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About that terrorist that really is dead now ... Part 2
I'm continuing to try to keep an eye on the "About that terrorist that really is dead now ..." story, but the blogosphere's a big place and I'm sure I'm not seeing everything. Just a sampling:
More from former SEAL Matthew Heidt: [...]
I have also seen a lot in the way of explaining this Marine's actions by taking into account the fact that he was wounded the day before, that he was tired, he was caught up in the "fog of war", and similar excuses for his actions. He doesn't need any excuses in my book. While all of those factors were in play, they aren't germane to the subject at hand. Combatants generally fake death for a reason. The reason is not important. That there is a reason is important. If Kevin Sites wasn't there with his camera, those Marines probably would have double tapped everybody in the room. Site's presence clearly attenuated the natural response of the Marines in that situation. Which makes the shooting of the one tango all the more justifiable in my estimation. Marines know that they have to be on their best behavior when the press is around, because chances are they were explicitly warned by their unit commander. The fact of the matter is that this Marine acted with RESTRAINT and only shot the one hostile who was acting in a suspicious manner. Kevin Sites certainly owes his life to this and many other Marines he was straphanging with last week. I glad he was able to offer them his gratitude in such a compelling way.
More from Blackhawk pilot Capt. 2Slick: What Happened to the Fallujah Incident?
I was all set and ready to launch an all out offensive against the MSM about this thing, and now I'm not seeing it anywhere on the headlines. I don't have access to TV over here, so please let me know if they're starting to (finally) back off. Cyberspace seems to have cooled on it significantly, possibly because of our friend Bill Faith's recent Instalanche at Small Town Veteran. I'll stay tooned...
From former Army officer Donald Sensing, who I am thrilled to learn has resumed blogging: [...]
Update: Marine Lance Cpl. Jeramy Ailes, 22, of Gilroy was killed Monday in Al-Fallujah by small arms fire. "They had finished mopping up in Fallujah and they went back to double-check on some insurgents. From what we gathered, somebody playing possum jumped up and shot him," said his father, Joel Ailes, who learned of his death Monday evening. "It's extremely hard."
If the Marine in the video does stand trial, testimony of Marines who witnessed acts like those that killed LCPL Ailes will practically guarantee an acquittal.
From Powerline:
A message from Baghdad
Our reader Haider Ajina phoned his father in Baghdad for an update on Iraqi sentiment concerning the Marine killing. Haider sends us the following message: I just got of the phone with my father in Baghdad. I asked him what is the reaction of the Marine killing the injured Iraqi in the Mosque in Felujah. His first words were "Good riddance."
People are not giving it a second thought. Any terrorist who attacks soldiers from Mosques has no sanctuary. Any terrorists who fake death to kill in a mosque deserve no mercy. He says Iraqis (including Sunnis) are fed up with the terrorists and want them eliminated.
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More from Air Force officer Greyhawk, blogging from Iraq: [...]
A professional knows his business and does it well. I wasn't in that room - I wasn't in that town - but I trust those who were did what they had to do. I won't second guess them. He had to shoot, don't you agree? It was his job. The military sent him in, sanctioned his actions, flipped the "on" switch, so to speak. That's the price you pay for freedom - ugliness on the edges, sometimes thrust into your dining rooms. I'm on that edge - or at least most likely closer than you - that's the price I pay for freedom. You just have to look at it from time to time from your safe place in the center, and comment on it if you're so inclined.
In spite of all this - the fact that none of us were there but this guy was, and he was doing his job that was sanctioned by military command and control authority - in spite of all this an amazing number of people are eager to condemn him for the shooting.
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You have friends, Marine. Hang tough. Just give a yell when you need us.
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