On ZeroHedge this morning, one of the articles is about another leaked video from a military operation. This one is from Afghanistan, and it clearly shows a US soldier firing his shotgun at the driver of a civilian truck that is not a threat.
The videos are quickly being erased from YouTube, but another site has made copies of the damning few seconds. You can read about the incident and see more images and video here.
Supposedly, the military is investigating the incident, but I doubt much will be done as other past videos have demonstrated. If anything, the person leaking the video is punished, not the idiots doing stupid and unethical things within it. Obviously, these crimes need to be investigated, and appropriate action should be taken.
These crimes occur on a regular basis, and they seriously undermine the US military's reputation around the world. How can they argue that they are there defending individual liberty and the freedom of the Afghan people while shooting at and harming civilians on a regular basis?
The simple answer is that is not why the US military is there.
Incidents like these create more "terrorists" too. Every civilian casualty creates more and more resistance fighters. That's the objective too. It assures that the fighting will continue forever.
I'm reminded again of the Restrepo movie's scene where a captain orders a rocket attack on a village. No resistance fighters are killed--only women and children. Then the captain's unit is ambushed as it leaves.
They are shocked by the brutality of the counterattack, and one soldier's throat was cut with a knife. The enemy got that close. It was personal. Is there any wonder why? What would you do if someone blew up your loved ones? I know what I would do.
It should be very easy to find out who the shooter is and punish them appropriately.
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2018/01/12/world/middleeast/afghanistan-soldier-video-us-investigates.html
terror is there because we create terror ..
the enemy exists because we are hostile to others.
so is the terror that is happening all over the world ,,, because maybe they are one of the family or relatives or his people who are always killed ... so they grudge and try to kill as they kill their family.
do not create a new terror .. because it will made to a new terror and enemy.
I agree with your opinion @finnian
but then how can we justify touching people's junk at the airport?
"Fighting for your freedom" has become such a joke. It's disgraceful. This is what happens when a people allow a standing army to exist. They shouldn't.
there are a few steps between having a standing army and having your junk touched at the airport in the name of security. Indeed though the solution to terrorists is to exercise our rights, not to throw them away. We could defeat the jihadists by merely exercising our right to draw cartoons and our right to bear arms, they are an enemy that will literally allow you to choose the time and place they will attack yet our leaders suggest that we defeat them by throwing away our liberties and submitting to total surveillance.
Makes you wonder whose side they're on
the one making money
For real!
Sad really as our soldiers carry out these orders or have become what they are due to being put in these situations via campaigns and orders over time. I wonder what Americans would think if an occupying force was here on our soil and John the guy that lives down the street was just shot by a soldier point blank via shotgun while trying to back out of his drive way? Granted one can argue all they want on my deaf ears of terrorist this and that but I really find it hard to believe that terrorists that were led by a guy on dialysis and lived in a cave could do what they did on 911.
That must be one heck of a dialysis machine. .
Better yet one hell of a long extension chord right?
Like I always say, if terrorists did not exist they would have to create them.
Governments need enemies, and creating an enemy is quite easy. :(
or the appearance of enemies anyhow.
I'm willing to bet that Roman society was obsessed with "terrorism" as their empire started to collapse too...
Vandals
Yes, exactly. That is a well documented pattern throughout human history.
When the USA says they want to you hold your hand, whatever you do, don't bend over to get the soap.
It is highly unlikely that US military personnel will be prosecuted for murder of a non citizen overseas when US citizens are gunned down by Police in a similar fashion who then get off like this guy.
Grrrr, that pisses me off.
You're more likely to be killed be a cop than a terrorist. Just a fact.
Our US armed forces train our soldiers to be PSYCHOpaths!
I know a few of these people. They are completely heartless and emotionless. They believe might makes right!
Might makes right is a classic fascist ideology and disgusts me.
Don't forget Obedient !
Terrorists do not lead this world.
Oligarchs who employ terrorism to control people do.
So messed up!!
Just think. Now some members of Congress and the military grew up playing Grand Theft Auto..
I guess my mom was right about video games...
I overheard a lead analyst say once, "They're all terrorists." It's a sick mindset.
Videos hardly ever tell the full story. Its easy to 'tell' any story, just based on what the viewer sees and the header of a post.
We have no idea if this was a special task based on intel that this was the actual target.
He also could have had orders to do what he did.
Such is the case on all the cop videos that show them shooting a 'defenseless person', when in fact, the person could have already killed someone, and all we see is the second half of a video.
We can't always be quick to judge, there is always two or more sodes to every story.