The Speech John Murtha Should Give

Posted By Blackfive

The following text was inspired by Commenters Jordan and Synova.  This fictional speech is just something that I would hope a lawmaker and former-Marine like Jack Murtha would say about Haditha:

My name is Jack Murtha and I'm here to talk about the alleged massacre of Iraqi civilians in the city of Haditha.

Here in America, we have a system of justice with the precept that you are innocent until proven guilty.  I fight for this system every day in the halls of congress.

As a Marine veteran, I fought for my country alongside of some of the best that America has to offer.  I'm still a Marine at heart and I have confidence in the Marines' capability to investigate the allegations. 

To Marines around the world, I give you my word - if these men are innocent, they will be cleared - and if they are guilty, they will be punished to the fullest extent of the law.  Marines would expect no less from our fair system of justice.

As a key member of the House, I'm privy to more information about this alleged crime than most Americans.  To the media, I will not allow you to use me for your anti-victory agenda.  I didn't agree with the invasion of Iraq and I don't agree with the President's agenda, policy, or party about Iraq.  I would like us to withdraw immediately.

However, I will not allow my words to be broadcast around the world to be used against us - to, in fact, recruit more terrorists or cause more Marine deaths.  I will not allow my words to be used to undermine the good work of hundreds of thousands Soldiers, Marines, Airmen, Sailors and Coastguardsmen.

Let us wait for the investigation to be completed.  If the investigation produces enough evidence against Marines, then charges will be filed and a court martial will begin.  We must let our justice system take it's course.

Let us show the world how our democracy works.  After all, justice is what we want in the Middle East.

Thank you.

Semper Fi,

The Hon. John Murtha

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» INCIDENT AT HADITHA, PT. II from Michelle Malkin
On May 18th, I was one of many bloggers on the Right to condemn Democrat Rep. John Murtha for blabbing about the still-not-complete investigation of alleged war atrocities by Marines at Haditha. (Formal findings are not expected for several weeks.)... [Read More]

Comments

[BloodSpite]

Hell I'd settle for

"Hi. I'm John Murtha, and I am an Asshat."

[Blackfive]

Agreed, Bloodspite, agreed.

[Uncle Jimbo]

I feel you Matty,

But Bloodspite probably has Murtha pegged properly.

This is what I would expect from John McCain, but I fear he has begun Hillarying his way to the center and supporting these Marines right to presumption of innocence could hurt that. I do hope he does speak up though.

Cordially,

Uncle J

[vet66]

Murtha obviously values cheap sound bites instead of loyalty. This decorated veteran has lost his way and needs to be exposed as the veteran turned pol he is. He and Kerry have much in common. Both use their experience, one trumped up, the other forsaken, to further personal gain.

Shame on them both!

[Blackfive]

McCain said this - from TheStar.com:

---Arizona Senator John McCain, a Vietnam veteran and probable candidate for the Republican presidential nomination in 2008, said the fallout from the Haditha killings will have "some harmful repercussions in the world of public opinion."

He said the allegation of cold-blooded killings in Haditha "apparently is true, we don't know the details.

"It saddens you enormously. It re-emphasizes the absolute requirement for discipline in the military. The first emotion one has when you see a comrade die is to seek revenge.

"That's a natural human instinct. But we have to have the discipline in our military — and the leadership — not to do that."---

[AFSister]

Ah...yes, but you see, you signed the letter "The Honorable John Murtha".
He has no honor.

If he did, he wouldn't need you as a speechwriter, Matt- he would have said that already.

For some reason, Denis Leary's "I'm an asshat" (title edited, of course) song comes to mind when I think of Murtha now.

[Theresa, MSgt (ret), USAF]

You’re asking way too much from a morally challenged self serving dhimmi, B5. He cares nothing for justice. He cares about himself and his power in DC. He has been the love child of previous administrations and just can't stand the snubbing he got from GWB. murtha has pretty much guaranteed that no matter what the outcome, these Marines careers are over. He has also ensured the court of public opinion will only accept a guilty verdict. Anything less will be called a cover-up. Stay tuned for the inevitable riots in the “arab” streets.

