…like, for instance, the New York Times, who finds it rather gauche when thuggish jarheads and Aqua Velva-slathered Army officers—pumped up killbots, the lot of ‘em, who have the luxury of advanced training and national wealth—decide to pick on a less fortunate (but no-less hard-working), self-made Other—particularly one so clearly accomplished in slaughtering innocents as dedicated super terrorist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi.Zarqawi:
The release of the captured video reflected the dueling public relations efforts between the American-led forces fighting in Iraq and the terrorists and insurgents. It also reflected increasing interest by the military and civilian strategists in trying to ridicule Mr. Zarqawi.
— which is a noticeable (and welcomed) change in strategy from our earlier plan to build Zarqawi up as a Nietzschean ubermensch, an extraordinary man whom coaltion forces could never hope to defeat, save for discovery of a shitload of Kryptonite—the man’s ‘s style being impetuous, his defense impregnable. He wants your heart. He wants to eat your children. Praise be to Allah!
But let’s backtrack a bit. To put Zarqawi’s videotaped gaffe in the proper context (something the Times never seems concerned about “context” when coalition forces are killed), the Grey Lady points out just how difficult to handle, with photogenic grace, is the SAW rifle Zarqawi chose to highlight in his terror propaganda video:
The weapon in question is complicated to master, and American soldiers and marines undergo many days of training to achieve the most basic competence with it. Moreover, the weapon in Mr. Zarqawi’s hands was an older variant, which makes its malfunctioning unsurprising.
Well, that’s hardly a shock, is it? For the Times, the problem is not with the gun user, but is rather with the gun itself (and of course the camera, which evidently didn’t have a rewind button—though that is incidental).
Which means that if history is any guide, we can expect be treated to a Times op-ed calling for “tougher gun control laws” on the use of these American machine guns in Iraq. After all, if a master terrorist can’t work one of these puppies, imagine what would happen should one of these things find its way into the hands of a child!
As XDA quips:
The SAW is complicated to master—you have to put in the clip or belt, set the selector switch, rack in the first round and then pull the freakin’ trigger. It’s really hard.
But such gratuitous snark just reinforces the feelings of terrorists that American arrogance, combined with its inveterate colonialist mindset to view the Other as savage and brutish, provides terrorists wth the impetus to try to wipe us out or make us convert to Islam—and further explains why Zarqawi has dedicated his life to killing as many dirty filthy Cinemax After Dark-watching infidels as he possibly can.
And just as the Moussaoui jury did the brave thing and was unwilling to sentence the Islamist zealot to death because he had been shamed as a child, can we really blame Zarqawi for the rage such public shaming is likely to draw out of him? The NYT certainly wouldn’t presume to do, that’s for sure.
And in fact, the next time he kills, his reason for doing so will be fairly evident to the multiculturalist crowd: Blowback. BECAUSE OF THE FAILURE TO EDIT!
I, for one, blame Bush.
****
(h/t Hugh Hewitt)
Well, the SAW does take some training, and it’s quite possible the one he was using was a defective model. Also, if you look closely at the direction of light in the video, it looks like the sun was in his eyes. And the dog ate his SAW user’s manual. Uh… he meant to do that? And who needs to know how to shoot a SAW properly, anyway? Stupid SAW.
Do you see now where arrogance leads? This mockery will only drive more poor young fighters into Zarkman’s incapable arms.
It’s a quagmire. We’re doomed.
Hey, honest question. Really…
Can anyone PLEASE explain to me the rationale behind the NYT approach on this subject ? I seriously cannot think of any other basis for that story than they really are rooting for the other side. That fact seems to me to be patently obvious from this story.
Have any of the moonbat leftie usual suspects even TRIED to put any other spin on this story, or are they just ignoring it completely ? The video itself is just throw-away humor. A point-and-laugh and move on moment. It should have faded into nothing 10 minutes after it was shown.
But it wasn’t. How else can it be explained ?
Maybe not fully, completely in their heart of hearts pulling for the other side, but their BDS and transnationalism have progressed to the point that, in terms of effect, it really makes no difference.
Short answer: they don’t believe that there is an “other side”.
It’s an extreme version of the local perception problem. For the editors and publishers of the Times, anything outside the confines of New York City and a few other local places is irrelevant (or should be), and if it’s far enough away it’s simply unreal—fantasms that make images on TV screens but have no power to act.
So from their point of view, they aren’t supporting the enemy because there is no enemy to support, simply random events which they can interpret to suit their metanarrative. Zarkawi and the others are simply complex cloud formations, in which they can see whatever their imaginations may project.
Regards,
Ric
Yet even the NYT fails to note an overarching concern. One I am shocked (but not surprised) that our nativist gun-banners have yet to advise them upon. The SAW is not a toy, it is a weapon and therefore truly hazardous in the hands of the untrained (witness the scorched hands of the syncophants.) If you don’t know how to use it, you really shouldn’t be playing with it. This is not the mark of a warrior.
