Shocking Pictutres From Iraq Illustrate How Bad Our Soldiers Really Are

*** UPDATE 9/24/08 ***  BEFORE YOU FLAME ME AS SOME ANTI-MILITARY NUTCASE, PLEASE READ THE ENTIRE TEXT OF THE POST. THE POINT IS THE IRONY OF WHAT THE MAINSTREAM MEDIA BIAS WOULD HAVE YOU BELIEVE, EVEN FROM THE MOST INNOCENT OF PICTURES. I HAVE NOTHING BUT RESPECT FOR OUR MEN AND WOMEN IN UNIFORM AND AM THANKFUL FOR THEIR ONGOING SACRIFICES FOR OUR FREEDOMS.

DON'T BE A TWIT! READ THE ENTIRE TEXT!

~ Thank you. (ahem!)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~Original Post Date 12/7/2006~~

The Mainstream Media (MSM) never passes up an opportunity to show the American public (and our enemies, as well) the most horrible, shocking pictures it can lay its collective grubby hands on. Even when the pictures aren't totally shocking, those charged with applying the captions to said photos don't hesitate to invent the sentiment they want to be ascribed to the photos, even when it's not remotely accurate.

Frequent contributor Mr2ears sent me the following shocking photos this morning, having received them from a friend of his who is a Vietnam veteran. The photos show the horrible interactions between our troops serving in Iraq and children. See how horribly the children are being treated. See how our troops show them nothing but contempt, disdain, and an apparent eagerness to do evil to them.  (Had you goin' there for a minute? Nope, didn't think so.)

These photos reminded me very much of some similar photos I have from '68 - '69 taken in South Viet Nam. It also reminded me of the horrendous treatment American GI's impose on the hapless citizens of occupied countries. Since you never see these photos in the press, I figure it's because the press couldn't come up with suitably alarmist headlines for the articles. I have inserted some suggested headlines, suitable for the American Press that will hopefully allow them to be able to tap into this wealth of unused stock photos without stretching their credibility too much...

Soldiers Force Children to See Saw Until They Give Up Information!

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Soldier Forces Child to Hang By Fingertips - Just for Fun

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Soldiers Force Children to Do Their Dirty Work

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The Tickle Torture is Unbearable

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Child Bites Soldier in Self Defense

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Rations Shortage; Soldiers Begin Eating Children

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Soldiers Lack Body Armor; Forced to Use Childen as Shields

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Soldiers Vent Anger by Throwing Children Around

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Iraqi Children Thankful Soldiers Didn't Open Fire On Soccer Game

Comments

[Apologist Buster]

Some American Soldiers are good, some are bad. I am sure there are equal selections of photos of U.S. soldiers torturing Iraqis and ones like above of them playing with their children. In the end, EVERYONE from the world over will remember those of U.S. Soldiers torturing Iraqis. That is the sad part.

[Boy Named Sous]

Some American Soldiers are good, some are bad.

Wrong, A.B. MOST American Soldiers are good, a FEW are bad. What has made us different from our enemies, especially in this war, has been our willingness to weed out and punish our own bad apples. Maybe you forgot, or maybe you just don't want to acknowledge, that we prosecute those soldiers who commit such acts, unlike our enemies, who glorify those who, for instance, behead living victims.

I am sure there are equal selections of photos of U.S. soldiers torturing Iraqis and ones like above of them playing with their children.

I'm sure you're wrong, and that for every picture of "torture" you'll see DOZENS of pictures like those posted by HMIL.

In the end, EVERYONE from the world over will remember those of U.S. Soldiers torturing Iraqis.

EVERYONE? I doubt the children in the above pictures will. The truth is that people will remember what they CHOOSE to remember, and ignore any and all evidence to the contrary.

That is the sad part.

No, the sad part is that people like you are so fixated with casting our military's efforts in a bad light that they can't simply acknowledge the good being done.

[Lc Scott]

Shocking, just shocking!!

[Maura]

I think these photos are WONDERFUL. Thank you for sharing these with those of us that care.

[simone]

thankyou so much for sharing such beautiful photo's. i'm so sorry that the troops arent home being photograped with their own children.

[brad]

Ar-Ramadi.

US troops in ar-Ramadi kill 16-year-old boy for spitting on them Saturday.

In a dispatch posted at 1:25pm Makkah time Saturday afternoon, Mafkarat al-Islam reported that US occupation troops killed a 16-year-old boy after he spit on an American soldier in ar-Ramadi, about 110km west of Baghdad.

The ar-Ramadi correspondent for Mafkarat al-Islam reported that 16-year-old Ahmad Munajid ad-Dulaymi cursed a patrol of American troops as they passed by his house in the al-Mal‘ab area of ar-Ramadi on Saturday and spit in the face of one of the US troops, witnesses said. The American soldiers responded by laying into Ahmad, violently beating him for five minutes. When Ahmad’s mother came out of their house to plead with the soldiers to leave him alone, the Americans struck her and bashed her head and then shot the boy to death before her eyes. The US troops then hurriedly left the area.

