They Shoot Journeys, Don't They?

The Village Voice ^ | October 19, 2003 | Cynthia Cotts

[Ace Correspondent]

October 17th., A Spanish Judge, Guillermo Ruiz Polanco decided to hold a preliminary hearing of the case brought by the family of José Courso against Lieutenant Colonel Philip DeCamp, Captain Philip Wolford and Sergeant Shawn Gibson.

Just before firing at the journalists in the Palestine Hotel they attacked two Arab stations on the other side of the river, one of them had a static camera on the roof and 126 bullets holes were shown in the wall around the camera, but they rescued the film and it has been shown all over the world. Then they took out Al Jazeera in fact all witnesses before attacking the journalists in the Palastine hotel.

Unfortunately, a French camera crew was filming close by with the Hotel Palestine in the back ground and showed there were no shots coming from the Hotel at any time before or during the attack - but they heard and recorded the attack of the tank. All this has been on Spanish TV on the anniversary of this highly inflammatory incident.

[Coop]

I wonder how many journalists were killed on 9/11?

[CaptBlack]

A Spanish Judge, Guillermo Ruiz Polanco decided to hold a preliminary hearing of the case brought by the family of José Courso against Lieutenant Colonel Philip DeCamp, Captain Philip Wolford and Sergeant Shawn Gibson.

Ahhh, I see! So when they get killed then they claim a nationality. It's only when they are alive that they are the independent, supra-national, objective observers whose perspectives are not bound by the constraints of allegiance to any country.

Ummm...anyways...yeah...the US military decided to take a joyride wasting ammo, diverting their attention and otherwise exploiting the opportunity to show themselves to be blithering idiots by firing on an "innocent" building full of civilians for no apparent reason.

Right...

[At _War_With_Liberals]

As a whole, journalists oppose the US.


They knew the risks of being there. They unfortunately were in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Their lives are worth no more than our troops who have been ruthlessly murdered lately. Murders The VV couldn't care less about.

[At _War_With_Liberals]

these are the same people who think that Bush should be tried as a war criminal if ONE civilian death occured in Iraq.

[theDentist]

Since the Iraqi government refused to lay down it's arms, etc., then THEY are ultimately responsible for any such "war-crimes".

[Da Mav]

The solution is very simple. No more journalists anywhere near the front lines, no matter where those lines are.

This is about a stupid an investigation as can be imagined. God forbid that they haul our brave soldiers out to defend their actions to a bunch of friggin journalists in a hotel.

[xm177e2]

A perfectly impartial investigation was undertaken by the non-partisan NGO the Committee to Protect Journalists. Clearly, we should turn our soldiers over to foreign courts for judgement. There is no other way to uphold international law </sarcasm>

[XJarhead]

From what I've read, there are a few details omitted from this story. One of them is that uniformed Iraqis were present and visible on the hotel itself, supposedly providing some security to the journalists.

Whether there was shooting coming from the hotel is irrelevant. The troops thought that the hotel was being used by Iraqis as a forward observation post to call for and adjust supporting arms. That is a legitimate target regardless of whether or not direct fire is emanating from the building itself. The soldiers on the scene see guys with binoculars and members of the Iraqi military. Probably some antennae as well. That would certainly look like an OP to the nervous troops who are on the receiving end of those supporting arms. So they request permission to shoot, its given, and they fire.

The actions of the LCol. who was trying to ensure that this did not happen, bear out that this was just a mistake, not a conscious effort to kill journalists. Sadly, troops have mistakenly killed some of their own out of a mistaken belief that they were firing at the enemy. That's the kind of stuff that happens in the fog of war, and when you're scared. The only explanation for the presumption of malice in this case is anti-American bias.

[Da Mav]

Very well put XJarhead

[Centurion2000]

TV cameras look like Dragon anti tank missile lanchers from 14 stories up and away.

Moral of the story .... try not to get in the way of a tank's mission and don't look like a treat.

[harpseal]

One of the facts of life is that military combat is inherently dangerous. If the soldiers on teh tank that fired the shot reasonabvly believed they were firingf at the enemy then oh well too bad the journalists knew the risk in advance. although their status as "journalists" is somewhat questionable becuase almost all those at that hotel at that time had been aiding the Saddam regime by spreading its propaganda.

It is a fact of life that people in a combat zone are subject to being fired upon that is why they call it a combat zone. Anyone who has been on teh recieving end of fire will tell you it is not always clear where that fire is coming from.

Get over it

[Cannoneer No. 4]

Free Republic Treadhead Ping

[wizardoz]

In a moral universe, there is no excuse for killing journalists under any circumstances.

Oh, I don't know about that...

[HenryLeeII]

Someone shot Journey? Was Steve Perry hit? What will we do now for quality music? Oh, the horror...

[colorado tanker]

You nailed it.

Those journalists were too stupid for words. They were out on balconies watching the show when the Iraqi lines were behind them and the US lines in front of the them? I suppose they would have stayed in their hotel rooms during the Battle of Berlin expecting to come through without a scratch. Sheesh.

[Lazamataz]

Moral of the story .... try not to get in the way of a tank's mission and don't look like a treat.

Especially not around this hungry fella.

[Cannoneer No. 4]

US tank crew cleared in April 8 attack on journalists' hotel in Baghdad

[Choose Ye This Day]

Me, either. In a moral universe, Geraldo and Ashleigh Banfield would never have been born.

[Cannoneer No. 4]

ping!

Would you be so kind as to ping me on your next Dennis Prager Civil War thread, please? That should come out around midnight Eastern.

Thanks