Well, it's official and it's dreadful:
The bodies of two U.S. soldiers reported captured last week have been recovered, and an Iraqi defense ministry official said Tuesday the men were "killed in a barbaric way." The U.S. military said the remains were believed to be those of Pfc. Kristian Menchaca, 23, of Houston, and Pfc. Thomas L. Tucker, 25, of Madras, Ore.
The celebrations among the barbarians have begun:
"We give the good news … to the Islamic nation that we have carried God's verdict by slaughtering the two captured crusaders," said the claim, which appeared on an Islamic militant Web site where insurgent groups regularly post statements and videos.
"With God Almighty's blessing, Abu Hamza al-Muhajer carried out the verdict of the Islamic court" calling for the soldiers' slaying, the statement said.
The statement said the soldiers were "slaughtered," suggesting that al-Muhajer beheaded them. The Arabic word used in the statement, "nahr," is used for the slaughtering of sheep by cutting the throat and has been used in past statements to refer to beheadings.
Laer predicts — and I'm sure he's right — that the Western press will be remarkably passive about this. I can just imagine the talking heads on the nightly news putting on their solemn faces for a minute and announcing:
Well, the sad news tonight is that Pfc. Kristian Menchaca, 23, of Houston, and Pfc. Thomas L. Tucker, 25, of Madras, Ore. were killed. Although it's too soon to speculate, early reports indicate that they were decapitated. Residents of the village near which they were found claim that violence is rising against everyone in the area. Abu El-Babu reported that he was threatened by several men in a truck. 'This is all the American's fault,' he said through a translator. 'Before the Americans came, we had jobs and were never threatened by men in trucks.' A few children in the community could be seen hiding in doorways. And now, let's move to something lighter….
And that's the last we'll hear. There won't be endless cover stories about these soldiers' suffering or about the cultural barbarism that gave rise to their deaths. In other words, the media orgy that attended Abu Ghraib and Gitmo will be absent.
I've noted before that the Liberals' and the MSM's pathological inability to come to grips with the chronic violence directed against Americans, and their obsession with the scattered acts of hazing-type wrongdoing Americans visit on the Islamists (I'm ignoring Haditha here, because it's not proven yet), are actually quite a compliment to the American soldier. Much as they'd hate to admit it, Liberals and the MSM think so highly of the American military that they recognize anomalous behavior when they see it. Their sin is that, instead of treating the behavior with disdain and moving on as they should, they revel in these rare instances of ungentlemanlike behavior, much like a dog writhing in the occasional dead fish it finds on a beach.
The flip side of this is that, by cavalierly passing on Islamofacist violence, Liberals and the MSM show their arrogance and condescension: unlike you and me, they believe that Arabs/Muslims are less than human, and should be excused for behavior that even animals would disdain.
In any event, let's not, you and I, ignore these men. These are pictures of Pfc. Thomas L. Tucker, 25, of Madras, Ore, and Pfc. Kristian Menchaca, 23, of Houston, two young men who, in the act of defending their country, died a terrible death. Please take a minute to think of these young men and, if you have the time, include them in your blog. They shouldn't be forgotten and we in the blogosphere can do a little bit, just a little bit, to acknowledge and give thanks for their sacrifice.
UPDATE: Flopping Aces and Little Green Footballs both offer us examples of the way some on the Left are going to play this. Basically, it's all Bush's fault. I'm sure that, in WWII, every death — and there were many — would have been all Roosevelt's fault. Wait, no, I'm wrong. Roosevelt was a Democrat. Where would they have placed the blame? These people just don't understand the concept of national defense, nor do they understand that there are some who are willing to make the ultimate sacrifice so that the greatest number of us can live in health and happiness. I get it — my Daddy was a soldier — and I am so grateful for these men and women.
UPDATE II: James S. Robbins takes on the media's self-loathing obsession with bad American stories, and its remarkably cavalier take on bad Iraqi stories. He thinks that, among reporters, it may be My Lai syndrome — and I'm sure he's right that such thinker figures large in the thinking of many MSM hacks.