The correspondent reported that rage was boiling in ar-Ramadi at that hour as news spread of the murder and Resistance men flocked in to look at the scene where the crime took place.

[HMIL]

Brad - sounds like you've been reading dispatches from the Ministry of Truth. Can you cite an actual non-partisn, non-biased source? Or do you just choose to say where the incident supposedly happened? Our men and women in uniform have put up with far worse than this (from our own citizens, mind you) and it's very doubtful that they would beat a kid to death for spit.

More info, please?

[Kevin Russell]

I served as a medic in the British Army in Bosnia, Iraq and Afghanistan. Thank you for showing the other side of the news. Most troops from all nations I served with risk their lives to make things better. I have seen soldiers running into burning buildings full of exploding gas canisters to rescue people yet that doesn't get reported. The media just likes to make all soldiers out to be evil when it couldn't be further from the truth. Thanks again for pointing this out. It makes this ex soldier glad to know that there are people who realise and appreciate the good work soldiers do.

[anonomus]

these pictures are just lies. the pictures show our US soldiers PLAYING with the children and being affectionate to them. our soldiers are not the mean monsters you depict. there are way too many liberals out here in our country that would do anything for attention. get over it. war is necisary in these times to maintain peace so no more of your loved ones are killed in hateful terrorist acts on our soil.

[HMIL]

"Anonomus" ... first off ... please learn to spell if you're going to post replies for others to read. It's just painful to try to read through bad spelling and atrocious punctuation. Sheesh!

Now ... of *course* I know the kids are "PLAYING" with the soldiers. Doofus! Did you actually *read* the text above the pictures? If so, you might have noticed that I was talking about how the MSM routinely takes innocuous pictures (look that one up in the dictionary, will ya?) and ascribes (look that one up, too) horrific actions and outright lies to the descriptions of these pictures, where obviously none belong. If you were somewhat educated (I'm doubting it just now), you'd note that the captions I put with the pictures were *ironic* (take a class to understand that one, K?).

Man, I thought it was *obvious* what I was doing ... *most* other people posting comments "got it" ... why didn't you?

Again ... sheesh ...

[Nicky B]

if you look at the newpaper article, says that the child was being cared for in the US hospital. not being used a body armour.

[HMIL]

Look at the whole post again, Nicky.

If you read the words *carefully*, you'll see that the post was meant to be tongue in cheek, showing totally innocent pictures of our wonderful GIs interacting with children and how the LameStream Media would likely spin the captions to fit their own wacked out agenda instead of telling the truth. (It seems to be soooo hard for them, doesn't it??)

Again, Nicky ... Read the *whole* post! I'm not some leftist nut job. I'm totally a Christian Conservative. I would *never* accuse our GIs of using a child as body armor when it is *obvious* (even to li'l ole me) that he's holding a sleeping baby.

Sheesh! Give me a freakin' break, will ya??

[KSoldier]

If you would like some higher resolution pictures of the Soldier's on the See-Saw with the kids, let me know. (I am the Soldier facing the camera in the photo.) I also have more pictures from some of our civil affairs missions that would probably shock a lot of people.

[HMIL]

Thanks for the offer. I don't know that higher resolution would do well here, seeing as how it takes so long to download as it is. But I do appreciate the offer just the same.

I would like to see photos of the civil affairs missions, though, and would love to do a follow-up post. (You wouldn't believe the draw these pictures get on a *daily* basis ... mostly from people looking for "shocking pictures of US soldiers" ... sheesh! What losers! I can't believe the comments left by people who miss the irony in the post (although I personally thought it was *pretty blatant*) and think I'm saying horrible things about our soldiers.

Thank you for your service, KSoldier, and please tell your comrades in arms that a huge number of us here in the States really *do* appreciate their/your sacrifice of time from your families and the dangers y'all face to keep us safe and in the interest of helping the Iraqi people have real freedom for the first time in decades.

I do agree, to an extent the new axiom: If you can read this, thank a teacher; IF YOU CAN READ IT IN ENGLISH, THANK A SOLDIER!!

[HMIL]

BTW, KSoldier, I'm curious how you found my blog. Looks like you're viewing it from a US base ... did you hear horrible things about the post? If so, where?

[Anonymus]

OMG that is SOOOOO fake! the kids are SMILING, and the soldiers are being NICE to the kids. they CARE.

[HMIL]

OMG ..... that is SOOOOO ... um .... IRONY!!!!

[BJ King]

I really hope to God that this is a joke. Because that is fucked up to say that ANY US soldier is bad. We fight for your freedom to say stupid shit about us! We fight to help other countries that can't help themselves! And you sit back behind our protection, and shit talk about us! If this isn't a joke then you're an ungrateful ass hole..don't ever trash talk soldiers..

