Young children fight American soldiers in Iraq.

Now it's making more sense, gravity is at work. Arm strength couldn't do that.

BTW, how wide are the streets? Do the projectiles come from both sides?

shwnstr,

I was kinda thinking another concern one over there may have when many people are throwing projectiles at once, is that somebody may slip a grenade in the mix or use the fact that you guys were paying attention to the rocks and launch an RPG or something along those lines...

Some streets are very wide, others are too narrow to drive through. So we had to dismount and walk. We always tried to keep ourselves close to cover, but not as to be a target from above. Its difficult. You are correct about being distracted. It is actually a fairly effective tool used by the insurgency to use the kids in this way. My patrol was never grenaded but others were. If you looked like a soft target they would take advantage of you. I personally feel that most of the time they were just trying to see our discipline. They knew our rules of engagement better than some soldiers did. The Mahdi Army fueled the fire for sure. The only time we were RPG'd was a night ambush and we never caught the guys.

Originally posted by shwnster
Some streets are very wide, others are too narrow to drive through. So we had to dismount and walk. We always tried to keep ourselves close to cover, but not as to be a target from above.

The article, and yourself as well has said that these people target vehicles, as you said yourself, "Up to 35 MPH". That doesn't sound like being targeted from above. Neither does this:

Originally posted by shwnster
Only after stopping the patrol and going over to the parents and having our terp (interpreter) tell them to please stop would they say anything to their kids. An hour later you would drive by the same area and get pelted again. If the adults saw you were going to stop, they would get up and run the kids off. It's no secret we aren't wanted in Iraq by many Americans and Iraqi's alike.

How did the parents "go over" to stop the kids? Wouldn't they have to go UP to "run the kids off"? 3-5 stories? The only way that KIDS could use a projectile as an effective weapon.

Apologies if I'm missing something but it's like math, this just doesn't add up. Maybe I'm missing a part of the equation.

I am sorry if i didnt say UP. I was generalizing. As this happened every day. And I said 35 plus. You arent skeptical. You are basically accusing ME of lying. I told you what happened and is still happening. Do with it what you will. I thought this website was about denying ignorance? If you have a problem with U.S. soldiers just say so. Dont beat around the bush. We are just trying to do our job. If this all seems surreal and hard to believe then maybe you should go check it out yourself. Or don't. We'll continue to do the job that most people wouldnt do. I didnt do the physics equations for velocity, gravity, weight and inertia. As a matter of fact, i hate math and physics. But i did give you the facts. Not propaganda.

[edit on 20-9-2006 by shwnster]

Originally posted by shwnster
I am sorry if i didnt say UP. I was generalizing. As this happened every day. And I said 35 plus. You arent skeptical. You are basically accusing ME of lying. I told you what happened and is still happening. Do with it what you will. I thought this website was about denying ignorance? If you have a problem with U.S. soldiers just say so. Dont beat around the bush. We are just trying to do our job. If this all seems surreal and hard to believe then maybe you should go check it out yourself. Or don't. We'll continue to do the job that most people wouldnt do. I didnt do the physics equations for velocity, gravity, weight and inertia. As a matter of fact, i hate math and physics. But i did give you the facts. Not propaganda.

[edit on 20-9-2006 by shwnster]

NO WHERE did I call you a liar. I said it didn't add up. I have NO problem with sevicemen/women, US or not, I come from a long line of military service, too bad I squandered my youth and they wouldn't take me during Desert Storm. You're fighting the wrong battle here with this manouver. It STILL doesn't add up, I'm just trying to make sense of this.

It doesnt add up? This isnt an equation. Its what happened. You shouldnt get in a discussion about which you know nothing unless you are willing to learn.
Have a nice night.

Originally posted by whaaa
I think the American forces should make a strategic withdrawal and come home and be able to take care of their own children and other family members. Im much more concerned with the welfare of American children than Iraqi children.

[edit on 19-9-2006 by whaaa]

That would be great, our nation has forsaken its children for far to long. We cannot however make a simple withdraw.. we !$!@% up big time by going there, and now we are obligated to make sure it works out.

