Here's an "Open Letter to John Murtha" Thread at Freeperville

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/1655156/posts#comment?q=1

Let's Talk, Sir
Right Equals Might ^ | 6/24/06 | Kurt G.


Posted on 06/24/2006 8:25:16 PM PDT by Coop


Dear Mr. Murtha,

I've had it. I've had enough sanctimonious hyperbole from you. This has been boiling inside of me for weeks and weeks now. As a retired Marine, I have to speak-up... or my conscience will not let me rest. I've been hoping against hope that you would wake-up and stop the dangerous nonsense... but I know now how foolish that was.

You are badly damaging our military's effectiveness with your irresponsible and completely false rantings. You have become one of the key "useful idiots" that our enemy relies upon for assistance. You are now standing on the same moral and intellectual ground as Cindy Sheehan and that mountainous pile of anti-Americanism, Michael Moore.


People see you now as "Osama's Congressman," and as someone putting forth "insane strategy".


Does this bother you? Does it worry you that most sane people think you are completely unhinged? That you have sold out your country's security for cheap political points? That you, as someone who used to wear a Marine Corps uniform, have made a complete mockery of "Semper Fidelis?"


I guess the Marine Corps part is the primary reason for me writing this. There are plenty of far-left people out there undermining our national security- and I could have chosen any of them for a letter like this... but the fact that you were once a Marine is the one thing I just cannot get over. I can't believe that you have said the things you have said about Marines. I am stunned that you could not give Marines the benefit of waiting until charges were investigated before you accused them of abhorrent atrocities.

Immediately and without hesitation, you took the side of our enemy and condemned those Marines... and by doing so, you have emboldened and strengthened the terrorists' cause. To me, that is worse than treason... it is betrayal of a very personal kind. How many Marines and soldiers will now be killed because of the new power you gave the terrorists? How many of America's enemies are celebrating with orgiastic glee the Congressman calling American Marines murderers?

...


Let's just remember that Marines stick together... even when charging into the depths of hell. We do not sell out our fellow Marines. Ever.


You, Sir, have done just that. You have sold out not only the Marines involved in this particular incident- but all the rest of us, as well. You have told the world that Marines are deserving of no due-process because they are just blood-thirsty killers. You have made people believe all the false crap that the anti-American crowd has been trying to pin on us since Vietnam.

Your mistake cannot be excused as just the ramblings of an aging liberal politician. There is too much riding on the title you used to hold... that of Marine. The anti-everything crowd uses your past like a shield of invulnerability- as if you speak the total and complete truth since you used to be one us. You make it appear that this is how any Marine would feel. Your betrayal is far, far more dangerous than that of other anti-American liberals.

All you had to do, Sir, was say "Let's wait until a full investigation is conducted." That's it. All you had to do was hold your tongue until we all know exactly what happened and who, if anyone, is to blame. The political gain, though, was too tempting... and so you stuck a giant knife in the back of our Corps... and then continued twisting it.

You then compound the betrayal of those Marines by saying things like "There is no way we can win (this war) militarily..." What kind of thing is that to say? Seriously... how completely far-gone do you have to be to say that? Have you asked yourself what Dan Daly would think of that statement? How about Presley O'Bannon... and Sergeant Jarred L. Adams... and Chesty Puller? Do you think they would approve of the things you are saying?

Most of us Marines try to hold ourselves up to the icons of our history... we use them as a measuring stick for our own performance. More than anything, Marines fear not living up to our predecessors. One thing that has always separated us from everyone else is that we do not forget our history... the honor and bravery of those Marines who came before us is the fuel that feeds our Corps.

With all due respect, Sir, you have become a dangerous fool. You have shamed the United States Marine Corps, and endangered countless lives- not to mention the damage done to our mission.

Play politics all you want... attack your political opponents as you see fit... but, for God's sake, leave the Marine Corps out of your politics. On behalf of the Marines, soldiers, sailors, and airmen serving our country now... please stop attacking our military and shut the hell up.


Most sincerely and respectfully,

Kurt G.
Gunnery Sergeant, USMC, Retired

P.S. Okinawa??