[BJ King]

go fuck yourself. you don't deserve to have the freedom that I fight for.

[BJ King]

go fuck yourself. you don't deserve to have the freedom that I fight for.

[Sarge 1/144]

BJ King: First, you are a sorry excuse of a representative of the United States Military. If I were your NCO and had gotten wind of this, you would be first in-line for a serious counseling, not to mention having you write a formal apology to this blog prior to leaving my office. As a uniformed member of the armed forces you are called to a higher standard, obviously a concept that you have failed to grasp.

Second: The individual who posted this blog is defending the military and its actions against what mainstream media so often depicts. I have seen firsthand the media's presenation of "the truth" and it is often a gross misrepresentation. I have spent many hours protecting the freedom's that everyone of us enjoy and it has cost me dearly.

Third: Does it bother me when these freedom's are taken for granted? Yes. Does it make me mad enough to spit when our flag, which has been defended with the blood of our men and women since the birth of this nation is disrespected? YES! Does it bother me when actions of fellow servicemembers are misrepresented? Yes, and even more when it is done by a fellow soldier. Unfortunately, whether you want to admit it or not (probably not), you have just proven that there are servicemembers that fit the description of "bad".

Fourth: When you wear the uniform, or admit to wearing the uniform, you represent every servicemember, both past and present, to include those who have paid the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom. Your comments here have grossly tainted that representation. When next you don the uniform, consider the weight of all you represent, understand that sacrifice sometimes means having to stand straight and tall, exercising the discipline to ignore the slander and distasteful comments that are being expressed by others. While active duty, I was called to serve in Los Angeles during the riots of 1992. I was spit on, cursed at, had bricks and stones thrown at me, and even shot at. These were the very people I was sworn to defend and protect. So don't try and tell me that I have not sacrificed anything, or had to put up with any kind of disrespect.

HMIL: On behalf of the United States Military, I apologize for the comments that this servicemember made. I appreciate your bringing to light the fact that quite often we are represented in an extremely negative light by those seeking ratings, furthering personal political party agendas or their own fifteen minutes of fame.

To the rest of my brothers and sisters in uniform, my deepest and heartfelt gratitude for all you have had to sacrifice. I salute each and every one of you.

[HMIL]

Sarge 1/144 ~

First- THANK YOU! You actually made me cry a little because you defended me, this time with words. And Please let me tell you thank you, as well, for your defense of me and our fellow countrymen (and women, of course) through the time you've served. God Bless you, Sir!

The people who just react to the words and not the pictures are good and sure illustration of how people are manipulated by the media because they refuse to actually see what's put before them and think for themselves. Silly me, I thought people would be smarter than that ... especially when they read the text preceding the pictures ... which I then had to "Update" yet again, to try to bring better attention to it.

It's rather amazing that I get hits on these pictures nearly every day because on the one hand it seems like people are looking for something nasty with which to tarnish our brave men and women in uniform. On the other hand, it seems like there are some that go into knee-jerk anger without thinking.

To echo Sarge 1/144, please let me express with him the expression of my deepest and most heartfelt gratitude for your sacrifices, both your own and for your friends, brothers and sisters in uniform. I fear that we will be asking far too much from you in the years to come. You all deserve a great deal more than you get and that you've gotten ... and I dare say more respect than you will ever get.

God Bless You All!

[twinge]

I'm going to keep this short.... Thank you so much for posting such great pictures. It's ridiculous how hard it was for me to find something nice. I always loved looking at the pictures with the soldiers and children.

Thanks to all of those serving the country! And, thanks HMIL! :)

[Morgan]

I can't believe people actually took your captions seriously... WOW! I mean c'mon... they are so obviously and painfully ironic that it's comical how people took you literally! HILARIOUS!! People people people... get a grasp of irony will you? A little sense of humor goes a long way.

I absolutely adored these photos, and I am so deeply proud of our soldiers like Sarge who are so very educated and articulate. Who represent our country and our citizens to the highest degree even in the face of the most horrible circumstances. It's so inspiring to see these images... hopefully President Obama keeps good on his promise to bring our boys home! :)

Thanks HMIL!!

[George]

If You Don't Like U.S. Soldiers Then Move Out Of This World

[MizDi]

George, for your information, I'm *very* pro-military.

Seriously ... Before you pass judgment on me, please read through *ALL* the comments on the blog post and I think you'll understand where I'm coming from. I was pointing out irony between reality and what the media would probably report.

Honestly, sir, *please* go back and read the comments.

[Learnaboutit]

Some of those So-Called "Soldiers" Are Marines. Learn what Uniforms they wear before calling them "Soldiers". Calling a Marine A Soldier is like Spitting in his face.

How Dare you.