[tommy in nyc]

You know anyone who takes money or is even willing to have his photo taken with members of such a shitty organization such as CODEPINK isn't very credible but he just might have a point. To suggest that these Marines didn't at the very least follow their ROE is pretty far-fetched. Now it is understandable that after the stress and strain these guys are under that discipline will break down from time to time. It just seems to me that b5 is just pounding away at Murtha because he's a democrat. Rummy's not exactly the troops best either but you'll never hear it on this website.

[Beth* A.]

B5 is 'pounding away at Murtha' because he convicted these men before the matter has been gone thru thoroughly (i.e. presumption of innocence before proof of guilt IS still this country's rule of law!) and because Murtha is 'trying' them, to their detriment, in the media instead, for HIS own gain and profit. Matt has made that more than clear in all his writings on this subject.

The Marines can and will discipline their own, IF it should be necessary. They don't take stains to the Corps integrity lightly AT ALL.

Murtha has no honor. Worse, he is hurting our troops.

[MICHAEL in MI]

Ya know, I'm sick of people saying that this will have "harmful repurcussions in the world of public opinion". The only reason that would be possible is because the public don't know about the hundreds upon hundreds of GOOD things that the Coalition, and specifically the US Marines have done in Afghanistan and Iraq since 2001 and 2003, respectively. When Islamists, in the name of Islam, fly planes into buildings, bomb embassies, chant Death to America and Death to Israel, commit mass murder of innocent civilians over cartoons, tennis shorts, Valentines Cards, religious apostates, women dating outside of Islam, women not wearing burqas, etc, we are told that these are simply a few radicals who have hijacked the "Religion of Peace" and it is Islamophobia to smear an entire "religion" based on the actions of a few. Yet, Abu Graib and Haditha are used by America's enemies as well as the media and the "anti-war" crowds to paint all of America and the entire American military as heartless, murderous barbarians. I'm sick of it. Literally sick of it. Why do we even f'in bother to help these ingrates. It is getting to the point that I would like to side with the isolationists and say to hell with the rest of the world, take care of yourselves and don't come crying to us when your countries fall into tyranny and corruption and are taken over by the Islamists and terrorists. And then when these countries threaten us, instead of invasions and pussy-footing around to spare the civilians, we just repeat Hiroshima and Nagasaki and tell them if they threaten us again, we'll wipe you out completely, instead of just a couple cities.

What makes me the most sick is to hear these smears from our American media and our American politicians. And Marines turned Politicians no less! I have gotten to the point where I have lost my sympathy and now I am just angry. Extremely angry at the hate-America crowd (as can probably be seen in my post so far). I seriously do not know how you military members, both active and retired, can deal with all of this. I admire your patience and how you can post such reserved comments and blog entries on a subject that I can't even get myself to write myself without losing myself in my emotions and losing the ability to think clearly and write eloquently. Seriously, how do you do it? The more of these smear tactics being done by the media, Arabs, Muslims, Islamists and BDS-suffering politicians, the more angry I become. It is because of this that I hold back from enlisting in the Reserves or National Guard, because I do not know if I am strong enough of a person to keep my emotions in check after the past 5 years of dealing with this... this... treachery.

I am honestly, sincerely asking here, how do you all deal with this so well and temper your emotions when the hypocrisy, propaganda and smearing is so evident?

[Uncle Jimbo]

I guess we can note that the Hillarification of John McCain is finsihed.

I would not have supported him as a candidate anyhow, but he can join the bite me team.

Cordially,

Uncle J

[vmijpp]

i wish murtha'd make that statement too. but like my dad used to say-- wish in one hand, shit in the other, see which fills up faster.

