Newsweek: Marines were prepared for war-not insurgency

[kpete]

Probing a Bloodbath
The Marines were well prepared for war, but not for insurgency. Did some of them snap—and slaughter innocent civilians in cold blood?
By Evan Thomas and Scott Johnson
Newsweek

........................

And yet, Mattis sent unforgivably mixed signals to his troops. Appearing last year on a panel in San Diego near his former home base at Camp Pendleton, Mattis said, "Actually, it's quite fun to fight them. You know, it's a hell of a hoot ... I like brawling. You go into Afghanistan, you got guys who slap women around for five years because they didn't wear a veil. You know, guys like that ain't got no manhood left anyway. So it's a hell of a lot of fun to shoot them."

Mattis was scolded by the top brass for his remarks, but not too harshly, for he had just been nominated by President George W. Bush to become commander of the First Marine Expeditionary Force and head of Marine Forces Central Command. The impact of Mattis's remarks on an average 19-year-old jarhead can be imagined: killing is fun, like videogames.

The Marine Corps, though justly famous for loyalty and discipline, has a "shoot first, ask questions later" mentality, according to some grunts interviewed by NEWSWEEK. The Marines were happy with the loose rules of engagement for the Battle of Fallujah in 2004—like "the Wild West," said one—and not so keen about the stricter rules for ordinary street patrols imposed since then. One Marine, Cpl. Khalid Aziz of Maryland, mocked the rules: "You're supposed to wave, throw a flashbang, say hi, make a baloney-and-cheese sandwich, shoot in front, shoot the tire, shoot the other tire, have some tea, shoot the engine, then shoot the windshield."

The restrictions, combined with the omnipresent danger, can cause enormous mental strain. In December, NEWSWEEK interviewed some Army soldiers going home as conscientious objectors. To fight boredom and disgust, said Clif Hicks, who had left a tank squadron at Camp Slayer in Baghdad, soldiers popped Benzhexol, five pills at time. Normally used to treat Parkinson's disease, the drug is a strong hallucinogenic when abused. "People were taking steroids, Valium, hooked on painkillers, drinking. They'd go on raids and patrols totally stoned." Hicks, who volunteered at the age of 17i, said, "We're killing the wrong people all the time, and mostly by accident. One guy in my squadron ran over a family with his tank."

much more at:
http://msnbc.msn.com/id/13126262/site/newsweek/

[Kerrytravelers]

1. I can't say I'm surprised. Humans have to numb themselves to the

harsh realities of life. I have empathy. Please don't misunderstand me. I don't excuse what they are doing when they either use unnecessary force or enjoy violence, but I can understand the need to drug oneself into an alternate reality.

Everyday, my Vietnam Veteran father says it is a crime that they were put there to begin with.

[MarinCoUSA]

2. So NOW can we stop calling it a "war". We are occupiers in a strange land

That's why Hadithas happen.

[uppityperson]

3. Prepared to be welcomed with flowers as liberators?

jayzus.

Hopped up macho guys with guns, I know they are a minority, but so are Mr.bushandhisevilminions (a minority) and look at the trouble they have caused. This whole thing is sick. War is hell, hellacious things are done during war/occupation. Get the fuck out.

Thank the media for printing this. More more more coverage.

[The Deacon]

4. Once Again

We are asking teenage boys to do a job we never trained them to do. The Pentagon brings this up every time - we are trained to blow things up, not to nation-build. As this is the seventh time the civilian leadership has called on the military to nation-build, ISN'T IT ABOUT FUCKING TIME SOME OF THOSE SWINGING DICKS IN THE PENTAGON STARTED TRAINING SOME NATION-BUILDERS? Jeez, in the real world whining that you don't know how to do the job you were (obviously) hired to do gets you transferred - to the unemployment pool!

[The Deacon]

5. I Mean

Isn't it time somebody woke these dinosaurs up & left in on the info: THE SOVIET UNION IS GONE! NO WAR ON THE CENTRAL PLAINS OF EUROPE! Stop fighting the last war & get prepared for the next one!

[Deja Q]

6. You mean, nobody's paid attention to previous wars?

:shrug:

Lemme guess: Clinton is to blame for this oversight too. :eyes:

[xchrom]

7. ready for war against a third world under armed country, yes.

and therein lies the problem -- the reality of fighting back isn't just taking the ''boots on the ground'' by surprise -- it's taking the smart guys upstairs by surprise.