Does anyone else see parallels to the home video of the Columbine killers?
I must agree with the NYT – American soldiers actually train on using a weapon before being expected to employ it. How, in good conscience, could one impose our standards on the unfortunate Other? Please be sensitive to the poor Z-man.
Oh, and he’s still unstoppable and invincible. Except that he’s a BushCo invention, or the Mossad’s, or Halliburton’s, or the World Bank’s…
What you are all forgetting is the real enemy to the NY Times: George Bush.
Anybody else is merely a distraction from the real conflict. The important conflict. The conflict that matters.
Getting their chosen political party in power is what matters. If some Americans have to die in order for that to happen, well, politics is a serious business.
Yeah, I remember it took them a good thirty minutes to show our entire IOBC class how a SAW worked. It’s practically a space shuttle with tracers.
You really can’t make this shit up.
Fucking liberals. They just can’t help themselves.
Mrs. Patton just made me thin of something. It took 30 minutes to explain the SAW because one auto-loader is much like any other. Buttels go in here, bullets go out there. Even the clearing drill are common. “Pull the charging handle” is the first step for the M-1 rifle and the M-2 machine gun. If he can’t ID a stovepipe in the SAW that means he probably doen’t know much about any weapon.
Was in NYC for business last week. Had a few Guiness in a Manhattan bar, not sure which one, but had a picture of Gary Moore on the wall. Anyway – in walks this guy, who strikes up a conversation with me. Seems he recognizes me as a military retiree, imagine that.
Says he left the Corps because he didn’t like having rank . . . .
Tells me he’s a reporter for the NYT, and a former Marine. Name of CJ Chivers – turns out he was writing a piece about the Z-man. Said it was getting complicated explaining how deadly this guy was – even had quotes from quite a few “ex-military officers and retirees all lined up. Now, with the new captured video, it would be hard to prove his case. So, we talk for awhile, and ole CJ comes around to the point that maybe all his material isn’t dead. He’ll just tweek the theme a little and weave in the same interviews. Fellas got to eat, you know . . . .
Ric,
Your description of the NYT is amazingly close to one of the major descriptors of a psychopath. To a psychopath there are no other people that deserve consideration. People are just objects that psychopaths can treat or do with as they please.
Hmmmmm…
Zarkman is incompetent?
Oh really, Jeff?
Or is it that your fascist misleadership cannot distinguish a great military mind like Z who has duped you through nuance to make you believe that he is incompetent when, in fact, he is the most competent around?
So what if your stupid unemployable 18-yr-olds can master the weapon in under 30 of your so-called Western minutes; al Qaeda is so progressive, thirty of their minutes must be, like, years and years.
Why’s everyone looking at me?
“Why’s everyone looking at me?”
Because it’s time for your pill, V-man.
I really and truly don’t remember the SAW being all that complicated to work. But I’m not a NYT reporter, either, so maybe that’s why. On the other hand, the M203 was a bitch to aim worth a crap if not exactly hard to operate.
Maybe we should take a chance and leave a few LAAWs lying around, if those are still in inventory. With a little luck, perhaps he’d roast some of his cronies–and wouldn’t that be a pity?
What ever, Protein Shake guy.
You are not only worng (as usuaul), but aslo WAYYY late to this party. Serously. We have already covered this issue in termendous detail and sensitivty at TIWWWB.
Its an issue of:
1. Racest portrayal of stereotype the s0-called “imcompetentsy” of the Arab man
2. AT least he’s not shoot ducks/an old man lawyer in the face.,
3. It was Amercian-made gun (shoddy workship, peice of junk relly).
4. Was there a warrant for that “raid” to get the video? Do i even have to ask. Its the poison fruit tree, should of thrown out (if this was “LAw & Order Show” this would DEFINATELY be thrown out, have to go back and get something else more legal)
5. There are Copywrite issues to use the video with out permission of the filmaker (intellectual infringement)
ROFL, Witheld, that’s a good parody of NYT.
Witheld,
Please, please, please tell me that’s a parody.
If not, “what you’ve just said is one of the most insanely idiotic things I have ever heard. At no point in your rambling, incoherent response were you even close to anything that could be considered a rational thought. Everyone in this room is now dumber for having listened to it. I award you no points, and may God have mercy on your soul.”
Fine Scoth,
If its WAS a parody, this is the first I’ve heard of. But IF so, that’s relly disrespectful to Arabs. (Parody is not there culture, I think. Very serous about these things.) (Aslo, could of been funnier, AT LEAST. This was actually kind of slightly boring to me. Yawn.)
But don’t think I have fail to notice that you have NO replay to the substants of my commnet. Even one. Typical.
Yeah, nothing to worry about from Zarqawi. A total incompetant. Not much of a terrorist; after all, he can’t operate a weapon without it jamming on him.