[tim]

Michael in MI,

May I offer my two cents? Don’t temper your emotions. Stay angry. We, as a nation, should all be angry. Use that anger by writing/calling you representatives, newspapers and talk radio. Keep your friends angry, don’t let them stray the course. Engage anyone who fails to get it.

As far as you take on the “Religion of peace” you’ll get no argument from me. However, if we can make sure that Iraq and Afghanistan are democracies and other middle east countries become so also, than maybe their citizens will have someone other than the “Great Satan” to blame for their problems. Don’t sweat the way they treat each other, let’s just hope the root cause of terrorism fades away. It should only take 30/50 years.

[jordan]

If Murtha was of sound mind, it's exactly what he'd say! If he cared about the Marines still there fighting, he would have reminded everyone that this is an enemy that has used a twelve year old with Downe's Syndrome as a suicide bomber, and used women and children as human shields. But unfortunately, this media will worship any anti-Bushite with military credentials.

"...to suggest these Marines at least didn't follow the ROE is far-fetched."

The point is we don't know if they followed the ROE or not. And I take nothing reported out of the Baghdad office of TIME magazine as indisputable fact, including info they got from a "journalism student".

Remember, even die-hard troop supporters accepted the Koran flushing story as fact. Turns out it didn't happen. Some pro-victory people even believed Pantano was guilty. When the evidence was revealed, he was exonerated. If this is a departure from the historical pattern of media accusations of troops' wrongdoing turning out to be bogus, and they did do it, they'll be punished.

[Outlaw3]

The Marine Corps Association needs to revoke Murtha's membership. He's one step from the traitorous behavior of many other democrat politicians.

[FbL]

Michael, I hear you. I've struggled with similar thoughts and feelings in the last week, and I think my blogging has suffered for it.

[thebronze]

Murtha is a traitor to the Corps!

He has no shame and no honor.

He's no Marine.

[John S.]

Talking about this slimeball politician's poor judgement makes us feel good. However, to actually CHANGE the situation, we need to replace him in November. I just sent $50 to his opponent, Diana Irey, and encourage others to do likewise. http://www.irey.com/

[WW]

The Marine Corps has had six months to investigate what happened. Its first responses, both in December and then again in February, were to lie and cover up. Now the truth is coming out, and it's coming out only because Time magazine kept asking questions.

Murtha has done absolutely nothing other than tell the truth. None of you want to hear the truth when it goes against the United States, so rather than hear the truth you engage in smears of the messenger.

Stressed-out marines massacred two dozen Iraqi civilians, including women and children. Whether you like it or not, that is fact. Now deal with it like men, rather like lying cowards.

[Jason Lomberg]

WW,
No, this is not fact. This is speculation, which is precisely what General Pace and other higher-ups are saying. Certain folk, such as yourself, hear *reports* and speculation that servicemembers *may* have committed wrongdoings. You then jump the gun, and "speculation" becomes "established fact" while "may" becomes "most definitely did, without a shadow of a doubt."

May I also remind you that a reporter's job is to *report* the news, not create it. All Time did by "asking questions" was confirm in many a mind (including your own) that the Haditha massacre is an established fact while the *investigations are still under way*. If it is proved that certain Marines committed attrocities, then they should be punished appropriately. But all we're relying on now is speculation and hear-say, and there's something very wrong when certain groups in this country automatically assume the worst of our military servicemembers.

Murtha used speculation, which happened to include prematurely smearing our troops, for political gain. There is absolutely no reason to make something like this public, as Murtha has done, other than to score political points. The military investigates its own, and is fully capable of handling this one. Anyone remember who broke the news of Abu Ghraib? It wasn't the MSM.

[toni]

BTW - Pantano wrote a Letter to the Editor to Rep. Murtha.

http://bearcreekledger.com/2006/05/29/haditha-rep-murtha-needs-to-read-about-2lt-ilario-pantano/

I thought he made his point very well!

