Afghan tractor = Marine officer's career?

Only in the Bizarro-land created by the Obama Administration.

Marine's career threatened by controversial rules of engagement.

Joshua Waddell, a first lieutenant in the U.S. Marines, appeared on his way to a stellar career as an American military officer. The son of a retired Navy SEAL commander, Waddell had won a Bronze Star during his first tour of duty in Afghanistan and had returned for a second.

Then he made a decision in combat that military experts say has severely jeopardized his future in the corps.

But some military experts say the black mark on Waddell's record was undeserved, that he and other young American officers are being put in a difficult, if not impossible, situation by unreasonable rules of engagement foisted upon the military by politically sensitive commanders in the Pentagon.

The facts in Waddell's case are spelled out in Marine Corps documents. But how those facts should be interpreted is a matter of heated dispute.

On Nov. 1, Waddell, a 25-year-old executive officer with 3rd Battallion, 7th Marine Corps Regiment, was monitoring a surveillance camera in Sangin, Afghanistan, when he spotted a man who had been identified as a bomb maker working with area insurgents. Two days earlier, a sergeant from India Company had lost both legs and a hand when a bomb detonated in their area of operation. The man spotted on the camera was believed to be responsible.

After receiving permission from his battalion commanders, Waddell ordered Marine snipers to open fire on the man, and he was hit. A group of Afghans rushed to the man, put him on a tractor and attempted to flee. Waddell ordered the snipers to hit the engine block of the tractor, disabling it so the man believed to be a bomb maker would not escape. The tractor was hit but no civilians were injured.

Then, about three weeks later, the civilians who helped remove the wounded man from the area were found to be teenagers.

As a result, Waddell was demoted from executive officer, and the battalion commander, Lt. Col. Seth Folsom, determined he had violated rules of engagement that governed when Marines could fire, and at whom. Folsom said Wadell "is not recommended for promotion" and "in violation of [combat rules] during an engagement." The report stated that "noncombatant local nationals" were in the area of direct fire and that "the engagement resulted in a damaged local national vehicle."

A Marine brigadier general who reviewed the case was sympathetic to Waddell, whom he described as a "superb and heroic combat leader. But the general said the decision on whether Waddell should be promoted was "the commander's prerogative," noting that the battalion commander on the scene had lost "confidence in [Waddell's] abilities."

Read the rest at the link above. Long story short, if you get passed over for promotion, you're pretty much on the way to being booted from the service these days. It's virtually a career death sentence to get skipped.

I guess this is how we reward our warfighters who dare go into harm's way now. Guess they should have just stood back and asked for some drone "pilot" to obliterate the entire group. They'd have probably got medals for that.

I can't stop watching--these soldiers are killing me!

Last week, a video made by soldiers of the 82nd Airborne in Afghanistan hit the web and went absolutely viral. These soldiers did a remake of the otherwise forgettable "Telephone" by the untalented but oh-so-flashy Lady Gaga. However, unlike her original, this one is just fun to watch. These guys are obviously having a ball, and the props and stuff that they came up with in a forward area are ingenious.
The project was reportedly the idea of Sgt. Aaron Melcher, 24, who can be seen dancing enthusiastically in the opening segment with his pal, Justin Baker. The rest of the group's names and photos--both goofing and in uniform--can be found at this link by scrolling down to the bottom.

So far, world from the Army brass is: "Lookin' good guys!" Far from being criticized, they're being lauded--and rightfully so--for their spirit and their attempts to boost morale.

"The brigade command team is happy to see that they also still have a good sense of humor and that morale is high," said Maj. Michelle Baldanza, a spokeswoman in Afghanistan for the division's 4th Brigade Combat Team via e-mail from Kandahar Air Field.

The soldiers have a challenging mission there, and they were just having a good time and "blowing off some steam in their downtime," Baldanza said.

Way to go, fellas. Stay safe over there.

Whiskey Tango Foxtrot...?

Obama went to Afghanistan for a few hours this morning.

"Big deal," I thought. Of course the AP still has to start out by saying that Obama "inherited" this war, ignoring the fact that he didn't get the Presidency from a probate hearing--he sought it out and begged for it like Rosie O'Donnell trying to get the last pork chop.