Unless, perchance, you happen to be on the receiving end of one of the bursts he was able to fire.
Then your opinion might differ.
[Wonder what the rate of fire of that weapon is?]
Of course the Neocons and the incompetent fools running this war don’t worry too much about rates of fire.
Or anything else, for that matter.
After all, they arn’t going to be on the receiving end of any terrorist’s weapons now, are they?
Jammed or unjammed….
Something is wrong with the vidoe link. When I opened it, it ran without the Benny Hill music.
Is it something I’m doing?
Shorter C.W. Goss: DON’T YOU MAKE FUN OF ZARKY!!
Back when Zarkawi was Ralph Macchio’s stunt double for Karate Kid II: Feet of Change, black on black with the fly New Balance cross trainers was the style.
Abu never looked back.
BUSH LIED ABOUT SADDAM’S KRYPTONITE!!!!
Carl nails it.
You 101 Flying Keybroards are real brave to make fun of Zarquali from the safety of your sitting in the basement with pea-stains on your underwaer. Yeah, you talk big, But Zarquali in rell life he would TOTALY kick your neocon chicken hwak butt. I would LOVE to see that, just one on one, cage match, and then we’ll see whose laugh last.
Who eats peas in their underwear? That doesn’t make any sense.
. . . is it me or do “Carl” and “Withheld” seem to transpose the letters . . .
Witheld is absolutely right. Carl knocked it out of the park. I mean he just absolutely creamed it.
Not that kind of pea, applecinio.
(A little OT, but I recommend to not ever NEVER eat wasabi peas without at least some clothes on. Long story but this happen to me once and its not I would wish on my wrost enemy. With clothes, cruch a way! yum! and nutrious too)
Scret word: hospital, which is pretty much what
Here y’go, Carl. Wouldn’t want you to hurt your brains by actually thinking and researching, y’know?
TW: My heart bleeds for Zarqwi. Not.
Witheld, are you by any chance the author of the iraqwarwrong blog? I detect a certain similarity in style. Either way, keep on speaking truth to power, man!
Thanks JSP. No, I’m not IWWW is not me, but I am big fan (influentsed by), so I’m take it as a real compement.
Carl,
So you believe he is the bad ass that he was trying to be on the video?
Hey, he runs into someone from MND-North and wants to stand there trying to look like a clip from a Rambo movie – dandy. I think your grasp of infantry tactics is bit weak there Carl.
Jammed or unjammed….
Personnaly, Hekmatyar Gulbuddin was more on my case than Z-man.
I guess I was too incompetent or foolish to know what my own troops were capable of, or the enemy was capable of…hell, it took me weeks just to get my finger out of my nose! I wonder, how didn’t I manage to get blown up or shot somehow? Dumb luck I guess.
If I am lucky, when I get to Phase II of ILE-CC, Carl will be an instructor at the CGSOC at Ft. Leavenworth!
I would too. That guy’s some kind of genius.
Subgenius, even. I have now ikea if Withheld is some kine of parroty or knot.
Withheld,
I went to your blog and most of the people on there can barely type english. Not that I never make a typo but my gosh. As to your post up there I am a Veteran of this Army and the 10th Mountain Division where I handled many weapons. The easiest was the M-16, I was an M-60 Gunner myself initially, and before I left had 8 SAW gunners in my squad. The SAW that Z-Man (whose name you spelled wrong in your blog) was trying to operate is not difficult. Also I am not what you described in your post so if you would provide the weapons and location I would be happy to take on Zarqawi 1 on 1 and after shooting his legs can behead him on Al-Jazeera.
Geez, that’s embarrassing!
I didn’t even follow the link in Witheld’s first comment when I asked about the Iraq War Was Wrong blog; I was just going off of what Witheld wrote here, and it reminded me of the, um, passionate arguments against the Iraq war I’d read, months ago, on another blog.
That’s what I get for posting in too much of a hurry to read the damn link. Sorry, Witheld.
Pssst….Adam, that blog site is a parody (don’t tell anyone tho’
.
Count me in too. Except that I want it to be hand to hand in the cage. No weapons, just mano a mano.
Just so you know what I think of this piece of shit – I am 58 years old.
Major John,
I hope you are right because it was sickening reading.
rls I am there with you although even at our ages (I am 40) I don’t think he would have the courage to hit either of us one on one. Perhaps if we were previously tortured, starved, beaten, or had our hands tied behind our backs he would consider us evenly matched.
Hey Adam,
I’m sorry if some typoes. I am a super fast typer just to keep it up with my brians is racing ahead of my fingers. (soory)
Um, as far as you in the cage match, I don’t have any weapons to lone you (progessive, I’m opposed them). I believe there’s OTHER WAYS!!! (diplomecy, “smart” sanctions, Ghandi).
