SAME SITUATION DIFFERENT REACTIONS
First, we have a soldier fighting in WWII, house to house inside France. He is young and has been shot at since after he came in as a replacement for a fallen trooper. The soldier had seen artillery and machine gun fire, rake a building some snipers were in. He is crawling upstairs with his platoon, some shot others not. They see the Germans, many in pools of blood. Others, shot by no so bloodied. One of them is close to a Schmeisser Machine pistol and is about to grab it and fire at the platoon. The young American soldier sees the motion and unloads 2 rounds into the wounded German. That soldier is praised as a hero for saving his platoon mates, and receives a medal.
Second, we have a soldier in Fallujah, young US Marine. That soldier and his men were also in house to house fighting, and saw the artillery and helicopters rake a building with countless rounds. They inspect the room with 4 to 5 dead Iraqi terrorist snipers. All are still. They are about to twitch and then one of the Iraqis twitches. The soldier raises his gun and shoots that man dead. There was pressumably no weapon close to the would be killer. Days before, various troops had died leaving the dead uninspected, and when moving some, the bodies were wired to explode. This soldier fired. Although, in this war, the trooper was videotaped and reported by an embedded reporter. Hardly Ernie Pyle, but it's war.
There are two soldiers, two similar situations, but very different wars and rules of engagement. the WWII soldier is awarded and no coverage in the news is given, he just fights again. The Iraq War Marine is covered, removed from combat and could be investigated. Two different outcomes, two different wars. The differences are in reporting and news coverage, but there is a solid and striking common thread.
Each soldier had a choice:
The first choice is to shrug off the twitches of the dying enemey and move on. That would lead to more casualties if the enemy fired, or had the chance to set off a grenade or charge. That choice would lead to the hesitant trooper's death and the platoon. All would return home, in coffins, and their next of kin would get a folded flag and a visit from two dressed up officers to their home.
The second choice, uneasy but the one that ruled out in the end. Shoot the enemy, as Lord only knows if the enemy had a hidden gun or grenade. Save yourself, save your platoon, and save others from having to come up to avenge the possible dead troops who missed on piece of ordinance. You are likely to take heat from someone and will need to parley with God on the decision. However, you save lives and save yourself and make it home, alive.
What choice would you make if you were that trooper?
Second, we have a soldier in Fallujah, young US Marine. That soldier and his men were also in house to house fighting, and saw the artillery and helicopters rake a building with countless rounds. They inspect the room with 4 to 5 dead Iraqi terrorist snipers. All are still. They are about to twitch and then one of the Iraqis twitches. The soldier raises his gun and shoots that man dead. There was pressumably no weapon close to the would be killer. Days before, various troops had died leaving the dead uninspected, and when moving some, the bodies were wired to explode. This soldier fired. Although, in this war, the trooper was videotaped and reported by an embedded reporter. Hardly Ernie Pyle, but it's war.
There are two soldiers, two similar situations, but very different wars and rules of engagement. the WWII soldier is awarded and no coverage in the news is given, he just fights again. The Iraq War Marine is covered, removed from combat and could be investigated. Two different outcomes, two different wars. The differences are in reporting and news coverage, but there is a solid and striking common thread.
Each soldier had a choice:
The first choice is to shrug off the twitches of the dying enemey and move on. That would lead to more casualties if the enemy fired, or had the chance to set off a grenade or charge. That choice would lead to the hesitant trooper's death and the platoon. All would return home, in coffins, and their next of kin would get a folded flag and a visit from two dressed up officers to their home.
The second choice, uneasy but the one that ruled out in the end. Shoot the enemy, as Lord only knows if the enemy had a hidden gun or grenade. Save yourself, save your platoon, and save others from having to come up to avenge the possible dead troops who missed on piece of ordinance. You are likely to take heat from someone and will need to parley with God on the decision. However, you save lives and save yourself and make it home, alive.
What choice would you make if you were that trooper?
posted by NDwalters @ 4:32 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home