But what really got my goat was the report that Obama actually lectured Afghan President Hamid Karzai and told him to cut down on the corruption in his government.

I'm sorry, but after using our own money to bribe hundreds of congressman and senators in order to get them all to vote for Obamacare over the wants and desires of a majority of American voters, Barack Obama telling someone to cut down on corruption is like the late, unlamented Michael Jackson telling people not molest kids.

What a difference a year makes.

Is anyone else paying attention to how the media coverage of the war has changed in a year?

When Bush was president, the media fought to cover the return of us casualties and deceased service members' caskets, and it demanded entry into Walter Reed and other hospitals to show the horrors. Everk wee or so, most of the big papers had full-page color photos and bios or every American killed overseas. The whole thing was meant to stir a public drumbeat against the war as an attack on Bush, presumably with the intent of getting a Democrat elected in the next election.

Well a Democrat was elected--with full mainstream media participation and assistance--and now Barack Obama owns the war. He promised to immediately end it many times when he was campaigning (just like he promised to close the still-open Guantanamo detention facility) but he has only escalated it and we now have more troops either overseas or heading overseas than we have since Vietnam. And the media, rather than continuing it's opposition, has flipped completely. Now they never want to show coffins coming back to Dover, even though there are more of them. They don't report on every single soldier killed, like they did when Bush was running it, and the pictures of the fallen are no longer printed. Now it's like our soldiers don't count since they cannot be used to attack a president that the media didn't like and mentioning them might reflect badly on one that they do like.

Am I the only one who sees this and has a problem with it?

Color me officially jealous.

Per this article at Military.com News, Our troops in Afghanistan have got a new machine gun, the MK 48, made by (who else?) Fabrique Nationale. In use by Navy SEALs since 2000, this bad motor scooter fires the 7.62x51mm cartridge at a rate of up to 700 rounds per minute but weighs in at just 18.5 pounds!This comes about because our troops are finding the standard M240B to be too heavy to lug around the mountains at 27.5 pounds. And in a region where firepower counts, the need for a lighter gun capable of laying it down is only self-evident. The best gun in the world isn't any good if it gets left behind because it weighs too much to carry.

And yes, I'm jealous. Much as I love The Beast here, this World War Two-era Browning 1919A4 weighs in at 28 pounds for the gun alone, and that jumps to about forty-two pounds when you factor in the required tripod, pintle and T&E mechanism.
Hell, I get tired just pulling it out of the safe. And then there's the added weight of the ammo belts, spare barrels, and basic tools needed to keep any machine gun running...it's no wonder that the quest for ever-lighter guns goes on.

However, as much as I'd love to be able to trade the old Browning in on a newer, lighter FN gun just to reduce the weight penalty, I realize that our troops' needs come first, and getting them as many guns as possible is a priority. Unfortunately, we have a handful of jerks in the Senate who apparently don't agree. According to this article in the Washington Times, a band of senators both Democrat and Republican have just diverted 2.6 BILLION dollars out of the current defense spending appropriation--specifically from an appropriation intended to buy new guns and ammo for our troops. They've steered this money away from our men and women on the battlefield and into their own pet pork projects.

Stolen from our troops was $20 million that was requested by Sen. John Kerry for a new library in Massachusetts to be named for the late Sen. Ted Kennedy. This of course has nothing to do with the military, won't help troop one, and the Kennedy family has more than enough money to pay for this out of their own pockets so it's particularly upsetting to see money taken from our troops for this monument to a dead Democrat.

$25 million more was siphoned off by Louisiana's two senators, Mary Landrieu(D) and David Vitter(R) for another World War two museum in New Orleans. Hel-lo! There's already one there. Why the hell do our soldiers have to go without in order to build a second one, and why do we have to loot our military budget during a war to pay for it?

