Town of Braintree

He is a true-blue, patriotic

Posted in: Braintree
What a glaring double standard

What a glaring double standard. The Arab world is enraged over the shooting of a wounded, unarmed Iraqi insurgent by a uniformed US soldier.

Iraqi insurgent by a uniformed US soldier. Is it because she was an Anglo, a woman, or because a Muslim killed her?

The video of the soldier shooting is proof, we are told, of America?’s evil. And the kidnapping, torture and murder of Mrs. Hassan is then proof of what? That America is evil! Muslims wouldn?’t do that unless evil America forced their hand.

Bombing children, defiling mosques, kidnapping civilians, executing poor workers and cleaning out women ?— these are not discussed or broadcast with frequency, or invoke much anger. Videos where a masked man shakes a bloody head while the curtains flutter do not evoke such fury. Why? The identity of the victim or the perpetrator?

All tactics of the insurgents are excused. Hide among civilians. Justified. Wear civilian clothes. Justified. Shoot from a mosque. Justified. Feign death to draw soldiers in (the way one Marine died the day before the incident). Justified. Wave a white flag as a ploy. Justified. Booby-trap dead bodies. Justified. That?’s just Fallujah.

Moving outward ?— Deliberately killing Iraqi civilians daily. Justified. Bombing churches. Justified. Bombing cafes. Justified. Using schools and mosques as arsenals. Justified. Attacking the police. Just fine.

The rules of war don?’t apply to the insurgents, only the Americans. And if one horrible act occurs at the hands of one American soldier, the world howls.

Al-Jazeera, marketing arm for anti-Americanism globally, is showing the shooting nearly nonstop. Yet they refused to show the last tape of Margaret begging for her life because it was ?“too disturbing.

Why so little regard for Iraqi civilians when they are killed by Muslims but when an unarmed fighter is killed by an American soldier, the Arabs suddenly love the Iraqis? It is too perplexing to consider that Arabs expect a higher standard of humanity from Americans than they do from themselves.

The soldier will be tried. The facts will come out. A punishment will be issued because the US has respect for the Iraqis and enforces the rules of engagement. If the soldier was wrong, Americans will say he was wrong, loud and clear. Americans themselves will demand punishment for him.
?
Saddam stole $21 billion from the mouths of starving Iraqi children. The UN closed its eyes. He filled mass graves and torture chambers and the world stood silent. Now as the Iraqis struggle for self-determination, for security, and for freedom from both the US and the terrorists, the Arabs back the suicide bombers.

For years, some Iraqis may harbor deep resentment toward the US for its mistakes. The successes of the insurgents, all those dead civilians, will be remembered with anger by many. Perhaps the greatest number will recall how they were not valued by their ?“brothers?” and were quickly forsaken in the greater cause of anti-Americanism.



By Iraqi insurgent by a uniformed U
MORE GUTS THAN KERRY

For Army Spc Rebecca Finnick, an April 5 convoy was supposed to be a routine visit to monitor the rebuilding of a prison in Mosul, Iraq. But along the way, her unarmored Humvee came under fire from insurgents hiding behind gravestones, and Finnick was thrust into the thick of a short but fierce firefight.

Finnick's conduct in that combat yesterday earned her a Bronze Star for valor for actions that underscored the frontline roles that women often play in Iraq combat.

The 30-year-old Finnick was cited for unleashing an initial volley of fire that helped protect the convoy from direct hits by rocket-propelled grenades. She then rescued a wounded gunner from a Humvee's turret. After giving her first aid, Finnick took to the turret to provide security while injured soldiers were evacuated to the hospital.

''You don't think about things,'' Finnick said yesterday. ''It all goes by so fast ... it was like a dream.''

The Ridgecrest, Calif., woman deployed to Iraq in fall 2003 with the 3rd Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division, the first unit to go into combat with the eight-wheeled Stryker vehicles. While in Iraq, Finnick was separated from her 7-year-old son, Scott. But he was on hand as Finnick was congratulated by fellow soldiers.

Finnick received her medal during a formal ceremony to welcome back the more than 4,800 members of the brigade, most of whom returned in October.

During the ceremony, two other brigade members also received medals.

Spc. Joshua Miller received the Silver Star for voluntarily placing himself in peril to save the life of a fellow soldier when his foot-patrol squad was ambushed by insurgents. Miller single-handedly fended off a 20-man assault on his squad's position. Then, under heavy fire, he managed to rescue his vehicle commander, who was trapped in debris.

Sgt. Charles Quintanilla received the Bronze Star for decisive and aggressive actions to fend off 25 insurgents armed with AK-47s and rocket-propelled grenades.


By Army Spc Rebecca Finnick
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