[Tincan Sailor]

WW,Let me ask you one question,were you there
on that street,in the house,under the house on
on top of the house??? And your answer is???
You my man have done nothing but speculate,so
I will too,Bad guys set off IED and manage 1
KIA,not what they are looking for so the get a
few more folks and wait! NOW!!! help comes and
still they wait...they filter in and around the
houses and when the time is right they pour it
on,they hammer the shit out of the Marines and
the boys fight back big time and then the bad
guys sneek out like smoke and mirrors they are
done and have finished what they started,"TO
MAKE US LOOK WORSE THAN THEY DO"... At no time
were they in the house,they were on it under it
and along side it...They set a trap,sprung the
trap,for their side job well done... Now then
thats pure speculation...Was I there?NO were
you? NO was Murtha? NO, SO NOT ONE OF US KNOWS
WHAT WENT DOWN...So from me to you Amigo best
to keep your MF mouth shut...

[RK from PA]

Obviously none of you are from PA and know who Jack Murtha really is. If you did know him, you'd be defending him. He's "highly respected by the military" for a reason. He is normally low key and tries to stay out of the spotlight. But, if he speaks out about something, folks in western PA know there's something wrong. The media painting him out to be some left wing liberal is pathetic. He's a conservative Democrat who's done so much not just for PA, but for the US and the military. He's been re-elected for over 30 years for a reason, because he gets the job done. I'm one of his constituents. Our area is not a liberal area. Do your homework and educate yourself first instead of sounding like a bunch of mindless wing nuts. It's folks like you that make the Republican Party look stupid and too far to the right. Murtha cares about the troops first, and the politics later. I grew up thinking Murtha was a Republican, because my parents always voted for him, and for all the military contracts he's brought to SWPA to create thousands of jobs in our area. He'll always have my vote.

http://www.house.gov/apps/list/press/pa12_murtha/PRhaditha.html
So, how much do you all "know" about what went on? More than Murtha? I bet not.
He's not speculating. He's stating facts that have been found and told to him by those military personel investigating the issue, who are in the know. Of course if you people knew how Murtha works, you'd realize this already.

"Sources told CNN on Monday that the investigation is substantially complete, and that charges -- including murder charges -- could be filed sometime in June. And, sources said, investigators have concluded there was a cover-up -- but won't say if it is limited to the handful of Marines who did the killings."
http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/meast/05/29/marines.haditha/index.html
So, it turns out that he was telling the truth. Imagine that, a politician telling the truth. I know it's hard to grasp.
It's alright. You'll all come to realize some day that when Jack Murtha speaks, he speaks the truth. So, stop bashing Murtha and start looking into the facts. Not all Democrats are liberal wackjobs.

[RK from PA]

He's stating facts that have been found and told to him by those military personel investigating the issue, who are in the know. Of course if you people knew how Murtha works, you'd realize this already.

"Sources told CNN on Monday that the investigation is substantially complete, and that charges -- including murder charges -- could be filed sometime in June. And, sources said, investigators have concluded there was a cover-up -- but won't say if it is limited to the handful of Marines who did the killings."
http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/meast/05/29/marines.haditha/index.html
So, it turns out that he was telling the truth. Imagine that, a politician telling the truth. I know it's hard to grasp.
It's alright. You'll all come to realize some day that when Jack Murtha speaks, he speaks the truth. So, stop bashing Murtha and start looking into the facts. Not all Democrats are liberal wackjobs.

[Tincan Sailor]

Sources,now just who may they be??DEEP THROAT??
When NCSI makes its findings public then we will
know,not one second before...As for Murtha he is
nothing but a self serving OLD FOOL and a copy
boy for al-Jazeera!!!Now if it comes to be that
we had a few folks go goofy and shoot up that
house then they sold their soul to the Devil
and will pay a very dear price,you get that!!!!
on the other hand you don,t smear crap on every
Soldier,Marine, Airman, Sailor and Coastie over
there which is what that old SOB did,yeah he's
one hell of a nice guy and a good reason for Term Limits!!!as for my self, I would like to put
a size 13 where it would do the most good!!!!