And then there's the $20 million for Humvee maintenance at an Army National Guard installation in Maine, sponsored by Sens. Susan Collins and Olympia J. Snowe, the two turncoat Republicans who have been voting with the Dems on just about everything. Apparently their reward is not the traditional thirty pieces of silver that one pays a Judas but a whole steamer trunk full of cash, ostensibly to keep a vehicle maintenance facility going way the hell up in one of the most remote parts of our country, about as far away from most of our nation's Humvees as it could possibly be. But what is efficiency and combat readiness compared to being able to brag to Maine voters that their two RINO senators have the Dem leadership's favor?

It goes on and gets worse. Hell, with the bunch of self-serving thieves that we have in Congress today, it's a wonder that our troops aren't still expected to do the job with ancient Browning MG's like mine. But elections are coming around in 13 months, people...I say that we toss every one of these jerks out. 535 homeless chosen at random from inner-city shelters could hardly do worse, so let's replace the current crop, starting with the leadership--Sen. Harry Reid(D)--Nevada and Rep. Nancy Pelosi(D)--California.

And just maybe the new batch will consider lifting the 1986 ban on civilian purchases of new machine guns so that I actually can replace The Beast with something a little newer. Now that's change we can hope for!

A whiner complains because a Hero is honored

Are we really that spoiled and ungrateful as a nation that we'd try to seek criminal charges against the escort for a military veteran's funeral procession because it made our ride home a few minutes longer?

Apparently so, at least in Jefferson County, Missouri.

Fortunately Jefferson County, Missouri has men like Sheriff Glenn Boyer who are not afraid to address such gracelessness head on.

JEFFERSON COUNTY — The Jefferson County sheriff has offered a stern response to a woman complaining she was inconvenienced by a procession accompanying a soldier's casket.

The woman wrote an e-mail to Jefferson County Sheriff Glenn Boyer after she had a hard time driving around the procession escorting the casket of Sgt. William Woods, who was killed by Taliban fighters in Afghanistan.

In his response, Boyer called the complaint self-serving and noted that her inconvenience was of little consequence considering what America's soldiers go through.

Boyer's response has made its way to the Internet, where it is getting a strong reaction as it is e-mailed around the country by soldiers and military groups.

Boyer is a Vietnam veteran.

Boyer said he sent a copy of his response to the complaint internally to sheriff's department employees so they would know his position should the department receive similar complaints in the future. He assumes some of the employees sent it on to friends and colleagues. From there, it landed on military, police and news websites across the country.

Boyer estimates he has received more than 200 e-mails.

"She was a citizen who deserved an investigation and an answer to her complaint," Boyer said. "I wrote it from the heart. It took me about five minutes."

Boyer said he would not release the name of the woman who wrote the letter.

"It's not about releasing her name and allowing others to chastise her or cause her any more inconvenience," Boyer said. "What it's about is, making people understand that there are people willing to sacrifice their lives so they can complain about things like that."

The letter Sheriff Boyer received is here:

I tried to call you earlier this morning, but was unable to obtain your extension from the voice mail system as I was not sure of your first name or correct spelling of your last.