More of this typical Republican "If you disagree with us you're helping the enemy and you hate America" bullshit. Are people this ignorant? This Goebbels-esque shit has to stop. It's dangerous and goes against freedom.

maybe something more policy-esque?

seriously, they call us the party of no ideas, but they've been accusing us of the same things for the last forty years, and they never come up with new ones.

that article could have just said "I don't believe pulling American troops out of Iraq will stabilize the country," but instead it accuses Murtha of treason and claims that military people are always, always, ALWAYS, right and even if they have comitted war crimes or are wrong in their opinions then they're still right.

Reporting Late
Late? Nonsense! The first 25 people to post on this thread get a free Jack Murtha campaign kit!


21 posted on 06/24/2006 9:20:53 PM PDT by Coop (

How...American

Some people can't accept that we lost this mission.(Iraqi freedom?)

I'm a two-time combat vet and an Army Ranger and this vet (if he is one) is loyal to a political party, not his Nation.

Typical brownshirt mentality.

get overrrr it! You lost it already and YOU KNOW IT. So stop trying to paint Murtha as the bad guy. You fucked up!

"Oh, yes, you've been betrayed all right. But the people who've betrayed you are the ones you're defending right now. I'd expect a retired Sergeant to have a better sense of tactics and strategy than you're showing here. You can't win a war militarily against an enemy you can't even identify. The fight to be carried forward is political, not military. Unless your method of carrying out the mission is to kill everyone you see on the basis that they MIGHT be an insurgent.

"The minute you start thinking like that is the minute you become a potential war criminal, no better than the Nazi stormtroopers. That's exactly what I'm trying to prevent here. I want to protect the reputation of the Marine Corps as a whole, not defend those who've slipped into criminal behavior.

"So get off my back."

or rather to end fighting and establish a lasting and meaninful peace.

The big tip-off to the American people that we were going to war was when this Administration overshot the State Department, and went straight to the Pentagon.

for Irey.

https://www.donationreport.com/init/controller/ProcessEntryCmd?key=L1M1P2P9O3

I wonder how much they're paying themselves for "expenses".

Murtha, three years ago, was a supporter of invading Iraq. Now he's labeled far left (BAD!) and a traitor. If this bozo stopped to think for just a minute, he'd understand Murtha's motivation in speaking out isn't part of some vast left-wing anti-war agenda, it's because he cares about the Marines, and he hates seeing them die for a failed mission that was based on lies to begin with.

Murtha is not attacking our military, but this idiot gunnery sergeant has no problem attacking Murtha's character and integrity. Nice.

We need more dirt on Irey.

The people of Johnstown and the surrounding area love the guy. I agree this will backfire; most of the public supports a timeline/withdrawal from Iraq. Irey's website is one giant character assassination of Murtha - it's a joke.

doing.

in this case, it shows what type of a "man", the idiot gunnery sergeant really is.

disagree with them from speaking out?

Hey freeps, remember the first amendment? Remember, "I may disagree with you but I'll defend your right to speak"?

LOOKIE HERE...
http://www.blogger.com/profile/2870064

Coop
Age: 28
Gender: male
Astrological Sign: Aquarius
Zodiac Year: Snake
Industry: Non-Profit
Occupation: Attorney
Location: Seattle : Washington : United States
About Me
27 years old. B.A.(PoliSci), Pacific Lutheran University. J.D., Seattle University School of Law. Federalist Society member. Ex junior high dodgeball phenom. Played some college football for Frosty Westering. Former session staff worker, WA State Senate. Recent legal & policy analyst for a non-profit public policy think-tank. Views expressed here are entirely my own.

Interests
Law politics history sports exercise reading hiking cheeseburgers beer red wine Saturday mornings cartoons and drawing writing blogging Seattle Mariners Seattle Seahawks
Favorite Movies
Original Star Wars trilogy the magnificent LOTR trilogy other assorted films.
Favorite Music
Pixies Nirvana Soundgarden Pearl Jam New Order Audioslave Depeche Mode The Killers Garbage Chemical Bros Moby Postal Service Death Cab Johnny Cash Coldplay The Cure
Blogs
Blog Name Team Members
SharksWithLasers -- Seth Cooper

Straight from the frat and into a think-tank. One of those schmucks who looks like he thinks he was born to run things. Fingernails probably immaculate.

Yeah, the earth needs more of this type. :eyes:

...check out the prose style on the blog.
Aren't we just all that and a bag of chips...
:eyes: :rofl:

and yet he leaves that out of his profile?