[rick]

RK,

Before you go spouting off at us "nutjobs", do some research yourself. I will state once again that almost everyone posting here is military. Doesn't sound like he is "highly respected by the military" to me. I personally don't know a single soldier, airman and especially any marine that respects this turd, including myself. Not one.

Bottom line is that he lost my respect b/c he is using this (and many other) issues for his OWN POLITICAL GAIN. Period. There is no excuse for that. None. I'm sure he did some good things in the past, but his actions recently have told me all I need to know about this POS.

As for the Marines, if they did this; they they should and will be punished harshly. That's the beauty of our military. It takes responsibility for it's actions and acts accordingly.

Get off your high horse and stop lecturing people without first understanding the main points of their discussion.

[Bill Faith]

No, RK, I'm not from Pennsylvania, and if you and John Murtha are the best the state has to offer I'm damned proud not to be.

[Synova]

RK, what I've been saying is that it would be trivial for Murtha to *tell the truth* in a way that was supportive rather than damaging to the Marines. I do think that's why most people who are mad at him are mad at him. NO ONE wants to see murderers go free, so why don't they think what Murtha has been saying is just peachy then?

I recall one Murtha quote that was to the tune of "can't really blame the boys, the stress of war will do that to you, it's all the fault of the situation." Am I paraphrasing that about right? If so, I'll explain what that means, RK. It means that the event (if true) was exactly what can be *expected* of our troops in Iraq... any guy over there with a gun could react like that at any time. Murtha's little word play "it's the stress" may have been meant to soften the blame on the poor boys with the guns but what it did was strip them and their brothers... all of them... of any concept of personal honor or professionalism.

Now, a lot of people think that is what the military is like... boys helpless to do anything about their situations. It's the movie romance of Vietnam; whores, drugs and mayhem. If it was ever true, it's certainly not true now.

Among certain people there is an expectation of massacre and an expectation of trying to bury it... because thats just what the murderous thugs with guns *do*.

At the very least, the people who have shown up here defending Murtha seem to be of the opinion that if Murtha didn't step up to "tell the truth" then the people responsible would get away with their crime. Big honking logical problem with *that* is that the information that *Murtha* has appears to come from the military investigation!

OMG... the military was investigating the incident. What a shocker, huh?

And all Murtha would have to do is express confidence that *his* service, the Marines, will act honorably and that justice will be done.

But if he did *that* then he wouldn't be able to take credit by implying dishonor and cover-up until he came along and "told the truth."

[JoeS]

The signature, "Honorable" John Murtha doesn't seem to fit. Let's send money to the young woman who is running against him.

These Marines deserve a fair investigation and a fair trial.

Michelle Malkin has a lot of good links. Even a CNN reporter is talking about the high quality of this unit.

God, I pray that facts come out to exonerate these heroes.

[Ryan]

Could you clear something up for me?

In the speech, you had Murtha stating, "I didn't agree with the invasion of Iraq," yet he voted in support of the force resolution:

http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2002/roll455.xml

Although he changed his mind in a remarkable fashion, I'm sure his vote was a measured one, and that he believed (at the time) that giving the President all options was the best one.

Thanks!

[Gray]

"God, I pray that facts come out to exonerate these heroes."
Like on of the commenters above said, you pray into one hand, you shit into the other...

Praying won't help a bit to get the truth out! What Murtha's doing is applying public pressure on the brass in order to prevent them from spinning the story.
"The Marines can and will discipline their own, IF it should be necessary." Yeah, sounds good. But, first and foremost a Marine follows orders, like every other soldier, right? And do you have any trust in the Pentagon to order a real investigation of the incident, without public pressure to do so? If you believe that, I'm sure you never heard of Pat Tilman.