I was inadvertently in this procession as I was leaving work on 270 from Creve Coeur and proceeding on Hwy. 30 West. I have some issues and complaints. I called the Sheriff's office last night, but the officer in charge would not speak with me. His name was Corp. Curtis. I am in no way complaining about your officers. I, however, was not treated very fairly when I called last evening because I wanted a ticket/complaint/or at least a slap on wrist for the people involved. Let me explain:
1) This procession should never have been held during rush hour traffic! Hwy. 270 is dangerous and people drive way too fast and there is too much traffic. This soldier's certainly would not have want his family hurt on the interstate taking him to Cedar Hill. People were dead-stopping on the interstate even though the procession was in the far right lane, the other three lanes just stopped. There were many near accidents and possibly were after I drove through. I was in the 2nd to left lane, no way obstructing the funeral procession.
2) I exited off on Gravois (30 W), far right lane. Your police officers went in the left lane to stop any additional on-coming traffic so the procession could exit off 270 into the LEFT lane of 30. Again, I was in the right lane. The St. Louis County officer stopped and turned around at Weber Hill to return on 270 after the procession passed.
3) The road was not closed. (Only for president as far as I know.) Again, the road was not closed. Your officers only had the left lane blocked/closed for the funeral. All other traffic by MO law can proceed as long as they do not interfere (weave in and out )with funeral procession.
Let me say, that I did not know what was happening. I knew the did not have Kennedy coming to STL, at least not yesterday. I was at work all day. No news. Nothing reported on the traffic on the radio driving home.
Anyway, two of these dirty, nasty, renegade, who knows what motorcycle men that were escorting the procession proceeded to stop in front of me in the right lane on Gravois. I had to stop in the middle of an intersection. They proceeded to scream and yell at me about respecting this soldier, etc. One of them climbed off his motorcycle and came over to me and stuck his head in my car continuing to scream at me. I asked him what this was for and he told me I needed to stop as the officers had the road blocked and show some dang respect. #1, the road was not blocked, the funeral was in the other lane. #2, I am proud of our country and sorry for the family, but they had no idea where I was going or anything else. I could have a child at day-care, I could have been sick and racing to the bathroom, I could have a sick parent waiting for me, etc., etc.
#3, They are not law enforcement and had no right to stop in the lane on Gravois and they had no right to scream at me and intimidate and threaten me. If I would have had my pepper spray, I would have used it on this nasty man! He is just a big hoo ha that is not even related to this soldier. The other man did not get off his scooter, but was along side of my passenger window screaming.
I left an abusive husband 1 1/2 years ago and I did not need this intimidation. I was livid and shaking!!
My son is a deputy sheriff in another MO county. I respect police officers. It was not their fault as they were busy with traffic, but I called to make them aware of what was going on during this thing. The St. Louis County officer saw it but of course he was out of jurisdiction.
However, I called last night and your office asked me if I knew about this soldier. Again, I am sorry about him, but I am a taxpayer. I got a speeding ticket a few months ago and paid the fine. I do not deserve to be treated like this. I wanted to let the officer know how these men were acting. Also, they were driving into the turnarounds on Hwy. 30 and then back onto the road. the funeral was much further ahead. One of them nearly got hit by me and other people almost hit him and another as well. I wanted to lodge a complaint about them why they were still there, but no one in your office would take any information or do anything.
This was not a military funeral, even though it was a soldier. There were not military vehicles. It was a funeral and the road was not closed, the lane was closed, I was in the other lane and again, these nasty men had no right to do this and I would have liked them to get a ticket!
I am sorry for the soldier and his family but you cannot let these motorcycle renegades do this. They could have caused several accidents and I really wanted them arrested. If they had any respect for the soldier they would have dressed better and not looked and acted so scuzzy.

Thank you.

So in her eyes, it would have been ok if it had been a procession for the late Ted Kennedy, but as it was just some soldier, her hypothetical need to pick up a kid at daycare or get to a bathroom should trump.

I've given most of my life to public service of some kind or another, but when I read crap like that, I wonder why I ever bothered.

But that Sheriff Boyer, he handled it just fine. I hope that she takes his letter to heart and sees what an ass she was, and I hope that other asses out there read it and quit being asses. If you don't have what it takes to stand next to our best as they fight for America, then at least stand aside when their funeral processions are passing by.

Here's the Sheriff's response (which was never intended to have been made public, BTW).

From:
Glenn Boyer/JEFFCO
Date: 08/31/2009 02:05 PM

Subject: Re: Fw: Re: Funeral Procession - Yesterday p.m.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Dear XXXXX:

Yes, you do deserve a response and I am willing to give you one.

I would like to say that I am sorry for the inconvenience we caused you during the funeral procession of Sergeant 1st Class William B. Woods, but I cannot do so. I would ask instead that you take a moment of your time to take into consideration the scope of the event. Your very right to complain was the reason Sgt. Woods fought for his country and ultimately gave his life; thus making the ultimate sacrifice for you and your family.

Let me introduce you to him. After high school, Sergeant Woods entered the Marine Corps. After his contract was up, he joined the Army, where he became a Green Beret. He comes from a long line of military members in his family. His Uncle is a Vietnam Veteran and two of his grandfathers were World War II Veterans. His job in the Army was one of the most dangerous jobs - he was a sniper looking for the bad guys to stop before they killed or injured one of our soldiers. He has numerous decorations to include the Bronze Star and the Purple Heart.

