Last week, Rep. Murtha made statements about an investigation into murders of civilians by US Marines in Haditha, Iraq (Army Times):
The Marine Corps originally claimed that a convoy from the Camp Pendleton, Calif.-based Kilo Company, 3rd Battalion, 1st Marines, hit a roadside bomb that killed Lance Cpl. Miguel Terrazas, 20, of El Paso, Texas, and the ensuing firefight killed 15 Iraqi civilians — casualties the Corps at first claimed were killed in the bomb blast — including seven women and three children.
A March 27 Time magazine report [link] published claims by an Iraqi civil rights group that the Marines barged into houses near the bomb strike, throwing grenades and shooting civilians as they cowered in fear. The report prompted calls for a Pentagon probe.>
“It’s much worse than was reported in Time magazine,” Murtha, a Democrat, former Marine colonel and Vietnam war veteran, told reporters on Capitol Hill.
“There was no firefight. There was no [bomb] that killed those innocent people,” Murtha explained, adding there were “about twice as many” Iraqis killed than Time had reported.
Check your calendars, folks. This is the end of May. The incident happened on November 19, 2005 — six months ago.
When Murtha made his statements last week, there were outraged shrieks from the usual sources on the radical fringes. “John Murtha, Traitor”, shouted one blogger, while another said, “John Murtha hanging the Marines!” Their objection? Such criticism might undermine the troops in Iraq.
You know what? Polimom disagrees that covering up atrocities by keeping silent about them undermines the troops. Silence on the homefront merely keeps Americans from knowing what the Iraqis are hearing already. Does somebody actually think that a civilian massacre — or even Abu Ghraib — should be a secret?
As it happens, it sounds very much as if Murtha was, sadly and abominably, right (LATimes):
SAN DIEGO — Marines from Camp Pendleton wantonly killed unarmed Iraqi civilians, including women and children, and then tried to cover up the slayings in the insurgent stronghold of Haditha, military investigations have found. Officials who have seen the findings of the investigations said the filing of criminal charges, including some murder counts, was expected, which would make the Nov. 19 incident the most serious case of alleged U.S. war crimes in Iraq.
An administrative inquiry overseen by Army Maj. Gen. Eldon Bargewell found that several infantry Marines fatally shot as many as 24 Iraqis and that other Marines either failed to stop them or filed misleading or blatantly false reports
Polimom could easily launch off into a rant about the war in Iraq, or about the neocons… but none of those are what strikes me the hardest about this hideous atrocity and potential national shame.
Polimom is sad beyond words for those who were killed — people who were doing their best to simply live their lives, both before and after this war. Along with that, though, what Polimom feels is enormous sadness for the terribly warped Marines who are at war — who have succumbed to the beast.
Just two days before this incident apparently occurred in November, I wrote a rare rant. At the time, I was ticked off about reports coming out of Iraq about the use of white phosphorous in Fallujah, and stories of torture. I said:
Bad enough that the American public was “dismayed” and “disturbed” when our little Janeys and Johnnys were discovered torturing their prisoners (remember Abu Ghraib?). Now, we’re hearing about lions, too. (LIONS????)
Folks, if you think our sons and daughters are being sent to a war with anything less than a targeted, focused hatred for the “enemy”, you are clueless. In basic training, they are given bayonets, with which they charge, screaming vicious epithets, at a straw dummy. Years ago, that straw dummy was a “Red” named Ivan. Any guesses what names they use today to dehumanize their “targets”?
War cannot be waged without virulent hate. It is not an academic exercise.
To kill, as we’ve asked our children to do in Iraq, requires hate, and whatever comes of the investigation in Haditha, we cannot forget that along with all the other losses and deaths, this is also the price we pay to wage war.
We sent them into hell, and the devil is running free. Surely we didn’t expect something different… did we?
* * * * *
Update: Some conservative voices are weighing in on the latest news, including AllahPundit at HotAir, Confederate Yankee, and the Jawa Report. The gist seems to be that they viewed Murtha’s statements a week ago as politicizing at the expense of the troops.
Polimom has absolutely no idea whether that’s why Murtha discussed Haditha, and I still maintain that the how and why of our entry into Iraq are not relevant to the current situation. We are where we are, and we cannot simply abandon the Iraqis to the chaos brought about by our interventions there.
But blindly rejecting or attacking Murtha’s statements (as happened last week) is every bit as knee-jerk a reaction as the “lefty” reactions the right complains about.
More: David A at In Search of Utopia has a great post (you should read it all), that includes this (my emphasis):
This is not about whether we are for or against the war. It is about a crime, perpetrated in our name. I don’t even want to think about the international implications, but there will be many. I am [personally] very saddened by all this. Sad for the victims, sad for the families and loved ones of the Marines involved, sad for our international image, and sad for the retribution that is sure to come.
He’s absolutely right.
(I’ve cross-posted a slightly modified version of this post at the Chronicle, also.)
I noticed this too. Given my age, I told my husband that we had a “My Lai” on our hands in Iraq. I thought the time lag from November to now was obscene. This is just awful and I fear it may not be the last of this kind of thing that we’re hearing about. There was an article this week, which I have saved but haven’t yet read, about troops being sent back into action even though they’re showing severe mental health issues. If we’re doing that, it’s a disservice to them and this kind of thing is bound to happen.
Well said. I posted about this when Murtha made his remarks. I think he came out with it because he feared it would continue to be buried. It was a public service. Seems really shameless and, once again, telling that they would call a lifetime, combat-serving Marine a “traitor.” Especially from folks like those at Powerline and Malkin and teh rest who have never served. Not to mention that they completely ignored that a former Marine Colonel and sitting Congressman just might have some pretty reliable cources in the Pentagon.