But more important is that furthermore I don’t think its sound like a fair fight if you have had more of chance to practice with it or whatever. Like the NYT said, a US troop gets to practice for like DAYS on end (not minutes, not hours, but whole DAYS, people), so we shouldn’tr rush to judgement on Zarquali. Give him a chance to get the lay on the land, a few dry runs, before you just come down on him like that.
Aslo, I know for me personally, sometimes i get nervous when a camera, so that could be a big part of it too.
I think what were saying is he could of just been having an off day, it happens to the best of us, you can’t deny that. Even Tiger Woods swings and misses sometimes, he’s still the best.
Bottom line, the real Carl’s point was more about it would be fair if it was a 101 Keybroad chicken hawk type guy to take him on. (Level the plain field.) If they won’t do it (too chicken, buckbuckBOKK!), then they should just SFTU. You just KNOW Zarquali would rip them a new one, blinfolded with one hand. That’s just basic 101.
So. Nice try but…
Witheld,
To quote Jack Palance, “I crap bigger than you.”
So you believe that if we never went to Iraq that no terrorist would come after us? As an American Jew I have a real hard time believing that. So what did we do to justify the bombing in 93 of the trade center? Of the USS Cole?
I guess this is all payback for us helping in Afghanistan.
You must be right. Nick Berg must have had months and months of SAW training before his head was cut off.
Oh and I almost forgot all the training that the children who were blown up waiting for candy got. From what I understand there were some 5 year olds trained by special forces that were terrorizing poor Iraqi insurgents who didn’t have the advantage of all of that US Training.
Thnaks. Good of you to come around to see I’m right. See, what we can accomplish with we just dialog alittle more, do wrong wars of empiralism a little less?
Peace out.
ummm……okayyyyyyy
Adam,
The reason he is so effective, is that he is only millimeters from the actual. Read the site for a bit, and slowly it dawns on you, that you are reading a masterwork, then the smile starts to spread on your face…
Zarqawi would so totally kick my ass if he could figure out how to work his gun.
BTW, less than a month ago, the Washington Post ran an article claiming that some senior intelligence officers believed Zarqawi’s role may have been overemphasized by a US military propaganda campaign. So the military will be criticized if it makes too much or too little of Zarqawi; perhaps the press would like to be briefed oÂÂn Zarqawi by Goldilocks.
Okay, now I just finished Army Basic Training at the end of March. I trained at Fort Sill, Alpha 1/79. We had about 10 minutes demonstration by a drill sergeant, practiced operating it for about 2 minutes, and then got to fire the M249. Weeks later we did have a STX lane with questions about the SAW, but that took all of a few moments to read up in our Smart Book on while we waited in line to be tested on it.
Not days of training on the M249. Total training was less then a half hour all told… not counting standing around in lines waiting for my turn at it. Now, the M16… THAT we did spend days of training… and the many many many days cleaning the thing. Ugh.
I am really starting to feel pity for MSM reporting on military matters. It really takes effort to get things like this this wrong. “Days of training” for “even the most basic (!?!) competence” my rear end.
Besides, the SAW is designed to be fired from prone… my drill sergeants would have just destroyed a soldier trying to fire it standing up as Zarqawi did.
[begin sarcastic thought] You know, people have been lamenting that Hollywood hasn’t been making movies that are very pro-American lately. Yet because jihadis are obviously trying to immitate action stars they have seen in the movies, Hollywood is almost functioning as better counter-propaganda than our collective intelligence acengies. Thank you Hollywood for action stars that violate the laws of physics in gunplay and frequent use of improper weapon usage! The feat of screwing up jihadi training cannot go unnoticed. (Yes, this is a very backhanded, sarcasm-laden, compliment.)
Heh.
I’m feeling a little inter-military blog war coming on; MJ, Army; rls, Army?; RealJeffS, Army; Eric, Army; Rto, USMC?. That seems like fair odds, 1-2 jarheads v 4+ Doggies.
Nah, just kidding, I’ll wait until you guys get more.
Witheld, of all the sniffle hypotenuse cheeses I’ve encountered on the Internets, you are the hypotenusiest.
i’m sorry.
oh, oh no, verc, you better pray he doesn’t see that. course your chances are good since he’s in training for his second deployment to afghanistan (army)
I am NOT a Marine.
I’m only the best damned 25U Commo Soldier in the United States Army.
freaky that.
USMC here. Former, as they say.
So what’s your point then?
That Zaquali should go thru basic training before the cage match?
Just to make it fair?
You’re not getting tired of all of these questions, are you?
Really?
Why or perhaps, why not?
tw: british?
That’s OK, Verc, I understand your desire for an inter-service blog war. Heck, throw the Navy in, and it’ll be a full fledged blog rumble!
Just don’t invite the Air Force. All they’ll do is stand on the side lines looking confused, raid the half-time refreshments, and then complain because the TV remote is broken.
The 101st Fighting Chickenhawks will kick all you sonsabitches asses.