According to all the marines I know, it's once a marine, always a marine. Marine vets don't refer to each other as "former marines". They're simply "marines".

the Irey campaign.

The Freepers hate the truth worse than they hate going to work.

They just vote for the GOP so the jobs will be sent overseas and they can get out of working for a living.

Edit...Gunney Gomer could prolly go win Iraq all by himself, if'n he wasn't too lazy!

guy is saying jarheads are complete fucking idiots and can't think for themselves. Just take their orders and a bullet for the team, no matter how screwed up the orders are.

Maybe Smedley Butler, with his two Medals of Honor, was another lousy Marine, since Murtha and Butler are on the same page.

Eisenhower, by warning of excessive militarism and foreign entanglements, was undoubtedly a traitor to the Army and America, too. What the hell did Ike know about war or honor? Fucking pinko coward, that Ike.

My local theatre won't even show Al Gore's movie. Bastards.

Praying! The more info about the TRUE Murtha on the net the better. That's why I figured I should post that email I got from me friend. Another U.S. Congressman who is on the record saying Murtha admitted to him that his Purple Hearts are a fraud is pretty damning. I hope you find what you posted before and post it all here also! The more conservatives armed with facts to hammer liberals with the better! Wonder how many hundreds of thousands of people this information will reach over the weeks? :)



13 posted on 06/24/2006 7:03:28 PM PDT by TexasPatriot8 (You can't get blood from a turnip, and with liberals

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1655125/posts

That is sad.

You can see their plans by reading it. But there seems to be a disagreement about bringing Irey into the swiftboating.

then I have a few questions for our president. How did you jump the waiting list to get into the TANG? How do you explain the fact that nobody at your last duty station ever laid eyes on you? How did you get discharged from the Air National Guard early? Did you ever use cocaine or other illegal drugs? Can you answer the allegation that you took a 15 year-old girl across the Texas border for an abortion?

But oh no, those things are in the past, and they don't matter. Hypocrites.

Doesn't think Irey should go anywhere near the ABSCAM stuff....

To: Pukin Dog
I agree completely. I don't think you'll see Irey get anywhere near this stuff.



68 posted on 06/24/2006 8:35:39 PM PDT by Coop (No, there are no @!%$&#*! polls on Irey vs. Murtha

I wonder if they're already freaking out about "Swiftboating Murtha".

May 5, 2002

Dear Jack,



I’m writing on matters of joint concern. A number of weeks ago I was talking with someone who is a mutual acquaintance and your name came up. It was an unusually frank discussion and I considered it private. I did relate some opinions about you and shared some recollections about experiences with you in Congress. I was, to be honest, critical about how you misled me about ABSCAM where you convinced me you had voluntarily told federal agents about the offer of money to you and I learned later, after I had successfully defeated the ethics charges against you, that you had merely manipulated the system to cooperate with federal agents to avoid prosecution.



I also shared my recollection of when you admitted, back in our corner, that you didn’t earn your purple hearts (you indicated you had small scratch on your cheek that wasn’t even directly related to an APC that ran over a small anti personnel mine that was behind you). The other purple heart you even declined to explain.



At the time you were feeling particularly vulnerable, because it wasn’t too long after you had called me crying and sobbing, thanking me for “saving your life” before the ethics committee. There was no doubt in my mind that you were expressing to me that you did not believe you did anything sufficient to earn the purple heart, and that you didn’t want to be active in my efforts to laud Vietnam Veterans that served with us.



Given what I know about the brave men who served in the Marine Corp., I did not criticize you, but to be honest, I was shocked and disappointed in you personally. We both knew what was at issue, and we both know what happened and that you wanted to avoid the limelight. Later, we ended up having to run for the same seat. It was a good clean race and I admit I knew I couldn’t win, simply on the basis of voter turn out alone. During that time some people came to me with documents indicating you had used influence, after the fact, or had embellished your purple heart awards. I did not respond, and I said nothing. In doing so I may have betrayed my comrades in arms because I knew then what you had told me in the corner of the house - but I had told no one about that and I stood mute. But a few weeks ago my conversation was private and I was not seeking to do you any harm, though it would be ridiculous for me to infer that I have any respect for what you’ve done.



