SUPPORT PEACE THROUGH SUPERIOR FIRE POWER, GO U.S.A.!!!!!!!!!!

Originally posted by seasoul
The average kid who enlists in many ways is no different than the average kid next door. They are just kids who are hoping for adventure, or hoping for a career,

any idea how many SS troopers the same could be said for in WW2, i'm sure there were kids like that patrolling the fence in concentration camps up and down europe, doesn't make their actions good.

lord i'm so sick of the excuses, i don't care if there are pictures of smiling kids, there are tons with crying kids too. what i know for sure is that if the soldiers have PTS then i'm damn sure there are as many iraqi kids suffering with it too, and adults. a smile for 3 secounds in front of a camera means nothing to me.

this war was based on lies, they signed up for it. i'm not saying every soldier is a sadistic asshole, some of them are just stupid and impressionable, that doesn't excuse them.

Wonderful post!

I hope you don’t mind, but I have a really hard time stomaching some of the anti-troop, anti-war, “good things can’t possibly happen in this world” comments. Terrible things happen in war (the ones you think are illegal and those you may think are justified). I know several pieces of crap individuals serving time in prison due to the injustices you mention. However, I think the OP has done a great thing by going against the grain and posted something positive.

I understand why some of you might think the pictures may not be genuine or possibly common sight throughout Iraq and Afghanistan. However, constantly focusing on the bad and evil sometimes limits our focus. Times are changing a lot over there. I think the children’s friendly faces, clean clothes (depending on the quantity of fresh water, most individuals you come across will at least be clean), and clean(er) neighborhoods are all more commonplace nowadays. By the way, mentioning Darfur as a counter example is not a legitimate argument against Iraq or Afghanistan. Darfur does have some major issues, but if someone found positive images pulled from there I wouldn’t bash him.

You will always be able to come across areas that fit your stereotypical view of a war torn and impoverished community. (I am sure it would take equal time to find areas in the United States which are equivalent if not worse.)

If you are thinking that I am mistaken or ignorant to the realities which are plaguing our world, let me back up my above statements:

I (though ignorant at the time) enlisted immediately following 9/11 and served in the US Army [75th Ranger Regiment and 404th Civil Affairs Battalion, Special Operations (Airborne) Unit]. I left the military with an honorable discharge after I fulfilled my service. I was then recalled from the IRR in 2007 for another tour in Iraq.

My missions in Iraq took me to the worst places the country had to offer. I never once had the luxury of patrolling in the “Green Zone”. I have been to Sadr City, Adhamiya, Baqubah, among many others. During my time with Civil Affairs, I was up close and personal with Iraqis on a day-to-day basis. My mission was to ensure the standard of living for Iraqi citizens was rebuilt. I evaluated sewage issues, availability of fresh water, fair governance (so one faction did not feel abused by another), local economy, security for civilians, and claims of malpractice by our troops against Iraqis. Projects were started daily to reduce the strain of our presence in the country and bring normalcy back to the citizens. No, all of our goals have not been achieved yet. However, there are good men and women over there making a positive difference in these people’s lives.

Yes, there are bad places in this world where children wear ripped and dirty clothes (I need not look any further than my own city limits for examples of this) and sewage drains from homes into the roads (I’ve seen it in Iraq as well, but it more of an exception now). Yes, atrocities committed by individuals against their fellow man (regardless of race, nationality, or creed) happen at a sickeningly high rate around the world. Yes, wars are horrible and typically fought to promote a sometimes hidden agenda behind high-level closed doors. I will not argue against you with any of these points. However, I will argue that most of the civilians in Iraq are NOT as pitiful as some of you are making them out to be.

Also, for all of the people out there who may think I am trying to spread dis/mis information:

1. I believe there is something out there greater than ourselves and;
2. I think our government and others carry enormous secrets and hide an entirely too much information from the public about the realities of this world
3. I don’t feel we had a legitimate basis for invading Iraq and feel we should never have gone there. However, after the mess we have created, I think it was necessary we did not pull out sooner and we continue to rebuild and finish what we started (unless Iraq wants us out sooner).