NO IT SNOT ITS ALL TURE !!!
TW: ITS REALITY BASED
I half expected RTO to fly back to kick your butt for calling him a Marine, heh. Now, don;t get me wrong, I’ve worked with some incredible Marines, but RTO is from the Signal Corps of the finest military force to walk the face of the Earth – THE UNITED STATES ARMY!
Of course, being Army myself (Infanty, then Ordnance, now CA…) I might have a wee bit o’ bias…
And as you can tell by my (lack of) typing skills, I was never a 71L or AG.
Sounds…
childish.
(Sorry, couldn’t help myself.
)
Wow, color me surprised: another Times-induced worldwide winger fainting spell. Jesus, you ladies need to try and buck up. Really, you do.
This was propaganda aimed at the face-saving cultures, not at us, you idiots. While there’s no small amount of glee to be taken from watching that little fat fuck struggle with a jammed weapon (and watching that other dude grab the smoking barrel is pure gold, no question), to believe that this one brief incident somehow demonstrates Z to be incompetent flies in the face of reason, and indeed, of the evidence right there before our eyes. Here’s a guy leading little more than a rabble against the greatest military in the world, moving around for three years with seeming impunity amongst 130,000 of our best guys, and he scarcely looks to be suffering damage or deprivation (with new sneakers, to boot). Do you guys–you who’ve observed six years of a certifiable moron running this country and regard him as somehow exceptional–do you really believe Z can’t handle a weapon?
And that’s all the Times’ article was trying to get across, with the ample contributions of military men who should know that this was nothing more than hype, and potentially counterproductive because of people like you. It appears that the Times knows quite well this one segment of its audience, the lurking aggrieved, who’ll fall for our own disinformation like schoolgirls. I’d like to think they’re trying to help you slack-jaws to stop embarrassing yourselves. But it’s always possible they consider you incorrigible, and are just laughing their asses off.
That just is makes sence to me. Unless its some basement-dwelling keybroad-whacking chicken hawk. Then I thing were just good to go. And devil take the hindmost.
TW: what?
Major John—You can trust a Marine with your flank but never your wallet…
Vercingetorix—the plan is to bring in enough Army to force the Marines to bend over to take off their boots so they can count that high, then jump em while they ain’t looking.
Remember the USMC marching cadence: “One! Two! Many! Lots!”
(11Bravo,leg and mech, for the record).
Adam—I did some time at Drum during my reserve obligation. What do you guys have against flat ground?
Bloggerhead: ”Do you guys—” … ”Jesus, you ladies need to try and buck up.” … ”…and potentially counterproductive because of people like you.” … “… they’re trying to help you slack-jaws to stop embarrassing yourselves.</i>”
Aw, come on. Show some courage and name names… who is it that has posted here that are you indicting? That would allow them to defend against your “accusations.”
LOL on the “1, 2, Many, lots” USMC cadence.
A Marine CH 46 came to get me when I was wounded the second time on 10 JAN 05 northwest of Ramadi. They also donated blood (but I bled it out as fast as I could to get rid of it and feel a little smarter).
The Zarqawi Video: poor, dumb public relations by the Army. Do I (as a career Army officer) know how to handle a PKC or PKM? Nope-sure don’t. How about an RPG? Nope. So HOW EXACTLY should “Zman” know how to use a SAW?
Where do you think he and his buddies got the SAW? How about the fully-tricked M4 in the background of HIS video? I’ll tell you- they got them off of our dead friends. Ramadi- April 2004, Marine sniper team killed. August, 2005, Marine sniper squad overrun and killed. Various IED strikes throughout the AO.
All you who laugh at the insurgency- keep laughing. They are doing a GREAT job of keeping the war going. Zarqawi is effective, whether or not you like him.
See, Bloggehead is TOTALY gets it.
What I love about his commnet is how he’s how all butched up he is, about it. Compared to you wingding pussies. (Sorry, any womyn reading who may or not be, but sometimes its just for rhetorical, to make a point. Sorry. No disrespect to the pudendum.) I was LMOA at “fainting spell.” LMOA! ,That’s just it, is’nt it, you lamo wing-dingalings are always fainting this, fainting that, jumping at every tweak and cricket like a two bit granny in a filmsy nightgown! ROFOLOORLFOLROFL! (that is so true). (scaredy cats)
I like how he puts it about okay sure, no small amount of glee, hot barrel, was, okay, a rib tickler. (Actuaulyy this is a little direspectful of Arab leader but, I can still see the humor—from a Western perspective, I’m down with it to a point, among friends, but in the big picture we should be more mindful). (cartoons).
Okay, But. Bottom line? Zarquali is the BIGGEST BADDESS MFO insuergent of all!! Dawg!
