Thanks 60 Minutes.
We know the military teaches people to be utterly inhuman: we shoot at 'targets' not 'people.' Sometimes when I talk about the heartlessness of modern warfare, people look at me like I don't know what I'm talking about, and insist that if anyone is going to police the world, it's gotta be us, because we're the only civilized ones.
Well, the latest military snapshots might put a little dent in that philosophy. If you look long and hard, this sort of thing has been floating around the Internet forever. It's not hard to find abuse in our system. Rarely, though, does it enter the mainstream to any extent. Perhaps it's just because our culture is so highly visual.
On another tack, I should never doubt myself. Last week, the Seargent Major of the Army was out talking about how reports of reserve and national guard troops being sent to Iraq without sufficient body armor, ammo, humvees, and other such supplies were greatly exagerrated. This morning on NPR, a national guard 1st Lt was highlighted after giving the Democrats weekly radio address. A general was trotted out who claimed the military itself has been complaining about a service wide lack of humvees--no comment on the other issues. No mention of the Seargent Major. Here's his congressional testimony from February:
So by reading between the lines, can I conclude that before January (ie: during the actual war) there were soldiers there without IBAs?
By the way: if someone can find where on the DNC website these addresses are kept--let me know. Even their dang search engine doesn't have them come up.
Well, the latest military snapshots might put a little dent in that philosophy. If you look long and hard, this sort of thing has been floating around the Internet forever. It's not hard to find abuse in our system. Rarely, though, does it enter the mainstream to any extent. Perhaps it's just because our culture is so highly visual.
On another tack, I should never doubt myself. Last week, the Seargent Major of the Army was out talking about how reports of reserve and national guard troops being sent to Iraq without sufficient body armor, ammo, humvees, and other such supplies were greatly exagerrated. This morning on NPR, a national guard 1st Lt was highlighted after giving the Democrats weekly radio address. A general was trotted out who claimed the military itself has been complaining about a service wide lack of humvees--no comment on the other issues. No mention of the Seargent Major. Here's his congressional testimony from February:
They must also be the best equipped and best protected. This past year, we have invested a great deal into ensuring that all Soldiers are equipped with the latest force protection equipment and high-quality gear. One specific area is the rapid fielding of Interceptor Body Armor (IBA). The IBA protects Soldiers against fragments and 9mm ball ammunition with Small Arms Protective Insert protection up to 7.62mm ball ammunition.
The bottom line is that no Soldier or civilian will deploy to the theater of operations without IBA. To accomplish that, we have stepped up production. As of January 2004, all soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan have IBA, and no Soldier will deploy into these countries without a set. The Army continues to purchase IBAs at 25,000 per month until we meet the Army requirement of 840,000 by fiscal year 2006.
So by reading between the lines, can I conclude that before January (ie: during the actual war) there were soldiers there without IBAs?
By the way: if someone can find where on the DNC website these addresses are kept--let me know. Even their dang search engine doesn't have them come up.
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