[arasina]

14 Marines dead today. Why? Who are they fighting over there? Have our guys gotten any 'kills' in the past 3 months? Won any 'battles'? Stopped any 'terrorists' from making it over here? (Yes, I'm developing quite the cynical view of the 'war' these days. All the placating platitudes aren't working for me anymore.)

[section9]

Oh, Jesus God, plenty. Our guys get kills every day. You just don't hear about it.

Haji doesn't win battlefield victories against us. He does set off IED's against us, which accounts for most of our casualties now.

Haditha lies along their main infiltration route from Syria into Baghdad central along the Euphrates River. They'd like to be left alone to do their business. We don't want to leave them alone. So they are contesting the area. Expect heavy casualties as we clean them out. Haditha has always been the world's armpit. Saddam had problems with that place, as I recall.

Yesterday, we lost two sniper teams to an ambush job. It's bad business in Haditha. II Expeditionary Force command now knows that Haditha is important to Mr. Z. They're probably going to stay awhile.

Be Seeing You,

Chris

[Just A Nobody]

You are not new on FR. Why don't you sign up for the "Daily Terrorist Round-Up" or "Operation Phantom Fury" so you know what is going on everyday and see what a great job our honorable military is doing.

[MEG33]

My..Don't you read here anymore?

[F16Fighter]

"[Despite battling terrorists in Iraq] Have our guys...Stopped any 'terrorists' from making it over here?"

Good point....

We do realize the answer to your question is a resounding "NO."

While U.S. Armed Forces fight tooth and nail fighting and sacrificing as part of the so-called WoT, "making it over here" has been a mere matter of strolling into America over the Mexican border on a red carpet.

The Minutemen tried to do something about it, but were called "vigilantes."

Do we know just who may be "making it over here" since 9/11?

Could be ANYBODY. Even Terrorists. A lot of them.

[68 grunt]

14 Marines dead today. Why? ...

I don't think you're growing cynical, I think you know exactly what you're doing. Yes, as a matter of fact there have been major operations and we've been killin' the hell outta them buggers. War is a bitter, ugly thing and weaklings can't comprehend it. Marines both joyously live and gloriously die by the sword and this is another thing lesser beings don't comprehend. I'd rather not discuss the illusion vs. the reality because to shake the illusion is to reject what Marines do the very best: giving themselves for their brothers. Mourn them, don't denigrate their sacrifice or service.

[SevenMinusOne]

14 Marines dead today. Why? Who are they fighting over there? Have our guys gotten any 'kills' in the past 3 months? Won any 'battles'? Stopped any 'terrorists' from making it over here?

Utterly devoid of any intellectual thought - Simply pathetically empty -

[wingman1]

War is not about "placating platitudes".

It's even more than the "hard work" President Bush spoke of during last year's debates. It's ugly and horrifying work that requires extraordinary troops. We are well represented in Iraq and Afghanistan.

It will take a long time, but we will win. There is no other chopice, but to win.