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Show sheds light on female soldiers' role in Iraq
Fayetteville Observer ^ | 4/27/08 | Henry Cuningham

Posted on 04/27/2008 2:57:42 PM PDT by Dawnsblood

Army Spc. Shannon Morgan looked around and realized she had been left behind by the Marine squad she was accompanying through a mean Iraqi neighborhood.

Alone and surrounded by a hostile crowd, all Morgan had to depend on were her wits and an automatic rifle capable of firing hundreds of rounds a minute.

At that time, Morgan was a Lioness, a female U.S. soldier who goes on missions in Iraq to help diffuse situations involving local women.

Her only ally that day was another Lioness on a rooftop who saw Morgan’s predicament and yelled to alert her to the danger.

Morgan escaped to safety and returned to her unit, so angry that she had been left behind that she kicked her squad leader in the crotch.

Morgan, who is 27, has returned to civilian life . She is one of five women featured in “Lioness,” a new feature documentary that tells how the unofficial program began in late 2003 around Ramadi, the most hostile part of Iraq at the time.

The film had its North American premiere this month at the Full Frame Documentary Film Festival in Durham. The New York premiere is this weekend.

The 82-minute film tells the story of the special role of the Lionesses, who seem to have been left out of the planning beforehand and edited out of history afterward. It’s a stark reminder of the increasing role women play in the all-volunteer military.

(Excerpt) Read more at fayobserver.com ...


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Foreign Affairs; News/Current Events; War on Terror
KEYWORDS: iraq; lioness; militarywomen; movie

1 posted on 04/27/2008 2:57:42 PM PDT by Dawnsblood
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To: Dawnsblood

This story disturbs me. The Lioness Program was instituted for the inspection of Iraqi females at check points because it is inappropriate for male soldiers to touch women and the terrorists were enlisting women to smuggle weapons through the checkpoints. So ... what was she doing alone? Did she not hear the call to move out? Why wouldn’t someone in the unit keep track of her? Was the check point abandoned? What was another Lioness doing on a roof? ... sniper duty?

How could anyone justify someone kicking a fellow soldier in the crotch? How did she decide which soldier to kick? Where was the squad or platoon leader? Things don’t add up here.


2 posted on 04/27/2008 3:44:36 PM PDT by svxdave (Life is too short to wear a fake Rolex.)
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To: svxdave

I agree. I very agreed.


3 posted on 04/27/2008 3:52:03 PM PDT by squarebarb
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To: squarebarb

Urk. That should be I very agree.

Just a little cute non-grammaticality there.


4 posted on 04/27/2008 3:52:53 PM PDT by squarebarb
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To: Dawnsblood
Morgan escaped to safety and returned to her unit, so angry that she had been left behind that she kicked her squad leader in the crotch.

Women PFC's get a free pass at kicking their squad leaders in the crotch?

5 posted on 04/27/2008 3:56:57 PM PDT by SauronOfMordor (When injustice becomes law, rebellion becomes duty)
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To: svxdave

>>Military editor Henry Cuningham can be reached at cuninghamh@fayobserver.com or 486-3585.
So this asshat is actually advertised as a military reporter? See below:

>>Breslow-Kynaston, a college-educated signal officer ...
Uh, ALL military officers are college-educated.

>>She grew up in a religious family and wondered if she could go to hell for killing people.
I guess her “religious family” or Mr. C. never read the bible. The Hebrew word is “murder”, not “kill”. Big difference.

>>“I felt like the Gestapo,” she said. “All I could think of was, ‘What would I do if they did this to me.’ ”
So, you’re comparing potential homicide bombers to the poor unarmed bastards the Nazis mowed down by the millions?


6 posted on 04/27/2008 4:01:09 PM PDT by QBFimi2 (Ve are the New World Order; ve bring to the world dis-order. Spike Jones, 1943.)
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Comment #7 Removed by Moderator

To: Warmagus

No need for that kind of language, newbie. This is a family-friendly site (most of the time).


8 posted on 04/27/2008 4:12:12 PM PDT by rabidralph (The Clintons managed to make $109M during Pres. Bush's "failed" economy.)
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To: Dawnsblood
Hold on here, Henry Cuningham has just earned three extra stars for writing a 'negative' Military story. With a female lead he gets another two stars.

Now he is only five starts short of getting a completely free retreat to the NC democRAT State Convention:-)

9 posted on 04/27/2008 4:14:18 PM PDT by geo40xyz (McCain, Obama or Hillarybeast possibility of 4 Supreme Court Justices, Gore @UN. The WINNER is?)
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To: SauronOfMordor

“Women PFC’s get a free pass at kicking their squad leaders in the crotch?”

I’m a guy and if some dumb SL had left me like that he’d wish I’d *only* kicked him in the nards.


10 posted on 04/27/2008 4:20:48 PM PDT by PLMerite ("Unarmed, one can only flee from Evil. But Evil isn't overcome by fleeing from it." Jeff Cooper)
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To: PLMerite; SauronOfMordor
“Women PFC’s get a free pass at kicking their squad leaders in the crotch?”

I’m a guy and if some dumb SL had left me like that he’d wish I’d *only* kicked him in the nards.

She most likely fell behind the rest of the squad when she got distracted by a shoe sale...

***Duck and Run!!!***

11 posted on 04/27/2008 4:25:31 PM PDT by Grizzled Bear ("Does not play well with others.")
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To: Grizzled Bear

Yeah, it’s possible the “ooh, pretty!” had something to do with it, but I wouldn’t say that to her face...


12 posted on 04/27/2008 4:27:18 PM PDT by PLMerite ("Unarmed, one can only flee from Evil. But Evil isn't overcome by fleeing from it." Jeff Cooper)
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To: Grizzled Bear

lol...you just wait till the menopause mafia shows up on this thread you sexist piggie


13 posted on 04/27/2008 4:28:47 PM PDT by wardaddy (I wish a real conservative had the balls to win that The Witch does)
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To: SauronOfMordor

Well, at least she didn’t roll a live grenade into his tent.


14 posted on 04/27/2008 4:35:27 PM PDT by rabidralph (The Clintons managed to make $109M during Pres. Bush's "failed" economy.)
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To: Dawnsblood

Why does she need male soldiers to protect her?


15 posted on 04/27/2008 5:01:54 PM PDT by donna (Obama on cocaine: Pot had helped, and booze; maybe a little blow when you could afford it.)
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