As many of you know, in March the Marine Special Operations Command had a convoy attacked in Bati Kot, Afghanistan (a town full of Taliban/Al Queda sympathizers) by a vehicle born I.E.D. (i.e., a suicide bomber in a car). According to Marines, the convoy was then ambushed twice by men using small arms fire. The Marines counterattacked, and in the battle civilians (alleged) were killed. When the town protested with wild claims of gun-happy and drunk Marines intentionally attacking civilians, the Army General in command of the area publicly kicked the entire unit out of the country, stating that the ferocity of the Marines had hurt our image in Afghanistan. This, of course, played directly into the hands of the attackers, who had hoped that an attack in a populated area would result in neutering the Marines.
The unit is now out of the country, not being used at all. Several of the Marines are now on trial; though the suicide bomber is not disputed, the Marines have been accused of imagining the ambushes (despite a. bullet holes in the humvees, and b. the fact that the unit is comprised of the most highly trained servicemen in the Marines, most of whom have already seen action in multiple deployments). Luckily, the X.O. was on the scene immediately following the attack with a camera to document the evidence, or these men might have been sacrificed for PR (I am a lifelong friend of the X.O., a man of the highest integrity and faith).
I am not sure why military leaders continue to throw our fighting men under the bus, but it has got to stop. The parents of the X.O. (who is not one of the accused Marines) have founded a site to get news out about the trials, and raise money to support the accused, including the C.O., who is now back in the U.S.
Being a close friend to the X.O., I have seen first hand the dedication, effort, and training it took to stand up a new unit over the last two years. I also know that until just prior to deployment, they were going to Iraq, but then the same Army commanders who are now accusing the Marines of using to much force, specifically pulled strings to get the Marines in theater, as their close relations to the tribal warlords precluded "kinetic" action by the Army special forces. They were asked to be the "Hammer".
The more I learn about the case, the more disgusted I am. Something must be done here guys. Anyone who has ever read my posts can tell you that I am not prone to undiscerning or overly simplistic opinion, and I have never posted a vanity. Please check out the site and forward the link. It has only been up a few days, and is under construction, so have patience!
P.S. the father or the X.O., and founder of the site is a contributor the the John Locke Foundation, and a serious conservative. You guys would love him.
Agreed.
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