Free Republic

Fiery Reaction to Marine’s Stolen Saddam Rifle Is it among the spoils of war? Or worthy of a felony conviction that carries a 10-year prison sentence? The recent conviction of a Twentynine Palms Marine from Hemet has sparked a debate from readers and a fierce defense from the Marine himself. To rewind, Staff Sgt. Joel Cleve Miller was convicted last week of illegal possession of a machine gun. Federal prosecutors said he smuggled a chrome-plated AK-47 that once belonged to Iraqi Dictator Saddam Hussein’s Royal Guard back to his home in Hemet after a 2005 tour in Iraq. Miller now...

Hemet: Marine convicted of smuggling rifle from Saddam palace - An AK-47 seized from Saddam Hussein’s Royal Guard, belonging to Twentynine Palms Marine Joel Cleve Miller. Federal prosecutors said former Staff Sgt. Joel Cleve Miller, 40, was found guilty of possession of an illegal chrome AK-47 that he smuggled back from Iraq during a 14-month tour in 2005. When he returned to his home in Hemet, he bragged to several friends that he smuggled the gun back after it once belonged to Saddam Hussein’s Royal Guard. The U.S. Marine Corps discharged Miller in December 2011 after 20 years in the...

I am. One of the things I learned during my tenure in the service is that if you ask a bunch of ground pounders a question they will give you the brutal, hard truth.

While the decency wars continue to rage in Washington, the MPAAMPAA has okayed the most profane PG-13 pic ever. Palm PicturesPalm Pictures won its appeal Thursday of the original R rating given to Iraq war docudocu "Gunner Palace." Pic is the Michael Tucker and Petra Epperlein-helmed docu following U.S. soldiers living in a bombed-out palace formerly owned by Saddam Hussein's son Uday. "Palace" was picked up by Palm last year at the Toronto Film Festival via the Submarine and Cinetic MediaCinetic Media sales banners. "Palace" contains no gory footage, but the docu does contain numerous instances of soldiers cursing, including...

We're proud to premiere your exclusive look at the poster for the documentary Gunner Palace. Winning raves from critics who have been lucky enough to see it, Gunner Palace is a look at the Iraq war as seen through the eyes of the soldiers of the 2/3 artillery, operating out of the bombed out remains of Uday Hussein's pleasure palace. From the official site, www.gunnerpalace.com : "With total access to all operations and activities, [filmmaker Michael] Tucker's insider footage provides a rare look at the day-to-day lives of these soldiers on the ground -- whether swimming in Uday's pool and...

July 7, 2004 "If you know any politicians be sure to let them know that while they're sitting around their dinner tables with their families talking about how hard the war is on them, we're here under attack nearly 24 hours a day, dodging RPGs and fighting not just for a better Iraq, but just to stay alive" ........................ Stuart Wilf - April 10, 2004 So ends the first truly great document of the Iraqi War, Mike Tucker's new film, Gunner Palace. It speaks to the war as Tucker wants it to? through the voices of one of the two...