U.S. troops fire on Iraq looters, several casualties

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - U.S. soldiers opened fire on looters raiding a crippled military truck on Wednesday, killing and wounding several, Reuters witnesses said.

They said the truck had earlier been attacked on the airport road, and a crowd of Iraqis were ransacking it when more soldiers arrived and opened fire.

A Reuters photographer said he saw at least six Iraqis lying motionless and bleeding on the ground.

http://www.reuters.com/locales/newsArticle.jsp?type=worldNews&locale=en_IN&storyID=4822403

<<sarcasm>> just in case you were wondering.

As I recall the order to police during the LA riots of '92 was to shoot looters on sight.

Chicago, LA... As long as these people had nothing to do with the attack, I would imagine they are looking for food, money, a job (selling stolen items in the market...)

As I saw McNamara say on TV, 'empathy'. Just think if your city, neighborhood, home has been bombed, your streets have tanks running up and down them for a year. No work, no food, no money, no hope... what are you going to start doing?

of these bleeding Iraqis on the ground as well?

:evilfrown:

(I've learned so many new words from Ashcroft and Bush this week).

It's coming. The military keeps putting these kids in these horrific situations, makes inadequate plans to deal with mental and emotional health issues, gives them lots of bullets and few consequences.

Who will be the next Lt. William Calley?

My USMC Viet Nam veteran cousin's spirit is disturbed at recent earthly events that have added to the growing ranks of USMC spirits in the hereafter, he regrets that he took trophies that he shared with me before taking his own life, my USMC father's spirit is angry at being betrayed by Nazis and their RW Republican Party support that made a coup/class war-the spirits of dead USMC members and their families and friends want to be heard too-now.

The rallying point is, as always, the US Constitution-not PATRIOT ACT or abusive executive orders of George W. Bush aka The War President getting a lot of USMC killed for reprisal of mercenaries imho in the failed Bush Doctrine of pre-emptive war, as called for in PNAC.

Look who is making a killing off of dead USMC members, their spirits are demanding the whole truth now-they hate mercenaries, btw (believe it)

Post-War Contractors Ranked by Total Contract Value in Iraq and Afghanistan
http://www.publicintegrity.org/wow/resources.aspx?act=total

http://www.cnn.com/2003/US/04/11/sprj.irq.pentagon/

Rumsfeld on looting in Iraq: 'Stuff happens'

<snip>

"Declaring that freedom is "untidy," Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said Friday the looting in Iraq was a result of "pent-up feelings" of oppression and that it would subside as Iraqis adjusted to life without Saddam Hussein."

<snip>

"Freedom's untidy, and free people are free to make mistakes and commit crimes and do bad things," Rumsfeld said. "They're also free to live their lives and do wonderful things. And that's what's going to happen here."

Looting, he added, was not uncommon for countries that experience significant social upheaval. "Stuff happens," Rumsfeld said."



Apparently the US troops have decided it's time to tidy up freedom. Ah well, stuff happens.

The last time a convoy of trucks was looted, the drivers ended up dead.