Talking to Technorati: Kristian Menchaca, Thomas L. Tucker, Islamofascism, Media, Bias, War crimes, Beheading, Abu Ghraib, Guantanamo
Filed under: Arabs, Iraq, Media matters, Military, War crimes |
Bookworm Room (ARCHIVES) 
posts like yours are important. had a conversation about similar issue just today. The american “men” they “train” and send to Iraq are not properly readied. One of the few recued American men was later interviewed by a journalist, attempting to set him up as an amazing war hero for the public. He dissapointed her in his human response; he said that he was just lucky and that when you’re THERE, you feel like you’re in a movie. These men are boys and the 6 month “trainning” won’t turn them into optimal fighting machines (even given the possibility of a certain genetic predesposition to the task).
So sad…
When I heard of the WAY in which these two young troops were killed, I could actually FEEL my blood start to boil! Don’t you know their fellow soldiers are more determined that EVER to press-on with their mission to eradicate this earth of these low-life monsters?
Lisa, you’ve got a point, but the fact is that the US military is the best-trained in the world. How do you adequately train anyone to kill people and break things… which, where the rubber meets the road, is the primary mission of the military… then do everything in your power to prevent them from doing that? That is what is happening in Iraq.
To paraphrase Winston Churchill, the US military is the worst trained in the world… except for all the rest.
I recommend Bush grab about 10 to 50 to 100 terroists from GitMo, court martial them, and then execute them, on international tv broadcast to the middle east through Iraqi networks that will carry it, exclude the American networks (except perhaps for Fox).
If you don’t want to court martial them because it takes too long, then just summarily execute them. But Bush would have to rescind Geneva Convention Rights… don’t think he is going to do now, eh?
Don’t you know their fellow soldiers are more determined that EVER to press-on with their mission to eradicate this earth of these low-life monsters?
The target of their psychological operations is not the soldiers, since obviously this just pisses them off and will insure that they will more kill terroists, not less. Their target is you, the civilians, or as the Left would term, the chickenhawks. (neo neocon had a good post recently about chickenhawks and other birds of prey)
With all due respect to Winston Churchill, he would have shat his pants if he saw the US military as it is now, as opposed to the rackety digity mishmash it was in WWII. The Roman Legions and the Spartans would have been amazed, although perhaps contemptous of the comforts, at the discipline and fighting prowess of the elite forces in the American military. The Marines, Marine Recon, SEALs, Deltas, and Rangers. Amongst others.
I’d go as far and say that the United States has the best Advanced Training courses in the history of warfare. In Today’s world, the American military trains so hard, that a green trooper in one of the elite line outfits, is the worth of about a veteran in WWII and before. I am solely refering to soldier skills, discipline, and teamwork. I do not refer to individual martial prowess, since that obviously takes time and experience and will.
Britain’s SAS and other Spec Ops in Europe might match the training, but they do not have the combat experience to go with it. So in the end, they aren’t competitive in that manner.
I am sure that the Democrat/Left will be outraged that the soldiers were tortured and executed in violation of the Geneva Conventions. Oh, wait, they will say that this happened only because we “violated” the Geneva Conventions. It must be all Bush’s fault. Personally, General Pershing had it right – from now on, capture Jihadis, execute them on the spot and bury them in pig hides. I believe that, given that the Jihadis do wear uniforms and target civilians, the Geneva Conventions give us full authority to do so.
I was sorry to hear the news. I can’t begin to imagine the anxiety where one is faced with the decision of being killed while trying to kill as many of the enemy first or hoping capture will result in doubtful humane treatment. It must be terrifying to know that you are already dead no matter what your choice. They were very brave and my prayers go out to them and their families.
[…] Remember all of you domestic terrorist sympathizers: these are people that kidnap and behead our troops, like Pfc. Kristian Menchaca and Pfc. Thomas L. Tucker. Do not feel sorry about the deaths of al-Qaeda terrorists. Feel sorry for Menchaca and Tucker and their families and friends. Bookworm and Flopping Aces have written wonderful tributes to these two brave men. I encourage you to read them. […]