Regardless, shortly thereafter a reporter called me and I was put in a very different position. I could either deny what I said in private conversation, and thus lie, or I could fess up to the truth, or, I could take the cowards way out and stand mute. If I say something, I should either have the courage to back it up, or I shouldn’t open my mouth. Regardless it was too late, and I did not choose to lie. So I admitted to what I had said. However, I later received two calls from two different aides of yours, and later I was called a liar in the press. I am not a liar and I want an apology for the remarks you authorized that I didn’t tell the truth about our conversation. I don’t know how you got yourself awarded the purple hearts, but I know you indicated you didn’t earn them.



By the way. I’m not an ingrate. I deeply appreciate the help you gave me for the last governor’s primary. In fact, out of respect for you, when I realized that the race was going no where, I didn’t even cash the check you sent, (which I kept). Being grateful for your help, I have not sought to hurt you - but I will not betray or exploit the young men who died while fighting, with me, for this country. Never coming forward is one thing - I never have. Lying is another. Coincidentally I just settled an 11-year old law suit with Barbara Hafer where she apologized in writing for campaign defamation and admitted that federal agents (Thornburgh’s political friends) lied to her. I will not accept your falsehoods now. Enough is enough.



You clearly indicated to me in a moment of weakness, that you hadn’t deserved the purple hearts and there was no confusion on that. You may deny that all you wish - but you and I know that that conversation took place. Please apologize now. You may fool a few reporters into believing that merely because you got some perfunctory paperwork made out by a friend, that that means you earned the purple hearts. But even if you were awarded the medals later, there should be affidavits from witnesses. These things should be easy to get - where are they? I bet they don’t exist Jack because you are the one who’s lying. Luckily there’s one easy way to settle all this. Call a press conference. Explain where you were and what you were doing when you got the purple hearts. Explain who was with you and treated your wounds, but most important Jack describe your wounds or the lack thereof, as you did for me, years ago. I am absolutely certain that you won’t do that - because, though you may have manipulated some paperwork that says you were awarded the medals (for political purposes) you can’t produce the witnesses or documents to show any wounds or circumstances under which they occurred.Unless the Marine Corps gives out medals for unsubstantiated non -combat related telltale scratches, procured for use in political campaign - then show me the money Jack - because there should at least be evidence by affidavit, or record of the scratches, that’s what getting a purple heart requires - show me.



You may be able to take advantage of a few Washington reporters who don’t have sufficient experience to understand - but you can’t fool combat veterans of the Vietnam war by hiding behind “Unit” losses - we’re used to those stories. I have my orders describing my combat awards Jack - to back up my DD-214. Where’s your’s? And Jack - don’t ever call me a liar.

Sincerely,

Don Bailey



DB:Alb

First Amanda and her brother and now Don Bailey (if it's the same one) Here's a sexual harrassment lawsuit...

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Jury rejects ex-dispatcher's sex harassment claim

By MARK SCOLFORO
The Associated Press

HARRISBURG, Pa. - A former dispatcher lost her lawsuit against the state police Tuesday when jurors deliberated less than two hours before concluding she was not subject to a severe and pervasive pattern of sexual harassment.

Nancy Drew Suders had alleged that sexual talk and gestures by supervising troopers at the McConnellsburg station, where she worked for five months in 1998, became so unpleasant she had to quit the $13-an-hour job.

The state police had argued Suders panicked and exaggerated things after realizing she couldn't handle the job. Senior deputy attorney general Sarah C. Yerger called her a "fish out of water" who sometimes was late for work, became overwhelmed easily and lacked a prior work history that would have prepared her for a dispatcher's duties.

"The fact is, these allegations about her not being competent, they're not really relevant to the issue of whether there was sexual misconduct," Suders' attorney, Don Bailey, said after the verdict was read.

Last year, her case reached the U.S. Supreme Court, which ruled 8-1 that Suders could sue under federal civil-rights law but said she would have more difficulty proving her case than someone fired under similar circumstances.

The court said employers that have a system for handling sexual harassment complaints can defend lawsuits by proving they maintained such a system and that the employee failed to use it. Suders' case never reached that point, because jurors found she was not subjected to severe and pervasive abuse.

Wouldn't it be interesting if Bailey got the city council to pay even though a jury ruled against. Just like Admanda's.

