Friend of mine is back from Iraq - some interesting observations

[seemunkee]

A friend of mine is a contractor who sustained some major injuries in Afghanistan a couple of years ago and is now doing work in Iraq. They vehicle he is operating got hit and they had to evacuate the soldiers that were with him but it took him a couple of days to drive the vehicle to a base where it could be secured. Then he got to go to a hospital. He is getting some eye surgery and then will be heading back to finish his contract.
He keeps trying to talk me into going over to Kuwait to work. He sees lots of people making money hand over fist and thinks I should get in on it.
He said the soldiers don't like to be around the Blackwater people when they are out of the base because their black uniforms make them easier targets for the snipers. If they see a Blackwater guard go down they bug out fast.
He was in the mountains between the PKK and the Turks while they were shelling each other. The PKK is ~60% women.
I asked if the surge was working and he said: You mean the bribes, yes they are working.

I hope to get together and have a few beers with him again before he heads back.

[JDPriestly]

1. Thanks. Very interesting. Keep us posted.

[xultar]

2. I talked to a soldier back from Iraq and here are some of the stories he told...

Well one time they were looking for food cuz they were tired of MREs and a family gave them some food but the doode got a really bad case of the squirts. For payback the guy handed out Exlax to the children in the area.

Then I guess the guys were on patrol and looked for a place to go to the bathroom. An Iraqi allowed them into their home to use the facilities then our guys complained that they only had a hole for a john.

One of our soldiers was kidnapped and I guess in a video it showed a child beheading the poor guy with a dull knife. To which the party hostess responded, "I hope they (our guys) are killing the children over there." YIKES! I nearly busted an artery and passed out on that one. Then I started saying that well I don't think you should hope we are killing the children. Killing children is fucked up. I got looks to STFU because I wasn't gonna win anything with that group. So. I took the hint and changed the subject.

YIKES. WHAT THE FUCK HAS BUSH DONE.

[Teaser]

3. Why did you STFU?

Seriously, what are they gonna do? Kick your ass?


We can't take shit like this anymore.

[xultar]

6. It was a new years gathering. I agreed with my friend that it just wasn't the time.

Now if we discuss it again. It's fucking on.

The problem with a party is you want to be aware of the other guests. When you are just shootin the shit it's no holds barred.

[dysfunctional press]

11. but it was the time to talk about a video of a guy being beheaded with a dull knife?

okay, i guess...:shrug:

[xultar]

14. He told the story I didn't. Look. When the situation happens to y'all handle it your way.

Deal?

[seemunkee]

4. They are being encouraged to give candy and soda to kids

So they surround their vehicle when they stop in a village. He shoos them away. When the soldiers tell him they are supposed to be friendly he lets them know that his goal is to do his job and get home alive, not get blown up by some kid with an IED.

[bunkerbuster1]

5. I'm SO sure a video shows a CHILD beheading a soldier...

jesus christ on a fucking pike, some people will believe anything.

You needed to call bullshit.

[tom_paine]

10. Reprogrammed Americans to be psychological replicas of 1930s Germans.

Most people, when I say that, accuse me of hyperbole or violating the nonsensical Godwin's Law.

Because it hasn't gotten noticeable enough yet for them to see the naked truth of that, which only rarely (for the moment) breaks out in the open so obviously as you saw it.

But you saw, and now you recognize the truth of that supposed "hyperbole" because they basically rammed it down your throat.

If you haven't already, please view the Naomi Wolf YouTube in my signature line. If you want to see where your "friends" have been before, buy or get this book from the Library and read it.

http://www.amazon.com/Defying-Hitler-Memoir-Sebastian-Haffner/dp/0312421133/ref=pd_bbs_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1197208607&sr=8-2

Finally, and I cannot judge your actions, why did you STFU? That's how a Hitler and a Bush wins. Like I said, I cannot judge your actions in the heat of the moment, but I can only think of what I would have done in your place (maybe, I cannot say for sure because I won't know until I am put in a situation like that):

I would have stood up and said something like, "We're Americans. Supposedly the beacon of freedom and decency for the rest of the world. Have you people forgotten that? Have you forgotten simple human decency? And here you are, fat and better fed than 99% of the people in the world. What kind of monsters will you turn into if times get a little tough?

That's what you are, monsters talking about murdering children and you sickos are condemning ME for telling you this? You are monsters, you have proven it, and I won;t spend one more minute in your company."

Then I would have walked out.

Or perhaps I would have been tongue-tied and done what you did, I cannot say for sure. Either way, I would have swiftly cut those Nazi monsters out of my life shortly thereafter

Now you understand that old cliche we all heard a million times when we were kids (but strangely, we never hear since 12/12/2000):

Evil nazis didn't walk around with horns on their head. They were just like you and me, they looked so perfectly ordinary you couldn't distinguish them in a crowd. They looked like the people next door.

View the YouTube in my sigline. Read "Defying Hitler". You have had a close-up view of the evil that we Americans have been reprogrammed to be. If we cannot stop, at least we can understand it to prepare for the future where our thinly veiled monstrosity breaks out into the open and begins to consume the New Jews in Amerika...that's US!

[rodeodance]

13. IF THESE are true---we have a bigger problem than we think/know.

[xultar]

15. That is what fuckin blew my mind. I couldn't get over that very fuckin thing. Thank you.

I was shocked SHITLESS.

[Virginia Dare]

7. The bribes are working..

when that doesn't work then you just kill some people. And how is this different from Saddam's method of ruling? :shrug:

[Ganja Ninja]

8. Saddam's bribes came out of his pocket.

Our bribes are coming out of our future social security checks.

[Johonny]

9. I agree

One of the points of the war is to drive government debt so high that social liberals will not be able to fund programs. Cheney understands these programs are to popular to shutdown, so they plan to run the debt up so high the government has no choice but to cut back.

[alfredo]

12. That started back in the Reagan years. The only way they could undo

FDR's reforms was to bankrupt the country and blame it on the social programs like welfare and social security. Disaster capitalism.

[Virginia Dare]

16. Yes, and I'm sure this is one of the reasons why Bush considers..

his Presidency to be "a success".

A) Destroy the middle class, shifting more wealth to the wealthy (check)

B) Bankrupt the federal government so that "entitlement" programs will have to be downscaled and/or eliminated (check)

C) Eliminate and/or marginalize government oversight of corporations (check)

D) Bust the larger federal government unions and "privatize" the bureaucracy as much as possible (check)

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!

[Virginia Dare]

17. We subsidized Saddam for a while though..

back when he was on "our side".