That is not a pro-Bush stay the course message there, that is a we raped a nation, our president did, AMERICAS president did whether you voted for him or not, if we leave we will have bombed them to hell, dismantled the only government many of Iraqis had ever known and then walked away leaving the nation defensless to its self. Not smart. Not humane. Not an American way.

The solution is simple.

Get the hell out.

Refuse to fight.

You're not there to liberate the Iraqi people. That was never part of the plan. The idea was always to get control of the oil and asset-strip the country for US corporations... all that stuff about WMDs was guff... and if the US cared about poor people being oppressed by dictators, why does it keep propping them up? One recent example is Islom Karimov of Uzbekhistan. This guy boils people alive, but he's useful to the US, so when the UK ambassador tore into the country's human rights record at a state dinner, the US ambassador had a word with Washington, who had a word with Blair, who had a word with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office... who began a campaign of whispering and sabotage against the Ambassador concerned.

So all the guff about how terrible Saddam was... your country doesn't care about dead Iraqi kids. If they did, they wouldn't have pursued sanctions that - according to Madeleine Allbright - killed half a million of them.

There is NOTHING that the US can do now that would do the Iraqis any good except leave. The damage is done. Better to leave them to sort their own mess out than to try to impose a solution - especially as the solutions have more to do with making Iraq subservient to the interests of US corporations like Monsanto and Bechtel.

Hmm

What would I do?

1. Run the little fkers over and pave the road with them. I would think Iraq has alot of potholes.

2. Build a 100ft wall around Iraq and fill it with water. Let them create a new flood myth.

3. Better yet - attach about 12 of them to the back of the Hummers with chains and drag their little bodies all around the town. Maybe the others will get the picture.

4. Or --- WE COULD GET THE HELLL OUT OF THE MIDDLE EAST AND STOP GLOBAL IMPERIALISM.

5. Actually I'm going to the bar to watch the Michigan - Wisconsin Football game this saturday and I'll let some other poor bastardd worry about those other poor bastardss. Then I will get drunk and make lewd comments to the hot waitress then get in my v-8 suv that get 6 miles to the gallon and then try not to hit any light poles on the way home, but if I do fk it... I got airbags.

Welcome to the age of indifference, entitlement, and lowered expectations.

Hello, I've been a lurker for some time now and finally joined tonight.

I'm sure that this resopnse will not be too popular with some, for that I'm sorry. But my feelings about this are quite strong. I've had more that one friend in Iraq and one was nearly killed by a "kid". Fortunately his buddy disabled the "kid" first.

My response to your question is obvious.

Kill them dead.

These "kids" are being brainwashed to hate a people that they know absoutely nothing about except what their extremist "role models" are teaching them.

"Nip it in the bud"

Ridin

Originally posted by ridin2live

These "kids" are being brainwashed to hate a people that they know absoutely nothing about except what their extremist "role models" are teaching them.

"Nip it in the bud"

Ridin

Just one point to make, the children are in their country of birth our soldiers are not.

OK Marg.

Is that what you teach your children ?

Originally posted by ridin2live
OK Marg.

Is that what you teach your children ?

I already raised my children they are adults now. and they were born and grew up in military enviroment.

ridin2live,
I teach my childeren to stand up for them selves, defend there family and be positive.

So yes, If my country was invaded, over run and occupied.. Id probably be out there throwing and shooting at the occupiers nxt to my childeren.

Why would I want to live in my house in my country under another countries government?

Kill them dead.

These "kids" are being brainwashed to hate a people that they know absoutely nothing about except what their extremist "role models" are teaching them.

We invaded their country, which hadn't attacked us.

I'm sure there were Germans in 1943 who said the same about kids in the European resistance movements too.

It's too bad that our guys are getting killed over there, no doubt.

But we started this war, not the Iraqis.

Originally posted by shwnster
It doesnt add up? This isnt an equation. Its what happened. You shouldnt get in a discussion about which you know nothing unless you are willing to learn.
Have a nice night.

How is it a discussion if you refuse to explain inconsistencies in your story? He (and I) aren't saying you're lying... but some of it doesn't add up. Yes, it's not LITERALLY an equation... obviously. You could be legit and probably are... but don't get so defensive just because someone calls you out on something that, as per this site's motto, calls for further questioning. You patrolled the streets of Sadr City... I think you can handle a little bit of internet correspondence without storming off in a huff.