Just found you, BTW, and like what I see. Added you to my Most-Watched list, for the delight of the three poodles who read my blog. Youre probably going to bug me sometimes, but that’s what it’s all about isn’t it? Thanks for this thoughtful post.
I think that in any war there will always be people who discover ‘their beast’ as you call it. They are being trained to kill and in a hostile, very strange environment, their reality must become so surreal. Not that I am excusing it. I just think, from having had to learn all there was to know about the WW2 (living in the Netherlands) and naturally, with all the wars I learned about in history in Europe alone…there will always be those who’ll cross the line.
As for those who felt that it would diminish the troops by letting everyone know about it..that must be guilt. Guilt that they are here in the comfort of their easy American existence while all troops abroad risk their lives. That’s all I can think of.
As someone who grew up hearing stories from people who experienced occupation during WW2 and seeing many many documentaries off real accounts, I always felt that Americans (the general public) glorified war and are/were too war thirsty because they have no clue what it is like to be occupied, besieged, invaded and brutalized by the hand of an outside army. Their troops were always sent away rather than truly ‘defending’ their country, which ought to mean, keep people from invading yours. Sorry Pollimom..I could go on and on too about this but I better stop. The kiddies went to sleep early which means ..waking up early.
To quote that famous quote; good night and good luck (to us all)!!
Ingrid
Forester,
I’ve tried more times than I can count to address your comment. It’s complicated for a number of reasons, not least because I not only charged one of those straw dummies (shrieking like a banshee), I was closely associated with the military for much of my adult life.
I wouldn’t describe troops as machines. They are people…. always.
I think one of the things that isn’t getting talked about enough (or maybe it is and I’m not seeing it) is the absolutely profound level of bonding that service in the military (particularly in war) promotes. It’s a sub-culture in the very truest sense of the word, and in war, it’s forged in a very hot fire.
It is the ultimate “us” and “them”, with “them” becoming nebulous after too many rotations, too many attacks…..
There are (as Slate mentioned) concerns about the mental health of the troops in Iraq, as there should be. It’s important to remember that these folks have had to integrate enemy and hate and death with humanity and compassion.
Sometimes, it just breaks — even when they haven’t been stretched far beyond capacity.
Thom —
Thank you for the kind words, and link. You’re right, of course — I’m likely to bug you sometimes. I hope you’ll always feel free to join a conversation, though, or ask why I might be saying something with which you disagree.
We have (I think) a very thoughtful bunch of readers here, who invariably make me ponder or explore my own mind more deeply — and hopefully have the same impact on others.
Ingrid said:
I don’t see Americans that way, but then again, I’ve only traveled, rather than lived elsewhere for a long period of time. I’m absolutely positive, though, that growing up anywhere else would have given me a much different view of the US than I currently have — I appreciate the perspective.
You bring up something important, though. Because so many of our wars have been fought elsewhere, it does tend to depersonalize things a bit — not because we don’t care, or don’t have sons and daughters (and fathers and mothers and brothers and sisters) at risk; we do care, I believe, as a nation, enormously. But because the vast totality of war isn’t played out here, its full impact is a step removed.
Even 9-11 (or Katrina, for that matter) played out for most Americans on a television, and unless one was able to actually view the destruction, it becomes intellectualized somewhat. It’s not, I don’t think, a matter of callousness, though — or at least I don’t know anyone who is.
Thanks for bringing that aspect into the discussion.
Haven’t read the above comments, so forgive me if I repeat.
I agree with you that we shouldn’t cover up our war atrocities. Exposing them is not anti-American — instead, it’s an attempt to hold our armed forces accountable for operating according to American virtues. By all means, we need to know, and we need to dish out consequences. At the same time we should remember, as you remind us, that war is hell, and we at home sitting on our couches watching primetime news are not the ones risking our lives. First and foremost, respect and gratitude to our men and women overseas must be maintained. While it’s disturbing to hear that our own soldiers are involved in such abuses, we must also prevent ourselves from demonizing our own military by recognizing the sacrifices they’re making that the rest of us are not.
I’d like to disagree, however, with this assertion from you:
I’m not a military person, I haven’t been through basic training, I don’t know what the most effective mindset is for a soldier. But I suspect that it is not hate. I suspect that the most successful military is one that operates like a machine. Turning off emotions, rather than tapping into primal instincts, would seem to prepare soldiers better to operate and make decisions in the heat of battle. Plus it would go a few steps closer to preventing the kinds of abuses we sometimes hear about.
Perhaps that’s just the idealist in me. But I really think our military can be better than this.
My problem with Murtha is that he is using this to gain political points. Why can’t he wait for the report to be issued. There seems to be no evidence that the military is covering this up. Thebe is an investigation and if the marines did this they will be punished in accordance with the UCMJ.
Bad things happen in war and I hope this story is not true but I think Murtha jumped the gun.
Roux, that kind of comment, I have to say, really bugs me. It is exactly what Malkin and others say. What political gain are you talking about? And some evidence for it, please. Just saying something like that weakens you position dramitically, in my eyes at least. And if what you say is true—why do you say it as if it would automatically be a bad thing? Many “political gains” are not only entirely unselfish they are jaw-droppingly genrous. Politicians in the 1960s highlighting the unfair treatment of blacks in the U.S. were revealing it for “politcal gain,” to be sure. Do you have a problem with that?
I think Murtha spoke about it, as I said above, because it had already been covered up and needed the extra scrutiny to make sure it didn’t happen again. and as a former marine, he spoke very clearly about the strain on the his fellow Marines caused by this so-poorly executed war.