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Ethnic diversity of U.S. troops puzzles Iraqis
St. Louis Post-Dispatch ^ | Apr. 9, 2003 07:10 AM | Ron Harris

Posted on 04/14/2003 8:32:52 AM PDT by Hoppean

Edited on 05/07/2004 5:21:10 PM PDT by Jim Robinson. [history]

SOUTH OF BAGHDAD - The Marines were less than 48 hours into their invasion of Iraq when Pfc. Michael Lara of Raymondville, Texas., was first asked the question that he and some other Marines would get repeatedly from civilians.

Lara, 19, was standing guard in the turret of his Humvee manning a machine gun along the Shatt Al-Basra bridge in southern Iraq when an old man and his two sons asked permission to pass across the strategic checkpoint.


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


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Foreign Affairs; Miscellaneous; Political Humor/Cartoons; War on Terror
KEYWORDS: diversity; ethnic; iraq; iraqis; meltingpot; race; troops; war
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Many Americans at home have the same difficulty telling who's who. :)
1 posted on 04/14/2003 8:32:52 AM PDT by Hoppean
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2 posted on 04/14/2003 8:35:00 AM PDT by Support Free Republic (Your support keeps Free Republic going strong!)
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To: MeeknMing; Luis Gonzalez; Bella_Bru
no lie! I've seen this on FR alone.

:)

3 posted on 04/14/2003 8:37:04 AM PDT by TxBec (Tag! You're it!)
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To: Hoppean
Apparently they have a gender ID problem too. I read this morning that Shoshanna wasn't pegged for being a woman until the captors started removing her chemical suit.
4 posted on 04/14/2003 8:37:30 AM PDT by ErnBatavia (Bumperootus!)
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To: Hoppean
This reminds me of when American troops first occupied Japan in 1945. The Japanese couldn't understand the black troops. The black military even started a joke telling the Japanese that they were specially bred Americans, trained for night fighting. And the Japanese often believed it!
5 posted on 04/14/2003 8:37:39 AM PDT by xJones (I)
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To: Hoppean
I don't...We are all Americans. ;)
6 posted on 04/14/2003 8:38:45 AM PDT by EricT.
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To: Hoppean
America!!! The REAL United Nations!!!

My family is "redneck" as far back as we can find and I am married to a first generation American of Puerto Rican heritage. They sure make'em beautiful down there!!!

7 posted on 04/14/2003 8:40:12 AM PDT by Onelifetogive
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To: Hoppean
Considering how the tightly the regime controlled the country, and how Americans have been characterized in general on Iraqi TV, I doubt that most Iraqis have ever seen a Hispanic or Filipino before, which makes the disbelief understandable. Fairly amazing in this day of instant communications, though.
8 posted on 04/14/2003 8:45:05 AM PDT by browardchad
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To: Hoppean
What is an American?

We are the oppressed, the poor, the dregs of the world who were sent to a new land. We are the Mutts of Europe, the Dregs of Africa, the oppressed of Arabia and Asia. We are the throw aways that the rest of the world had no use for.

We came to this country and built a force for Freedom under God that no man or Government on Earth can Conquer.

That is what an American is.

Semper Fi
9 posted on 04/14/2003 8:52:18 AM PDT by Leatherneck_MT (Another Marine Reporting Sir, I've served my time in Hell)
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To: Onelifetogive
Same here! I am of a 57 variety ethenic(sp) background that is married to a Polynesian/Brit. My younger son could be ID'd as someone from the Middle East, Mexico, French, Italian, PR, Spain, Turkey, etc.
We went to Tahiti when he was a baby, everyone wanted to know why an American woman (with glow in the dark skin) had a Tahitian baby. My husband looks Brit like his dad so many people think that our son is adopted.
People are so nosy, so it makes for some humorous questions
being asked.
10 posted on 04/14/2003 9:04:53 AM PDT by notpoliticallycorewrecked
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To: Onelifetogive
first generation American of Puerto Rican heritage

Puerto Ricans have been Americans for a lot longer than one generation.

11 posted on 04/14/2003 9:06:49 AM PDT by ASA Vet ("Those who know, don't talk. Those who talk, don't know." (I'm in the 2nd group.))
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To: xJones
very cool - first time I've ever heard that...
12 posted on 04/14/2003 9:10:52 AM PDT by Amalie (Its STILL too dangerous to vote Democratic...)
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To: notpoliticallycorewrecked
" My younger son could be ID'd as someone from the Middle East, Mexico, French, Italian, PR, Spain, Turkey, etc. "

LOL! We've got a 5 m/o that's a mess as well. English, Chinese, American Indian, Scotch/Irish, Cambodian, and French.

13 posted on 04/14/2003 9:13:19 AM PDT by elfman2
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To: Hoppean
And the young corporal who put the flag on the falling status was born in Burma ... moved to the US when he was one week old.
14 posted on 04/14/2003 9:16:14 AM PDT by BunnySlippers
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To: elfman2
America IS the promised land.
15 posted on 04/14/2003 9:19:15 AM PDT by wm25burke
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To: Hoppean
Many Americans at home have the same difficulty telling who's who.

Yes, the Left has great difficulty with enemy recognition.

16 posted on 04/14/2003 9:19:17 AM PDT by libertylover (Is he dead yet?)
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To: Hoppean
Bump
17 posted on 04/14/2003 9:23:14 AM PDT by Fiddlstix
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To: Hoppean
"...we're U.S., we're all U.S."

Amen to that - what a great country, the most ethnically diverse nation in history, but "...we're U.S., we're all U.S."
God (continue to) Bless America !!

18 posted on 04/14/2003 9:24:24 AM PDT by Psalm 73 ("Gentlemen, you can't fight in here - this is a war room".)
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To: Hoppean
It is the people who give their nationality without a hyphen that made this nation great. Our strenght was never from the lie of "diversity".
19 posted on 04/14/2003 9:24:55 AM PDT by Blood of Tyrants (Even if the government took all your earnings, you wouldn’t be, in its eyes, a slave.)
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To: BunnySlippers

20 posted on 04/14/2003 10:06:37 AM PDT by Reeses
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