[edit on 20-9-2006 by firebat]

Originally posted by xmotex
When the kids come out to fight you, it's a pretty good hint that you're not wanted there and should leave. Not that we should have gone in in the first place...

No, that's a hint of how pathetic these people are. Kid's can't clearly think for themselves, that is why here in the USA you can't get a death sentence for killing if you are under 18. Technically, if you are under 18 your brain is not mature enough to make decisions. Their pathetic fathers, and maybe mothers are brainwashing their kids to hate, and be violent. If these people had any brain at all, they would be peaceful, or at least pretend to be peaceful, so we can get the hell out of there already. The only reason we are still there is because there is still violence, people are still attacking the Americans, and their government and law enforcement (that we are helping to build) isn't quite strong enough yet.

If we leave Iraq now, and they are attacking us as we leave, they will think they won, and more attacks on USA would be a probability. If we get the place to be peaceful, and an American troop can walk down the streets without fear of getting blown up or shot, then we might leave.

My suggestion for the kid shields is non-lethal weapons. Get some paintball guns that look nothing like a real gun, but hurt like hell, and shoot some of those kids. It will be like giving them a spanking. Maybe some BB guns...

[edit on 20-9-2006 by LAES YVAN]

Kids fighting US soldiers!

Seems like a fair fight to me!


(someone had to say it!)

Originally posted by shwnster
Mr Pieman, I patrolled Sadr City from the fall of 05 to the beginning of 06. Sadr City is the most poverty stricken section of Baghdad. NONE of the schools in Sadr City have ever been bombed.

I didn't say the schools were bombed. You misunderstood.

The parents stood by and watched their kids act like fools. Only after stopping the patrol and going over to the parents and having our terp (interpreter) tell them to please stop would they say anything to their kids.

While you may think they are fools...they are not the ones going 1/2 way across the globe on a wild goose chase looking for non-existant WMD's and non-existant Al-Queda training camps. Did you ever stop to think maybe we are the ones who look like the fools not only to Iraqis but the majority of the rest of the world as well.

But let me tell you what we did for Sadr City. When Saddam was ruling Sadr City had power maybe a total of 48 hours in a week. Since he was ousted, coalition contractors and the military have enabled Sadr City to have power and water EVERY day with only minor power outages due to people stealing from the mainlines. When Saddam was in power the schools only had teachers that were approved of by his regime. Most of whom were just his puppets that were less than qualified. Now teachers are recruited from other areas of Iraq and they can actually teach things other than how great Saddam is and how bad western culture is.

So you are saying that they had no good educational system, power, hospitals or anything else before we bombed them and started rebuilding? I know you are wrong. Obviously you don't know what Iraq was like prior to US involvement. Obviously you have never lived in a Middle Eastern country before to know that this is how things are and the majority of them don't seem to mind. Its not like America where they need to have power on a constant basis. Frankly, to be honest with you what business or concern is it for US as Americans what the power situation is in Iraq , when we have people living here in New York City with not only no power but NO HOME, NO FOOD, NO HEALTH INSURANCE and NO PAYCHECK!

Oh great for the "Coalition Contractors" making billions and stealing billions. Screw americans who are suffering here, is that what you are trying to say?

I know these things because the people of Sadr City have told me this. During the day people would come out to greet you and shake your hand, and at night they would ambush you. We treated the people of Sadr City with the utmost respect.

Dude...going into a foreign country, bombing them and killing their friends, families and relatives is NOT a sign of respect. I dunno what part of America you live in but here in New York we just invite people over for dinner or something. Im not blaming you at all since you are of course the same as us and we were all hoodwinked into thinking its something it wasn't.

You really have no idea what you are talking about Pieman. Make a difference. Be part of the solution and not the problem. We are in this for the long haul. Been there, done that.

Ok but you do because you are in the Military following orders and being told only what you need to know or possibly because you are there because you want to be there, I dunno. Thats your opinion man. If you feel its the right thing you are entitled to it, but don't think its making me feel safer here in America because those same little kids throwing rocks now, WILL GROW UP SOMEDAY, and know what happened and they may want to seek retribution in the future, just look at Palestine. You can think that you are cleaning things up over there ,but its not our place to clean up.