and we don't know enough about what's going on. AND - I don't think it matters what I want. It is a war situation - that's one of the things that makes it so horrible. Let's not pretend to be civilized when two groups of people gather to destroy one another.

If it were my jail there would be pig-skin blankets, ham sandwiches for lunch and, if everyone behaved, I'd let them watch reruns of the Ellen Degenres show - on loud speaker.