He grew up in Catawissa and was best known by his middle name, Brian. He enjoyed the outdoors, playing sports, and skydiving. He had a wife, Elizabeth, and two daughters, whom he loved dearly. He was a soft-spoken, level-headed young man who was proud to serve his country no matter what the risk. Now, I did not know him, but I wish I did. I am quoting from newspaper articles written about him.

At the young age of 31, he was shot during an engagement with Taliban forces in Ghanzi , Afghanistan . He died of his wounds in Germany on August 16, with his family by his side. He did not choose the time of his death, nor did he choose the time his remains would be brought back to his home in Catawissa. He just did his duty. He was quite a young man.

While you were being inconvenienced in your car on your way home, there were soldiers just like Sergeant Woods carrying 100+ pounds of equipment in 120 degree heat, up some mountain or in the middle of some desert. They will shower out of a helmet liner if they get the chance. They will eat a cold meal of MRE's; something most people would consider garbage. They cannot text their family or friends, or go to McDonalds, or watch TV. They can only continue the mission and look out after the guy to the left and right of them. They don't complain because they know they volunteered. The only thing they ask is that we do not forget the sacrifices they have made.

One of the dirty "big hoo ha" bikers, as you call them, was Brian's uncle, a Vietnam Veteran, like myself. We were not treated with a homecoming. We were spit on and called baby killers by a misguided public. Brian's uncle was giving him the respect that he, himself, never received when he came back and I, for one, am proud of him for doing so.

You say that your brother is a deputy in another Missouri county. I am sure he would be proud to escort the casket of a fallen solder, the same as he would that of a fallen officer. I am also sure he would not agree with your complaint about being inconvenienced.

My mother recently passed away. She was a World War II Veteran, serving the U.S. Army. She would say, maybe you should pick up Sergeant Woods' ruck sack and carry on where he left off. Then you could see first hand what it really is to be inconvenienced.

Per your request, I will forward your complaint to the Prosecuting Attorney's Office for his review. It is my personal opinion that your complaint is self-serving and without merit.

Sheriff Oliver "Glenn" Boyer

It's men like Sheriff Boyer who restore my faith in the American Spirit.
Rest in Peace, Sergeant First Class William "Brian" Woods.

Good men die in rescue of New York Times scumbag

This is wrong on so many levels.

KABUL — British commandos freed a New York Times reporter early Wednesday from Taliban captives who kidnapped him over the weekend in northern Afghanistan, but one of the commandos and a Times translator were killed in the rescue, officials said.

Reporter Stephen Farrell was taken hostage along with his translator in the northern province of Kunduz on Saturday. German commanders had ordered U.S. jets to drop bombs on two hijacked fuel tankers, causing a number of civilian casualties, and reporters traveled to the area to cover the story.

Two military officials told The Associated Press that one British commando died during the early morning raid. They spoke on condition of anonymity because the death had not been officially announced.

The Times reported that Farrell's Afghan translator, Sultan Munadi, 34, also was killed. Farrell was unhurt.

Afghan officials over the weekend said about 70 people died when U.S. jets dropped two bombs on the tankers, igniting them in a massive explosion. There were reports that villagers who had come to collect fuel from the tankers were among the dead, and Farrell wanted to interview villagers.

The Times kept the kidnappings quiet out of concern for the men's safety, and other media outlets, including The Associated Press, did not report the abductions following a request from the Times.

So here we have a reporter for the New York Times, probably the most Anti-US publication that's actually based in the US, and he gets kidnapped while trying to work up another story that no doubt would have started out with something like "US air pirates murdered a bunch of poor villagers for no good reason when..."

Basically, he was there to to the Taliban's job for them--criticizing American troops and undermining their mission and morale. This is something that the Times did nonstop right up until the coronation of Barack Obama. But once their messiah took office, they had to choose a course of action--keep bashing a military that they hated, or quiet down on that since that military was now under Barack Obama and continued criticism of them would be criticism of him.

Apparently the decision was made. The Times has been pretty quiet as of late when it comes to bashing the military and trying to ferret out and publish classified information. But their people are still in the area, and when this one got grabbed by his fellow America-haters, British commandos found out where he was and dropped in to save him, tragically losing one of their own in the process--a true hero worth more than the entire New York Times staff put together.