If the military is not your thing, I implore anyone to join a legitimate peaceful organization that will take you to the places you think are devastated and provide aide to those civilians. I guarantee…you will have a better understanding for what is really going on (that the news doesn’t depict) and you will gain the credibility needed to influence individuals like myself of such “look how bad they have it” views. Until then, I’m at peace knowing what is really going on, witnessed by my own two eyes.

What about the 1.3+ million innocent Iraqi civilians, women and children, we, our troops, have killed? Or the 4+ million Iraqis that have been displaced (homeless)?

Shouldn't we also address this topic? I am not anti-military, I would just like to know how someone can kill, and in most cases, massacre millions of innocent people?

It's great you have those photos of our troops helping the Iraqi people, and I commend you for it. Meanwhile, the entire story should be discussed here.

Originally posted by octaviameister
What about the 1.3+ million innocent Iraqi civilians, women and children, we, our troops, have killed? Or the 4+ million Iraqis that have been displaced (homeless)?

Got a source for that many dead Iraqis?

Originally posted by octaviameister
It's great you have those photos of our troops helping the Iraqi people, and I commend you for it. Meanwhile, the entire story should be discussed here.

Sure, let's discuss what the insurgents are doing for the people of Iraq. I think they are handling population control by setting off car bombs in crowded marketplaces, guarenteed to kill plenty of women and children.

Or maybe all of the legitimate atrocities you want to discuss are being discussed elsewhere on a ton of other threads. You just can't stand seeing something positive have its own thread because you think it threatens your view on life. Bravo for trying to start a debate and info awareness on a thread the OP didn't intend as such.

Take a pill...

I am not American, but in my line of work I have met some Americans you lot would refer to Ombamaites or whatnot, yeah, they are ok.

The air force personal I met when working at an International School a few years ago were, however, totally awesome! Patriots and Compassionate at the same time! Maybe being several thousand feet away from reality helps you maintain humanity though.

My concern as a foreigner is though, how many people in your military, and how many leading it, are of the Kill them all and let God sort them out variety. Xenophobic, brainwashed into believing their superiority and full of hate.

History documents various horrible regimes encouraging and indoctrinating these traits into their rank and file, and with good reason. It makes them motivated and effective killers which is a good thing when survival as a people is at stake, I certainly refrain from mercy when plugging fools in Halo. But it also puts them on a par with the Japanese war criminals in that they will treat their enemy, even if captured, as animals. Is your Military honorable or a pack of brutally effective animals? Or both? Somewhere in between? It is somewhat a mystery to me as an outsider. I have seen the photos posted here, as well as the photos and reports that this thread alluded to with it's false title (A rather immature way of promoting a thread and a popular technique on this site I might add.)

How would you behave if you were over there? Just kill or be killed, which is reasonable, or would you go a bit further? How do you feel about the "enemy?"

I love freedom, and I would love to think that the American tax payers put more to my well appreciated freedom than anyone else, just like they did for my ancestors 65 odd years ago against the Japanese.

Wow this just makes me sick.

[edit on 8-5-2009 by thegreatobserver]

Jesus you people are so cynical and misanthropic its disgusting. The OP provides thumbnails of our troops actually caring about the well-being of the kids over there in Iraq/Afghanistan and all you people can talk about are the millions who dies from tomahawk missiles and kids begging for water.

These pictures are merely 'propaganda'? Your own judgment has been so clouded by the propaganda you read here everyday you can't see past American soldiers being brutal monsters.

I would call you all of you ignorant trolls out by username, but I'm not sure if that's against the T&C or not. So, I'll just issue a blanket 'Go to Hell' to nearly ever person who posted on the first page.

These are the kinds of misleading threads that are screwing this site up, why not just come out and post the pics to remind us that there are good things happening there. However its sick that the mods let these misleading threads begin and continue just for some amusement.