EDIT: COPYRIGHT. PLEASE POST ONLY 4 OR 5 PARAGRAPHS
FROM THE COPYRIGHTED NEWS SOURCE PER DU RULES
AND PROVIDE A LINK TO THE NEWS SOURCE.

http://www.vets4irey.com/vetlist.shtml

The plot thickens.

I think the M seals the deal. I think the e-mail is his initials Kurt M. Grinstead (KMG) who knows what the ss is for.

"Name - GySgt Kurt Grinstead, USMC (Retired) Email - kmg1775@aol.com
Date -- 12/23/03 5:11 PM From - Pueblo, Colorado
Just wanted to pass along my best to you and
all the Marines there. Happy holidays and
Keep up the good work, Devil Dogs!!!

Semper Fi!!!!"

This was left in this guestbook here in 2003:
http://www.hostultra.com/~inthesands/guestbook.html

We know:
1. KMG is the same beginning as the yahoo address.
2. It is likely someone would not use their private e-mail address for a public blog. Yahoo is a free e-mail provider and it is possible he could have signed up using the other name.
3. Kurt Grinstead has the same rank as Kurt G., gunnery sergeant.

Tidbit:
KMG is supporting Diana Irey, but lives in Colorado, I guess he has a lot of interest in this race. Looks like they are plucking people from around the nation in an organized effort to unseat Murtha. We know Rove had a concerted effort to get Plame fired, this kind of thing is his tactic.

to get ahold of that donor list.

WOODBRIDGE, VA Political Contributions by IndividualsDitch, Oliver P Mr. (Retired/Retired), (Zip code: 22193) $200 to REPUBLICAN PARTY OF VIRGINIA INC on 06/29/04 Ditch, Oliver P Mr. (Retired/Retired), ...
www.city-data.com/elec/elec-WOODBRIDGE-VA.html - 77k - Cached - Similar pages


Virginia War MemorialDitch, Oliver P. Dixon, John Elbert. Dixon, Carl Graham, Dixon, Percy H. Dixon, James Britton, Dlobich, Walter J. Doane, Francis Edward, Doane, Samuel Lee ...
www.vawarmemorial.org/vdata/default.asp?Ltr=D - 148k

They were the firm that with the help of Mylo Enterprises, jammed the "get out the vote" phone bank of the New Hamshire Democratic Party. I wonder if he has any ties to the phonegate scandal.

Why do you figure? What's in Virginia that we don't about that allows these people to operate from there?

goes back to 1719, I'm sick and tired of seeing these idiots moving into my state. It's beginning to look as if the people from their hometowns took up a collection to get rid of them, and they decided to send them here.

It would be really nice if these clowns would get into/onto their cars/trucks/SUVs/RVs/scooters, find their way back onto the Beltway or Routes 95/66/15/81, and just get out of VA ASAP.

(Or, maybe their hometowns don't WANT 'em to come back. :D)

Capt Larry Bailey who sounds absolutely dangerous. I'm beginning to think they're all in the "contractor" business. If you know what I mean.

that was posted earlier, several of these seem to work for/with John Poindexter ("U.S. Government/D.O.D./Intellignce"):

http://www.city-data.com/elec/elec-WOODBRIDGE-VA.html










(edited for typo)

If this shit isn't stopped we'll all be bankrupt. Patriots MY ASS! They're sucking the blood out of the treasury. Vampire contractor SCUM!

is contractor, too. You can thank Reagan for that.

One of the planks in his 1980 Presidential campaign platform was lambasting the Civil Service. He thought that just because the Feds had job security, decent benefits and a wonderful retirement system, they had it too good.

After Reagan got into office, every "Beltway Bandit" and his/her baby brother wanted a piece of the action. They had a friend in "The Great Communicator", and jumped on what turned out to be a very profitable gravy train. Every occupational code in the USG suffered downsizing or complete elimination, and contract employees moved in. So now, instead of paying one person to do the job, your tax dollars go to not only the contractor, but also the contracting firm. You're paying twice what you paid prior to 1980!

Consider this: If an employee in one given occupation is paid $40/hour (say, an accountant), the company the contractor works for tacks on another $200-$500 in fees (the contracting company's employees get paid for services rendered, too).

In the end, not one brown penny was saved by hiring outsiders. And by the way - for all the bloviating the Republicans like to do regarding the quality of work by the Civil Service, there are quite a few contractors who could use a few lessons in work and government contract ethics.