Sry, but many of you sound utterly naive, as if you still haven't learned that nowadays spin and image manipulations trump truth. Wake up!

[jordan]

Murtha knows when a congressman pressures the brass, they'll offer up a lamb. By coming out forcefully, he creates a situation where someone has to fry, regardless of what really happened. His statements ensured that it WILL be spun, as a result of political pressure rather than facts coming out of the investigation.

"'Sources" told CNN? You're going to convict someone on anonymous sources? Most military I see do not respect Murtha and feel his comments embolden the enemy and endanger the Marines in Iraq. If there are Marines out there that think he's great, they should pipe up. Any day now, guys.

If he's gotten alot of defense contracts for his state -- great. He's head of the defense appropriations subcommittee. "Sources" tell me he didn't come out against the war until the costs started to impact his appropriations business. Last August Murtha toured Iraq. A commenter here said he was very supportive of the effort, and said his subsequent comments were a complete 180. Maybe that explains his vote FOR the force resolution, and changed his mind when the resources drained other appropriations.

The Baghdad chief of TIME magazine should explain who the "journalism student" and "college student" victims were. Some of the nineteen hijackers were college students, too, but I guess that's beside the point.

Gray, I agree that spin trumps facts. No matter the outcome, the damage has already been done. As with the Koran flushing, the admission it was false came quietly, day's later, after the rioting, and no one paid attention. DOD again has mishandled the PR aspect of this -- they need to make some statements TODAY that assertions of guilt are premature today, otherwise the accusations just fester.

As far as Tillman, the Pentagon is doing a number of investigations, going through the same information over and over again at the behest of his family. I'm sure the Tillmans will keep asking for investigations until they hear the answer they want. Can't judge people in that case though -- I'd go crazy too.

[Gray]

"when a congressman pressures the brass, they'll offer up a lamb."

It sure looks that way. The Abu Ghraib trials gave evidence for that. Suddenly, no superior could remember any orders given or relayed, and the buck stopped at the troops level. So why isn't there an outcry of anger against the brass and the politicians who evade responsibility? Is it Col. Murtha's fault that they arer stealthy cowards? Of course not.

As for your accusations that Murtha is corrupt, do you apply that standard on republican lawmakers, too? The Marines are innocent until proven guilty, but we shall believe your anonymous sources that Murtha is acting out of selfinterest? Some double standard here...

[RK from PA]

I don't seem to remember Murtha ever stating that all servicemen were bad. People are mad at him because they *think* he is painting the picture that all troops.
But, that's not what Murtha is doing. He's concerned for the troops. Some people automatically go into defense mode as soon as they see (D) next to a politician's name on the screen. As do some Dems when they see (R), I'm sure. But, this isn't a partisan war. Have any of you read the whole transcript of his press conference, or the Hardball transcript? If so, you read that he supports the troops and understands the pressure of war on a soldier being sent back to Iraq over and over. Eventually someone is going to crack. He wants to save the troops from that fate. The spin being put on this by the media is what taints people's minds. Self interest? He's looking out for the interest of the troops and the future of the military. This isn't a partisan war.

http://www.house.gov/list/press/pa12_murtha/PRiraqtrascript.html

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/12856998/

And "sources" in this case seem to be the ones writing the report, I'm guessing.
We'll find out soon enough.

Quoting Murtha: "I'm basing it on information that I've gotten from -- all the information I get. It comes from the commanders. It comes from people who know what they're talking about."

[Tincan Sailor]

RK from PA if Murtha is looking out for the
Troops I'm sure as hell glad I'm long gone!!
He should have kept his mouth shut and met
with the Joint Cheifs and sat on it till all
the facts were known...Its called puting your
brain in gear before you open your mouth,all
he has done is give the Arab press tons of
B/S to hurt our troops with and a black eye
to the rest of the world...Nice F*&^ING JOB
EH!!!!

[Tincan Sailor]

Ok,Ok this dog has been beat to death but this
is to good to let it go...

