Posted on 10/15/2004 9:47:33 AM PDT by KillBill
http://www.clarionledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20041015/NEWS01/410150366/1002
(No article due to copyright issues. I've written a summary)
A 17-member Army Reserve platoon was arrested for refusing a "suicide mission" to deliver fuel. The 17 were members of the 343rd Quartermaster Company from Rock Hill, S.C. They refused to go to Taji in the north of Iraq because they did not consider their vehicles safe. In the event of an ambush, which they figured likely, they would have been helpless.
Do you have any idea how long discipline would last if every game fell on Monday morning?
I was an Air Force brat. We outranked you Army brats on MAT flights which made a big difference on who got on the plane and who spent another night seeping at the terminal. I can see why you would be resentful.
Standing orders can be countermanded depending on the urgency of the situation. The only person who has to answer to higher authority is the officer or nco who issued the order.
An illegal order is an order that is issued that a reasonable person would know is illegal, such as those claimed by the MP's responsible for prisoner abuses.
In those cases, the authority who issued the order along with the personnel who carry out the orders are complicit.
If officers had their orders questioned every time a unit disagrees with it, we'd never win a battle. In fact our military would degenerate into a democratic nightmare where the officers would require a two thirds majority vote within his unit before he leads them into battle. :^O
Sad thing is, I was an Air Force brat too. I was a defiant child.
The terminology "deadlined" means the equipment is not mission capable. What the vehicles are/were deadlined for is another question altogether. Did a vehicle have two flats on a dual axle trailer? Was the vehicle deadlined for a broken taillight? Both items can cause a vehicle to be deadlined, yet two flats would be an obvious mission stopper, while a broken taillight in a combat zone is not.
Another question would be to ask of the command relationship. Are the leaders competent in their duties? A good NCO would state that his equipment is non-mission capable and tell his officers that he/she could not accomplish the mission with the assets at hand without subjecting his/her soldiers to undue risk. The army uses a risk analysis matrix to perform this.
Why were no force protection measures (i.e. Helo support or convoy protection detail) provided? Unescorted fuel trucks are an easy target.
Who is this "officer" from another unit who stated to one of the soldiers' wives that the mission was a suicide mission? He should display the intestinal fortitude to stand up for those soldiers if that was the true situation.
This is not to condone what may be an outright mutiny. The situation obviously needs to be more thoroughly investigated and reported by other than a third party method.
Probably yankee transplants looking for the college tuition benefit.
Deo Vindice
/jasper
U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson said he plans to submit a congressional inquiry today on behalf of the Mississippi soldiers to launch an investigation into whether they are being treated improperly.
"I would not want any member of the military to be put in a dangerous situation ill-equipped," said Thompson, who was contacted by families. "I have had similar complaints from military families about vehicles that weren't armor-plated, or bullet-proof vests that are outdated. It concerns me because we made over $150 billion in funds available to equip our forces in Iraq.
"President Bush takes the position that the troops are well-armed, but if this situation is true, it calls into question how honest he has been with the country," Thompson said.
http://benniethompson.house.gov/HoR/MS02/Home.htm
Congressman Bennie G. Thompson Is a Democrat and a member of the Congressional Black Caucus. Send him a letter voicing your opinion of his efforts
ping
"if there are barracks in Iraq for U.S. troops, the Air Force has them."
Only if they have satellite TV....
In war you have to follow orders. No doubt. But I smell a rat. There are elements, even in Iraq, of the Democratic Political Machine. What better way of garnering anti-war sympathy than to order or even suggest such a blatantly suicidal mission? Whether these soldiers are killed, or whether saner heads prevail and stop the mission, the thirst of the DNC propaganda machine is quenched. Its a scary thought to know that our brave soldiers could be used as pawns in such diabolitical political gambits, but the same thing happened in Viet Nam. The Communist element of this government, and the evil forces it employs, is broad and far reaching. They should never be underestimated.
Being an AF vet — ROTFLOL!
Also being an Air Force vet...I'd have to agree, he-he!
a deadlined vehicle is one that has a major malfunction, such as alternator not charging, etc. The commander has the authority (especially under combat conditions) to "circle X" the deficiency and order the men to use the equipment. This is probably what happened and the order was refused.....court martial time baby
I, as a infantry officer sitting on a court martial of this case, if the circumstances are as i've described, would pack these guys off the Leavenworth for a very long time.
I find this article very suspicious.
I have tried to search for any information on the 343rd Quartermaster Company from Rock Hill, S.C and all I find is news of their mobilization in late 2003.
If this was a true news story it would be a very high profile story indeed.
I couldn't help but think of those soldiers who supplied the tankers of "Thunder Run" with fuel and ammo while under heavy fire.
Nor does it cite the units TO/E (Table of Organization and Equipment). All support units TO/E specifically state "Members of this Organization will be capable and required to fight as Infantrymen when necessary....". But, that said, Quartermaster and Ordnance support units need to be protected while performing their assigned tasks in hostile combat areas. Normally, it is the Military Police, who has the responsibility to keep all roads clear from the rear areas to the forward areas and escort service for convoys.
This will not be well received by the Bush-bots. It kinda messes up the "everything is going great in Iraq" story.
It will be interesting to see the DoD spin on the story.
Whom, I am SURE gets intel on the impending Iraqi missions daily, right?
NO ONE says everything is going great in Iraq...We are working on making it better...
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