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| Iraq |
| An Account of Marinesâ Incredible Gestures |
| 2003-04-16 |
| EFL - Worth reading the entire article, though. AT AN AIR BASE IN KUWAIT, 16 April 2003 â People are curious about being embedded in the Marines. This is my effort to set the record straight. Some readers suspect I was subjected to propaganda while living with these men and women. There was no propaganda campaign. If there had been, there would have been no embeds. Journalists wrote their own stories, and made their own interview requests and interviews. The Marinesâ âPAOsâ (public affairs officers) would set up the meetings, but not oversee them. ARABS?? Assuming propaganda is rampant in the press?? Say it 'aint so!! Most significantly, throughout all these embed travels, I have met extraordinary young men and women â whose selflessness and determination still makes me marvel. It is this that made me think of the similarities between Marines and Arabs. During our first incoming Iraqi bomb, when we were all supposed to be carrying our MOPP chemical protective suits, I â of course â was out walking, without my MOPP suit. None of us knew what that first bomb was carrying when we ran to the bomb shelters, but we all feared chemical weapons. A young Marine female officer sat across from me in the bunker while everyone struggled into their MOPP suits. âWhereâs your MOPP suit?â she asked me. âI left it back at my tent,â I replied. She looked at me, then thrust her MOPP suit at me, and said: âPut this on.â âYouâre not supposed to give up your MOPP suit, Maâam,â I said, not knowing what else to say. âPut it on,â she said. Then: âPUT IT ON!â I had never seen this woman before. She didnât know who I was. We didnât know what was in that missile. But this woman risked her life for me. It was an incredible gesture of selflessness that still makes me wonder. There have been so many other examples: The Marine who expressed concern when he saw how the rubber MOPP boots had chewed into my shins because I had no boot socks. He left and returned with three pairs of his own socks. I never learned his name, and never saw him again. But I wear his size 12 socks daily. In regards to war, I have learned that Marines follow their orders. They are not responsible for war; those decisions are made in Washington. Many in my travels have expressed a genuine distaste for war. While colonels have told me, behind closed doors, of their concern for the US foreign policy in the Middle East. Other Marines have expressed skepticism for Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and Deputy Secretary of Defense Paul Wolfowitz. This, I am told, are inside opinions that normally would not be heard off the base. Some tell me they hope these men will not be part of the second Bush administration. Almost all, however, trust President Bush. And Secretary of State Colin Powell. Marines come from well-bred families; others join because they were living off the street. Some join to be educated, others to become part of a family. Some join because they simply âwant to be part of the best.â Many of these young Marines donât know the difference between an Arab and an Asian. But a Chaplin told me that some of his hardest young Marinesâ hearts turned soft âup northâ as they witnessed the hard life and poverty Iraqi civilians and military live. I am greatly concerned that this war has polarized many Arabs and Americans. Knowing these Marines, however, has given me hope for the future of America and its relationship with the Arab world. |
| Posted by:Samma-lamma |
| #4 She didn't think being embedded meant she would have to see combat!What a ditz! |
| Posted by: raptor 2003-04-17 09:04:15 |
| #3 That's my hope. After years of being hammered on that Americans are evil by the likes of Hussein and the assahollah ayatollahs, this is a chance for the Iraqi at large to see what we're all about, instead of swallowing the typical mullah-originated bullshit. |
| Posted by: Bomb-a-rama 2003-04-16 22:54:51 |
| #2 I wonder how well the Iraqis will get to know and understand the Marines. It could have a profound effect on them. |
| Posted by: Dishman 2003-04-16 20:49:57 |
| #1 Knowing these Marines, however, has given me hope for the future of America and its relationship with the Arab world. I'm not convinced. Given the Arab penchant for denial, it's not out of the realm of possibility that they will claim that what is being heard and read about are simply all lies. Come back when the Arab populace at large begins to take notice of these things. |
| Posted by: Bomb-a-rama 2003-04-16 19:05:13 |