Duncan Hunter, R-Calif., chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, also a Vietnam Veteran, who served in the 173rd Airborne and 75th Army Rangers, who got all the briefings on the matter Murtha got, says the "in cold blood" allegations by Murtha are all wet.

[RK from PA]

Care to give a link?

[Tincan Sailor]

Sure thing in fact you can have a few!!!

http://www.house.gov/hunter
PH# San Diego 619 448 5201
PH# DC 202 225 5672

And www.theodoresworld.net, in fact wildthing
has a few good post on the subject, a little on
the harsh side but like me she calls a spade
a spade...I won't call him a traitor but in
the same vain, a vain egotistical self serving
nasty old son of a b***h that doesn't give a
rats ass about our troops...

[Tincan Sailor]

RK from PA
Have one more for the Gipper!!!!!

http://www.investors.com/editorial/IBDArticles.asp?artsec=20&issue=20060530

[RK from PA]

His house.gov site has nothing, and other links only say he doesn't agree that the troops acted out of undue stress. I can't find a full quote other than "I totally reject that" Anyone have anything better?

"Hunter strongly disagreed with Murtha's statement that undue stress on the Marines contributed to the killings. "I totally reject that," he said, adding that the actions of a single squad should not reflect negatively on the rest of the troops engaged in Iraq or their mission. "There has been no war in our history in which you didn't have incidents in which people did the wrong thing at one time or another," he said. No one should "tar the honorable service of 922,000 brave Americans in Iraq and Afghanistan with the reported actions of one squad in one city on one morning," he said."
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/05/19/AR2006051901732.html

I'm seeing, though, where you're getting your spin from now. Interesting.
Seems that the only ones tarring the honor of our troups are the talking heads trying to spin this. But to each their own.
I've also seen the lawyer's reports. We'll just have to wait, I guess.
I'll check back tomorrow.

[Retief]

How different is your statment from this one?

"I am a Vietnam combat veteran. I understand full well the type of situation those Marines were in. These are allegations. I believe that the case should and will be fully investigated and that the Marines involved will be treated fairly by the military justice system.

I talk to commanders and soldiers all the time about the circumstances they face in Iraq. I talk to not only the brass at the Pentagon, but to the officers in the field and the soldiers I see every week at Bethesda and Walter Reed medical centers with their arms and legs blown off by IEDs. I am acutely aware of the type of situation those Marines were in. Our soldiers are incredibly brave and are fighting in an extremely difficult combat environment with extremely difficult rules of engagement. They perform heroically and have been for going on four years now, with very few exceptions. As a nation, we can be extremely proud of the conduct of our US military.

As I've said, I understand the fog of war and the confusion of battle. But we are a nation of laws, including the UCMJ (Uniform Code of Military Justice). The United States of America has never condoned, nor should it ever condone, indiscriminate, deliberate killing of civilians. When we do that, we become no better than the enemy we are trying to eradicate.

Further, to ignore this incident, which happened six months ago and has now been publicized around the world, is to invite criticism that the United States does not practice what it preaches. That will severely undermine our goals of promoting democracy, as did the Abu Ghraib scandal. Again, the United States of America does not condone the deliberate killing of innocent civilians."

Cause that is what Murtha said if any of you would stop snarling long enough to listen.

[Tincan Sailor]

I guess the old dog still need to be smacked
around some more...RK you have the .gov site
2PH#s.you could call and an oped plus the web
site I gave you,its called get off your dead
ass and do some research...Hell yes I have a
problem with what he said,the dumb SOB could
have gone to "HIS" House armed service
committee and said we have a problem,what are
we going to do??? If you don't like that then
go to the Joint Chiefs of staff and the last
resort a man with his power and standing he
could have gone to see "W". And let NCSI get
their work done...But hell no he had to spew
bile on every sunday news show that would have
him and then on to the 6 pm news and the
morning shows,all but one as he doesn't have
the Cajones to get it on with O'Rielly,cause
he knows he is wrong and he has given the Arab world
one more reason to hate America...Just a good
ol Boy giving a helping hand to al-JAZERRA!!!!