What you thing he couldn’t fire off however many round or whatever? He’s got SNEAKERS! !! ! He’s just TOYING with you!!! You lilylimp pansy-wastes are DREAMING! Your pissing yourselfs out of pure hot and cold running FEAR at the greatest counter-empiralist the wrold has ever SEENn, just to limpristed, flouncypants to admit it. He is run circles around your so-called “militray” He;s like freAKing ZORRO, man! He could carve a Z on Condi’s ass and you could NOT TOUCH HIM!!!!
This is all the NYT is try to say. To maybe make you wake up to the realty (realty-based). Or else there just making the fun of you. EItherway, its all good.
<blockquote>Your description of the NYT is amazingly close to one of the major descriptors of a psychopath.</blockquote>
I’m extremely reluctant to use technical jargon unless I’m one of the jargonistas, and that goes double for the “mental health professions”. Have you ever been to a psychiatrists’ conference? I have. Zarqawi would end up crying in his beer in a back corner of the bar, too boring for anybody to pay attention to, and Ahmedinijad would be moderating panels. These are people who take “it takes one to know one” to scary heights. My friend, who took me along, said that the debate over whether this effect is endogenous or exogenous only rarely—well, only in, say, two out of five cases—actually involves weapons.
That being said, it looks to me more like schizophrenia, the making of inappropriate connections and inability to sustain connections. Look: it’s only been a little over a week since a major outbreak, here, of lefties explaining patiently to us that Zarqawi is a nobody, that any fear or reaction to the guy is purely a manifestation of paranoia egged on by Bu$hitlerburton Propagandaâ„¢. Now we have a full chorus, with orchestration, telling us to ignore this embarrassing video, it’s nothing, Zarqawi is a really, really scary guy who’s going to eat our babies for breakfast if we don’t leave him and The Causeâ„¢ alone, and you have to give him slack—I mean, the guy’s an administrator, you can’t expect him to demean himself with grunt skills. And in most cases it’s the same people posting.
It’s something to behold, really. We haven’t seen this level of doctrinal flexibility since the glory days of The Daily Worker. We ought to be taking notes, we really should. There’d be a doctorate in Abnormal Psychology in it for somebody who could get past the gatekeepers.
Regards,
Ric
DMG,
And if you were going to make a propaganda film, you’d make sure you didn’t know anything about operating the weapon you were going to feature in it, yes?
If Z-man is such the unstoppable war-leader, why has he been “demoted” by the Council of Head Loppers, Kid Killers, and Remote Control Bombers?
I am glad the Marines made pickup on you and you made it, but I still don’t have to buy your analysis.
I may never be able to refer to him as anything but Zorrowi again.
Now if you will excuse me I have to go wipe the tears from my eyes.
Withheld is a goddamn Mobius-Strip of parody; us, himself, us, himself, us and himself again.
Heh.
Oh, he can name a time and place. I’ll be down the street, drinking at the bar and hitting on his woman…or, with my drinking prowess and past history, probably in a passive-aggressive relationship with a really-retarded telephone pole. Yeah, I’m thinking the telephone pole. And booze. He raped me, remember, but I still love him…
verc, i’ll need pics.
Posted by Major John | permalink
on 05/08 at 09:19 PM
Sir-
I understand (trust me) that his handling of the SAW was inept. SAWs suck unless you’re the owner/operator and spend days with them. Plus, that one had probably been through some IED strikes and other things not conducive to smoothly operating machinery. And, if I were to make a film, I would probably try to ensure that my handling of the weapon was clean. But so what?
The question is not what would Dan do (WWDD?) but what are we doing about this dickhead. He’s a major player in the insurgency, responsible for many, many American deaths. SOCOM and others are after him- specifically. We fail for three years to get him and now our response is TO MAKE FUN OF HIM? It’s lame.
Like it or not, he’s a major player in a 4th Generation War that we’re still fighting in a 3GW manner. Maybe this “making fun of him” tactic is a step in the right direction and an attempt to get the propaganda going our way, but I just don’t think so. I think some captain thought this up as a spare time project and it’s just garbage.
I seem to remember somewhere recely commenting on how the US is traditionally poor at Phase IV operations. These days Phase IV is characterized by SASO and Humanitarian OPS, but once up on at ime is twas even simpler than that, it was simply called Persuit. We weren’t ever good at that either.
Some of our greatest hist in this regard, especially when it comes down to finding one man; Pancho Villa, Raisuli, Mohammad Farrah Aidid…. In fact, that we actually laid hands on Hussein should be thought of as an absolute coup in this regard.
All that said, check out the feature story in this week’s Army Times to see just how close we are getting to Zarqawi.
Uh, no. He did it to himself. We didn’t produce the film. This wasn’t a surveillance tape.
One FAR is: Never pass up the chance to let an enemy make a fool of himself.
Besides, what possible harm can come of this? I see nothing but potential positive developments for us.
Sorry. Insurgency or Guerilla War amy be Asymmetic, but it’s not 4th Generation anything.