Saving money by sticking it to the American public is the Republicans' mindset.







(edited for correction)

How many contractors does it take to clean up a street in New Orleans? One contractor, that hires a sub-contractor, that hires a sub-contractor, that hires an illegal alien with a pick-up truck.

BTW. I know Reagan started this but I'm betting that when the public finds out there's no money left for anything but war profiteers and energy companies, they will rebel completely.

Great joke, and what makes it so funny is that there's more than a kernel of truth to it.

Agree completely with your second comment - the thing is, though, this sort of thing with contracting companies has been going on for almost twenty-five years. Too bad they didn't rebel sooner!

And they both look almost exactly the same...

http://vets4bush.com/

"Ex junior high dodgeball phenom. Played some college football for Frosty Westering."

So this is the type of "deep thinking" that goes on outside the Beltway. No wonder this country's going down the tubes.

This kid needs to get a real life. I'd be willing to bet 10-1 he wrote up that letter all by himself. ("Kurt G."? A real Marine wouldn't be afraid to use his last name.) He seems to have plenty of time on his hands, that's for sure. Maybe a tour in Iraq with a squadron of real Marines will help fill up those lonely hours.

Hey "Coop", here's an idea for you:

(1) Come to D.C.

(2) Join the Federal Government.

(3) Work your ass off 15-20 hours a day.

(4) During your spare time (assuming you HAVE spare time), take the Metro, a cab or the bus over to Walter Reed and Bethesda Naval, walk through the wards over there, and take a look at young people who've lost multiple limbs, their hearing and/or their sight (as Representative Murtha does every week). They're just about your age, Loser. Ever see a nineteen-year-old Army private use prostheses attached to all four of his limbs?

(5) Once you've worked in the public service capacity about twenty years, THEN you'll realize how your heroes in the far-right wing have been using you suckers (REPEATEDLY, I might add) to fatten their own wallets. Maybe you'll think twice about supporting war profiteers. "Useful idiots" indeed. :eyes: :mad:

Jack Murtha was honorably representing the people in Pennsylvania's 12th District when you were riding around on a Big Wheel. When you do something useful with YOUR life "Coop" (what a ridiculous nom de plume), then - and ONLY then - are you allowed to post.











(on edit: additional text)

Only a freeper could come up with this stuff!

"Shut the hell up...most respectuflly..."

awww, man that's good.

:rofl::woohoo::applause:

not the "Simple Fiddle" crowd.

"In the same LA Times story, Republican Representative John Kline of Minnesota was quoted as saying:

There is no question that the Marines involved, those doing the shooting, they were busy in lying about it and covering it up — there is no question about it. But I am confident, as soon as the command learned there might be some truth to this, they started to pursue it vigorously. I don't have any reason now to think there was any foot dragging.<7>"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haditha_massacre

"there is no question about it."

also

"On May 17, 2006 U.S. Congressmember John Murtha, a retired Marine colonel and critic of the war, stated at a news conference that an internal investigation had confirmed the story."

Thus, Murtha WAS commenting after the investigation. Pretty much rebuts this

"All you had to do, Sir, was say "Let's wait until a full investigation is conducted." That's it. All you had to do was hold your tongue until we all know exactly what happened and who, if anyone, is to blame. The political gain, though, was too tempting... and so you stuck a giant knife in the back of our Corps... and then continued twisting it."

And which political gain is he talking about? Is he going to become Secretary of Defense in 2008? Speaker of the House in 2006? I wish I had that much optimism. Has John McCain, for example, been doing the same things as Murtha for political gain, or did he choose a different route?

"People see you now as "Osama's Congressman," and as someone putting forth "insane strategy".

Does this bother you? Does it worry you that most sane people think you are completely unhinged? That you have sold out your country's security for cheap political points?"

"Most sane people". Wow, that's rich. Let me guess, Kurt, anybody who does not agree with you 100% is, by definition, not sane.

We'd HAVE Osama by now and the war would be over if these fuckers didnt get side-tracked by trying to "install democracy" in Iraq. While systematically eliminating the democracy we used to have in the States while they were at it.

and he is going to turn around and spear your ass. What are you going to say? That he ministers in word and deed to the wounded and dying troops?