[bruce]

a virtual high five to ya tincan

[Proud Son of a Marine]

I found a certificate with this statement in my Dad's effects as my mom and I were clearing out some stuff. Given the "news" out of Haditha and Rep. Murtha's comments, I pass it along as a reminder. Also, can anyone tell me it's origin?

"It is not something that can be inherited, nor can it be purchased. No amount of money will buy it. It is not for sale and may not be borrowed. It isn't a birthright and it doesn't come easily. It requires honor, courage and commitment. Its reward is the result of hard work and even spilled blood. It is a sacrifice. It remembers those lives that went before. Once earned, it can never be taken away. You, and the brotherhood of the Corps, maintain it forever:
The Title United States Marine"

God Bless Our Troops

[myc]

I'm from PA and the poster who defended Murtha as a representative was right on. He's looked out for his district. He is generally respected by the military and more importantly has been consistent on voting for things that actually get troops paid properly and allow them to keep their hard earned benefits, something many Republicans including Duncan Hunter do not do.
( Take a hard look at Mr Hunter's voting record on pay raises, USFSPA reform, and concurrent receipt.) Finally, Murtha is a damn site better than our worthless piece of excrement Senator, Santorum, who would rather shill for the Republican party than stick up for the State of Pennsylvania.

Bottom Line is that Murtha is opposed to the war because he does not see it as being in the US interest. So far events are proving him right.

[Scott]

Who owns the means of production?

Marxism, Where Marx owned the means of production

Stalinism, Where Stalin owned the means of production

Communism, Where workers own the means of production

Socialism, Where everyone own the means of production

Feminism, Where women own the means of production

Progressivism, Where atheists own the means of production

Liberalism, Where “children” own the means of production
.
.
.

Conservatism, Where smart, educated, patriotic hardworking people own the means of production!!

God Bless the USA!!

Home of the free and protected by the brave - Support our troops!

Semper Fi, Yes, four years in the Corps

[Robert Greer]

John Murtha has done nothing to defend his own Honor in 39 years. It should never be forgotten that John Murtha is an accused war criminal.

The following is a list of United States Marine Corps Officers
who stand accused of Attrocities and War Crimes in Vietnam in the
month of February 1967, by Sgt Scott Camil, AKA Mr. Camile,
a Forward Observer and Photo Intelligence Non Commissioned Officer
who served under their command in the 1st Bn. 1st Marines,
1st Marine Division.
The accusation above was given in testimony
by Scott Camile at John Kerry's Winter Soldier Hearings in 1971.
In his testimony Mr. Camile describes in detail the nature of attrocities and war
crimes which Camile attributes to the 1st Bn 1st Marines.

Operation Stone --- February 10 through February 22, 1967
1st Bn, 1st Marines, 1st Marine Division

Regimental Commander Col Donald L. Mallory 1-28 February 1967
Commander Col E. J. Radics 1-28 February 1967
Executive Officer Lt Col G.E. Petro 1-28 February 1967
S-1 Adjutant Capt R.V. Olson 1-28 February 1967
S-2 Intelligence Major John P. Murtha 1-28 February 1967
S-3 Major J.W. Andrews 1-28 February 1967
S-4 Major J.I. Gatliff 1-28 February 1967
Communications Officer Major C.H. Frazier 5-28 February 1967
Air Laison Officer Major H.L Snider 1-28 February 1967
Regimental Surgeon Lt F.X. Loeb 1-28 February 1967
Commanding Officer Lt Colonel V. D. Bell Jr. 1-28 February 1967
Regimental Chaplain Lt Cdr J.S. Jenner 1-28 February 1967
Catholic Chaplain Lt J. E. Dorsey 1-28 February 1967

[lino]

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