DMC,
I reckon you’re right to a certain extent, but there’s another aspect to it.
For most of us it was just a brief snarky moment. I happened to be on a business trip, with access to high-speed instead of my normal dialup, and watched the video. Chuckle. No more.
For us, here, the issue has long since gone past Zarqawi himself; we’re interested in the reactions to the video, and what they say about the people reacting. It’s the lefties keeping it alive, by insisting that no, by gum, this is damned unfair, this is a Great Man being demeaned by sneakypetes posting candid video. That is, at least, interesting.
My own opinion? More or less halfway between yours and what I infer is Major John’s—Z is a competent opponent, made more dangerous by the fact that he’s engaging in a way that hasn’t been thought of and planned for in the past. Nobody in 1941 had thought of countering blitzkrieg, either—but now we call it “combined arms assault” and use it, and plan to defend against it, as a matter of routine.
It’ll come. My favorite scene in The Caine Mutiny is where the experienced, cynical XO is explaining to the newbie that when things happen, the first thing to do is try what’s in The Book, the SOP, instead of the first silly damned thing that comes to mind, because The Book is largely a compendium of silly damned things that people have tried in the past that worked.
Whatever else the Army may be, it’s a bureaucracy, albeit one that tends to work better than most for a number of reasons. It takes a while for things to percolate through, in part because there are a lot of people putting in a lot of input, all of which has to be sorted, vetted, and tested before being written in The Book. Zarqawi may get a chapter of The Book all to himself. His successors will have a rather tougher time of it, because shavetails will have The Book to refer to instead of winging it. Perhaps we should thank the man. Perhaps B Moe and Vercingetorix can help us choose precisely the right thankyou gift.
Regards,
Ric
*Raises hand.*
They put my company through a familiariztion course one year. WP arms and some screwball stuff (including Sten guns and so help me an STG-44. Where the hell were they sending us, The War That Time Forgot?).
After a short day of training we could make the WP stuff all go bang, make them stop, and knew enough not to point them at our own troops.
Monkeyboy  can you imagine the yucks we’d be having now if we’d seen Zark-owie hopping around with a case of Garand thumb?
Lucky for us Zarkowie doesn’t realize how much trouble we’re in…
WWDD? – heh. I am with the others on this. A brief moment of levity at the backfiring of a propaganda attempt by the enemy. The huffy response by the NYT (and see Carl Goss comment above) has us bewildered and wondering why the defensive reaction in favor of Zark?
What was a short and fleeting thing has accidentally turned into a revelatory moment.
I want the guy caught or killed too (Hekmatyar Gulbuddin first, but Zark second…). But as Ric mentioned earlier, we need to have a little Leftie clarity on who the guy is; A modern day Tito/Zapata/Ho/Che, or a figment of the Haliburton-Zionist Neo-Con con$piracy. If they could just pick one and stick with it…
RTO Trainer-
Look, the Army Times is hardly a credible intelligence source. I don’t read that rag anyway- Side note- the guys who nearly caught him on Route Mobile outside Ramadi were my guys…after I left.
4GW, insurgency, call it what you will. The enemy’s decision cycle, information cycle, and mastery of media is WAY faster/better than ours. They receive support from the populace either by intimidation or ideology. They clearly understand that this is a political struggle. They are fighting an insurgency and we are still trying to “clear” the Euphrates river valley or Baghdad or Fallujah or wherever. 4GW vs 3GW.
Our first attempts to get inside his decision cycle and get him pissed off enough to do something stupid are clumsy at best.
Bottom line: he’s not a mastermind, nor a trained soldier. What he is: a superb enemy- capable, ruthless, and tough. I think finding and killing him is a more effective technique than mocking him, personally.
Last thing: you’re a NATIONAL GUARD COMMO GUY! Fix radios and stop trying to be Rommel (I looked at your blog…once).
Posted by Shecky “Vegas? I died everywhere now” Greene | permalink
on 05/08 at 11:14 PM
Give me a break- of course I know how to clear, load, and not point a WP weapon at my buddies. Reduce stoppage? Not so much.
Major John-
I thought the outtakes were funny too- but Major General so and so trying to mock Z over them was even funnier. It was just clumsy crap. I didn’t even read the NYT article- I suppose I should- but that liberal rag just pains me.
Off to bed.
DMG, two points, one major, one minor.
Minor point:
Familiarization with Warsaw Pact weapons used to be standard in the Army. I’ve handled an AK47 and RPG myself, and it’s safe to say that a good portion of my peers (in length of service anyway) are familiar (not expert) with those weapons.
I also know a fair number of military personnel in Iraq who can use the PKC and/or PKM because it was issued to their unit, or to a contract security team under their control. A lot of the support agencies get refurbished weapons from Iraqi stockpiles because it’s cheaper and faster. Gradually, those weapons are being replaced with standard US weapons.
