Posted on 08/25/2005 10:35:17 AM PDT by saquin
[...]
About fifteen seconds later our ramp dropped. We ran into combat.
Folks who haven't done much urban fighting might take issue with the wild chases, and they might say that people should always "stack up" and do things this or that way, but men in Delta Force, SEALs and the like, all know that when chasing wild men into the labyrinth, soldiers enter the land of confusion. If soldiers don't go fast, the bad guys simply get away. Just a few minutes ago, these three guys were going "105 miles per hour," and outrunning a helicopter.
There were shops, alleys, doorways, windows . . .which to me screamed: death, death, death, death...
The soldiers with LTC Kurilla were searching fast, weapons at the ready, and they quickly flex-cuffed two men. But these were not the right guys. Meanwhile, SSG Konkol's men were clearing towards us, leaving the three bad-guys boxed, but free.
Shots were fired behind us but around a corner to the left.
Both the young 2nd lieutenant and the young specialist were inside a shop when a close-quarters firefight broke out, and they ran outside. Not knowing how many men they were fighting, they wanted backup. LTC Kurilla began running in the direction of the shooting. He passed by me and I chased, Kurilla leading the way.
There was a quick and heavy volume of fire. And then LTC Kurilla was shot.
LTC Erik Kurilla (front right), the moment the bullets strike.(2nd LT front-left; radioman near-left; "AH" the interpreter is near-right.)
Three bullets reach flesh: One snaps his thigh bone in half.
[...]
Kurilla was running when he was shot, but he didn't seem to miss a stride; he did a crazy judo roll and came up shooting.
The Commander fights...
News the LSM will never report.
Ping
I'm not sure what you mean by "a full Hochstedder." Is that some kind of reference to the character on Hogan's Heroes? Nevertheless, I think you make a good point about the people who say they're not satisfied with the war effort.
ping
I don't know if I'm thinking about the same photo you are -- it was from a few months ago when a car bomb went off where children were gathered to receive some candy from U.S. troops.
The picture I saw was really heartbreaking. But I didn't save a copy, and I'm not sure it was taken by Yon -- I don't see a copy of that picture at his site.
The following explains the M-16 and the ballistics of the .223 round.
LTC Kurilla = American Hero. (mainstream media coverage = 0)
Capt. Dave Rozelle = American Hero. (mainstream media coverage = minimal)
Lindy England = American Hosebag. (mainstream media coverage = neverending)
If there was ever an article that FReepers need to forward to local radio talk show hosts, this is it. Have any of the big guys like Rush mentioned Yon?
I take it from the story that there is an "imminent danger" exception to journalists picking up a weapon; anyone know more about this?
The difference is that a standard .22 is moving at around 1100-1200 feet per second while a .223 is moving at nearly 3 times that velocity. This results in a huge increase in energy delivered to the target.
People have been calling the .223 (or 5.56mm, its NATO designation) since its introduction back in the 1960s. Personally, I wouldn't want to get shot with either of them.
The problem is that there isn't a bullet made that 'knocks people down' with one shot unless you strike them in the brain or the spinal cord. That incorrect impression is something we can thank Hollywood for.
Bullets 'stop' people by two methods. The best is a brain or spine shot. This instantly nuetralizes enemies for obvious reasons. The second method is that bullets cause death or incapacitation by inflicting trauma which causes massive bleeding.
Even if you sever someones jugular vein or femoral artery it still takes time for the body to 'depressurize' or bleed out to the point the subject can no longer fight back. Now I'm willing to bet that the mope who took three 5.56mm rounds is now enjoying the hospitality of Satan, but he still had enough strengt to pull his trigger a few more times.
Ideally, if you're in a life threatening situation and fighting with a firearm you want to use the '2 to the chest and 1 to the head' method. But, that isn't always realistic-especially if someone is shooting back at you.
I hope that helps.
L
That help, thanks.
Do the Ak-47's that the terrorists often use have more or less impact than this .223?
later read.
I've fired the M-16 at exactly two range sessions, so I'm no expert, but I will say this: If a guy is still up and firing after a bullet carries away his testicle, the situation would not be different if the bullet that carried away his testicle was larger or speedier. Granted, the guy had some chest wounds, but as a poster further down says, only a spectacular head shot or a lucky high spinal cord hit will drop someone before they can squeeze off a few rounds of their own.
Am I a bad person because this made my day?
Am I a bad person because this also made my day? I'm going to be in an extra good mood for two days running!
The AK fires a 7.62mm diameter bullet, roughly .30 caliber. It has a 'muzzle energy' roughly equivalent to your granddads .30-30 deer rifle. It doesn't have the velocity the 5.56mm does. I think the standard velocity is something like 2500 feet per second.
Now I'm going to hazard starting one of those long arguments and say that to my mind the two cartridges are roughly equivalant out to a couple of hundred yards. Beyond that the 5.56mm seems to retain more velocity. And, the M-16 rifle is miles ahead of the AK in terms of long range accuracy.
When I qualified in the Corps we were required to be able to hit man sized targets at 600 meters. Doing that with an AK would be sheer luck.
If you want to learn more about firearms, I suggest sighing up for the bang_list. That's where FRs gun geeks (and yes, I am one) hang out.
L
We need a HEREOS section with links to these stories. There was one yesterday of a US Col. who just got a very high award for leading Iraqi special forces after an attack where they lost their officers.
I know if you give a blogger news status, you might think you're opening some floodgates or establishing a double standard. But this guy is in a class by himself, and if somebody can post two or three Rush Limbaugh transcripts a day in "news," then an embedded report from Iraq certainly belongs there.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.