Also killed was a native Afghani who was serving as a translator and who dreamed of a safe, stable Afghanistan, free of the Taliban. Farrell probably held him in utter contempt, but he too was a better man than Farrell. This man died trying to save his country; Farrell was only there to undermine his own.

Also ironic and hypocritical was the fact that the New York Times self-censored the kidnapping and refused to publish that "news", and also that they asked other publications not to publish it and the rest of the media complied. Now this is at total odds with their longstanding policy of printing every bit of information about the US war effort and agenda, even information that put our troops at risk and even when they had been asked specifically by the White House not to do so. But George Bush was President then, and the New York Times staff hated George Bush, so they did whatever they could to hurt the military and his policies, and if it meant that more US soldiers died...well that was just fine with the Times.

But now when it's one of their own...well they manage to orchestrate a total news blackout by virtue of the cooperation of complicit "competing" media outlets.

Kind of makes you wonder what else we never learn just because a few newspaper bigs decide that it's not in their interest for us to find out, eh?

The New York Times is garbage, unfit for fish-wrapping or birdcage-lining. It'll never be allowed in this house, and the day that it folds will be a day worthy of celebration by all Americans who love this country that it opposes. It's just a damned shame that two really good men had to die for that paper because one of it's Quisling reporters just had to chase down another anti-US story. Thank you for your efforts, Britain, and I'm sorry for your loss. However if there's any such thing as Karma, Stephen Farrell will get run over by a cab or choke on a hot dog immediately on his return to New York.

EDIT: Turns out that Farrell isn't an American--he's a British citizen. (Well that explains his anti-Americanism...he's clearly jealous). So the British Special Forces still traded a hero for a dirtbag, only it was one of their own dirtbags. And today, the New York Times is all mad because they were negotiating with the Taliban and because the soldiers blew the Taliban scum away, the New York Times now feels that it's standing with the Taliban has been harmed.

So I have a new idea. The next time that anyone gets kidnapped in Iraq or Afghanistan, we just call up the kidnappers and trade them Bill Keller, Editor of the Times, for whoever is being held. Then we call it a day and don't waste any more time or resources on rescue attempts. Maybe the Times would actually replace Keller with someone who appreciates his country enough to at least remember which side that he's supposed to be supporting. If it were the 1940's, Bill Keller would have been in federal prison for his seditious acts a long time ago.

Our amusing peacenik neighbors to the north.

When discussing Canada, I always have to laugh at how they eschew anything to do with military force yet they reside comfortably next to us and sleep safe under our nuclear and conventional arms umbrella. I have to wonder if they'd have the same anti-military views if they were a country in the middle of Europe of the mid-east instead of having us as their only neighbor in a situation where Geography compels us to be their big brother whether we really care to be or not. Heck, if we weren't right next door to them, maybe they'd even have a real navy and one that didn't draw half of it's fleet from the old Boblo boat line.

This comes up this morning due to an interesting article on The Shekel blog about how the Canadians want to lease twenty--that's right, just twenty--Leopard battle tanks from the German government for use in Afghanistan because the Leopards that the Canadians currently own don't have air conditioning. And apparently the Canadian left is all in a tizzy, claiming that tanks won't make the Afghanis like them. I guess those Canadian leftists never read Machiavelli's essay on whether it is better to be liked or feared:

Since love and fear can hardly exist together, if we must choose between them, it is far safer to be feared than loved.
Niccolo Machiavelli, The Prince
Italian dramatist, historian, & philosopher (1469 - 1527)

Me, I'll always advocate for armor and greater force, if only to prevent a repeat of what happened to our troops in Somalia when President Clinton refused to allow them to have armor when our local commanders requested it. But hey, I'm not Canadian, after all. I'm not so pacifistic that I consider John Lennon to have been a war-monger, and I realize that peace and security comes through strength and the resolve to use it. (Can you hear me, British navy?)

That said, in related news, there is reportedly a movement afoot to change the Canadian national anthem from "Oh, Canada" to "Why Can't We Be Friends?"