So, yeah, some US military personnel do know how to handle them. This how it works away in some places. Make do with what you have, but use it right.
Major point:
If your point is that we must not lose respect for this man, that’s valid. He is dangerous, even if he is steadily losing influence within Iraq (reducing, but not eliminating his effectiveness).
On the other hand, one of Zarqawi’s tactics has been to build himself up as a great warrior, nearly invincible. THere’s some justification to this, he has managed to evade the Coalition all these year. No easy task that. And the subject video confirms that.
On the other hand, he’s only human. He makes mistakes, and this needs to be pointed out to the world, who holds him in some positive regard (witness the NYT article). Those mistakes need to be exploited to the fullest. He made two here.
The first one we’ve discussed to death—he made a bunch of stupid moves with a loaded weapon on camera, the sort of mistakes a clueless recruit makes.
The second is that he didn’t have those tapes destroyed, or even reshot. He wasn’t thinking ahead…..or his people weren’t, anyway.
This is a minor advantage, I know. But never turn down an advantage over your enemy, no matter how small (a variation of what RTO Trainer said). Sooner or later, that minor point could become a major problem for Zarqawi. And if stops the sonuvabitch for good, that’s all we need.
To rephrase the old saw, “If it’s lame and works, it ain’t lame.”
That’s my two bits, from someone who has not been where you’ve been. For what its worth.
God speed, soldier.
Oops! Sorry, minor edit:
“And the subject video confirms that.”
Should read
“And the subject video confirms that Zarqawi is building a mystique about himself.”
Good points all. Funny story: the unit before mine in Iraq captured an RPG that clearly said “Inert” on the side in several languages. So some wise guy- in the company CP- pointed it at the ground and pulled the trigger. The thing launches and goes flying all over the CP, filling it with smoke but not hurting anyone. And they all learned their lesson about the difference between “Inert” (no explosive warhead) and “Dummy” (no exp. or propellant).
Zarqawi sucks- I hope the video of his buffoonery gets some air time in the Arab world. I just wish he’d pick up his cell and let someone Special from Bragg come pick him up. Mocking him on video seems playground-ish to me.
G’night.
Excellent discussion.
Lotta jarheads, lotta ordinary Army grunts. Some noncoms (apparently) and maybe an officer or two.
You can tell who served and who didn’t.
The ones wrapping themselves up in the flag are usually the ones who didn’t.
My hats off to anyone who served.
I mean, actually carried a weapon on a march, lived in barracks, stood at attention and took a lotta crap from noncoms and short-time officers.
More so if the person in question actually saw combat.
Like Adams, Franklin and Jefferson.
Pauncey flagwrappers.
Didn’t serve: hat on
Served: hat tilted
Actually carried a weapon, etc. : hat off
Saw combat: hat in air a la Mary Tyler Moore
Got it.
I suspect that’s the larger point in putting it out. A little shame goes a long way among Arabs. We’re still looking for hearts and minds.
Witheld sez:
That, my friends, is genius.
That reminds me. It’s time to change the American Flag sheets. I may go with the China flannels or the Venezuala satins.
Carl,
You never answered my questions posted above.
And what the heck is a short time officer? You’d have to go waaayyyyy back if you are refererring to conscription era “90 day wonders”. Not sure what you mean by that. Maybe you are referring to any 2LT?
I was an enlisted guy for 2 years to start off, then made E-5 just in time to figure out that a commission was probably a good way to go. Being an officer doesn’t mean you don’t know anything about real soldiering, or haven’t done anything. Unless you are a ring knocker, that is….kidding! (I can’t help but jab at the West Pointers)
I walked plenty of miles in the Balkans – didn’t see any combat. Walked even more in the Hindu Kush – saw combat. I don’t wrap myself in the flag, as that would be a violation of the Flag Code – it’s supposed to be up on the flag pole, not serving as a shawl.
So, in brief, I am not sure who you were taking a tangential shot at. I don’t think it was me, but you never know.
Is that a shot at Evel Kenievel, MJ?
DMG,
That was uncalled for. What you forget is that “National Guard” means we have something going on, in addition to soldiering. You say that in a demeaning manner and really have it backwards.
I have had people with amazing backgrounds, educations and experiences in many of my units – I would really tread lightly before trying to use “Natinal Guard” as an epithet – you might find yourself engaged in an argument with someone you know nothing about, but comes to the table with some solid credentials, experience, education, etc. And they probably type much more successfully than I do …
Evel has been punsihed enough…snap, crackle, pop bones. Ouch.
You can always tell the ones who haven’t jumped 20 school buses at Ceasar’s. They don’t wrap themselves in the flag.
My hat’s off to anyone who’s put on the bell-bottomed spandex “Old Glory” jumpsuit.
I mean acutally got on the bike, rode it up the ramp, and took off over the buses.
More so if they wiped out and slid 40 yards into a fractured heap.