[maverickdoc]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', '[')size=150] The Unfortunate Incident Protocol [/size]
How the powerful dodge their own bullets by Dr. Teresa Whitehurst

"A little girl running in fear from armed men is killed in cold blood. … The authorities are trying their best to come up with a reason why this schoolgirl was shot so many times after she was dead – because that's the unusual part. But in no way will the Israeli government, nor the U.S. government, decry the fact that Palestinian civilians like her are being shot on such a regular basis. Instead, they will decry Palestinian terrorism again (unnecessary because we despise terrorism already, but it's a good tactic for diverting our attention) and remind us that soldiers have a right to protect themselves.

"If that doesn't do the trick, they'll bring out the ultimate weapon: 'There are always a few bad apples, and they will be punished.'" - "Palestinian Girl, Interrupted"

While so many journalists have been killed by the U.S. military that some have wondered aloud (and lived to regret it) if media personnel might actually be targeted to dissuade independent reporting on Mr. Bush's wars, it's nonetheless unusual for a just-freed journalist, held hostage for a month, to be shot, along with her rescuer, by U.S. troops.

Pro-Bush/pro-war Americans are quick to defend "our troops," even when families are slaughtered and children are orphaned at brutal checkpoints. But the Italians, a people more in possession of their faculties than the radical "conservatives" dominating this morally challenged nation of ours, are less sanguine, perhaps because they're not in the habit of defending cold-blooded murder.

In yet another tragic blunder, revealing to any sentient human being what the U.S. military machine has come to represent for people across the world, "our troops" – no doubt following immoral but quite legal rules of engagement – shot first and asked questions later. Left dead was brave secret service agent Nicola Calipari, who had rescued journalist Giuliana Sgrena. Reuters reports:

"The shooting in Iraq on Friday, as the reporter was being whisked to freedom after being held hostage for a month, was sure to fuel antiwar activists in Italy and put pressure on Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi."

Pressure on Berlusconi? No way! He's a pal of GWB, so not to worry. As I've noted before, the Bush administration, like the Blair establishment and the Israeli government, has turned the "bad apples" excuse for rotten deeds into an art form. To save everyone the time and trouble (not to mention the emotional ups and downs) of following this saga from its tragic beginning to its predictable end, allow me to fast-forward the events of the coming days, weeks, and months.

Damage Control: UIP to the Rescue
Here's what I've determined, from observing the same scenario numerous times, to be an "Unfortunate Incident Protocol" (UIP) , used by both the U.S. and Israeli governments whenever news of our own evildoing gets out:

1. A tragedy occurs: "Our troops" have killed more innocent people, only this time the victims aren't Arabs/Muslims (in neocon-speak, the "evildoers"), thus the potential for public uproar and backlash exists.
2. Code Blue! Any signs of uproar or backlash must be attacked preemptively. Immediate public appearances are required by Mr. Bush and the leader of the victim's home country: Talk extensively about the event, how you're praying for the families, and so on.
1. Stress your "regret" for this "unfortunate incident."
2. Immediately announce "an independent investigation."
3. If the natives are getting restless, make statements or decisions to illustrate that this time you're really taking the incident seriously.
4. Displays of outrage or of "demanding explanations" from the offending nation may be necessary if protests are developing; this is the only situation wherein a coalition partner is not required to present a united front with the Bush administration.
5. Announce again "the investigation," but add that this time the investigation will be really thorough, leaving no stone unturned, and will not end up whitewashing guilt at all higher levels of authority.
6. Emphasize that both leaders are in full agreement now, that you're both torn up about it, and that neither is catering to the wishes of the other.
3. ASAP, tell your State-influenced newspapers to allot only one or two days to the outrageous nature of the incident. ....<snip>

[stu]

Excellent.

Nice one Maverick.

[Geology_Guy]

So do you blame Bush for the shooting of the Italian journalist or the troops involved or both?

Should the troops involved be tried for murder or were they just following orders from Bush? If Bush is responsible meaning he gave orders to US troops to assasinate the reporter as she claims then maybe we should impeach the president?

Or maybe the troops just had orders to shoot at all cars? Or maybe the troops were put in an impossible situation and felt they had to shoot at all cars?

How did the troops know which car she was in if they did not have orders from above?

[Liamj]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Geology_Guy', 'S')o do you blame Bush for the shooting of the Italian journalist or the troops involved or both? ...
How did the troops know which car she was in if they did not have orders from above?

[Geology_Guy]

I was asking those questions because they are ALL over the news today and since the incident is posted on this website I want opinions from readers of this website. I now have them-thanks.

You want my opinion? The troops did not target the Italian reporter and there is no cover up. The troops were probably doing their job and the Italians just failed to stop at the checkpoint.

Bad things happen in all wars, but that does not make the wars unjust. Remember Clinton bombing the Chinese Embassy in Belgrade-we did save some Kosovors in that case (Clinton did forget to get UN approval for that war).

[maverickdoc]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Geology_Guy', 'I') was asking those questions because they are ALL over the news today and since the incident is posted on this website I want opinions from readers of this website. I now have them-thanks.

You want my opinion? The troops did not target the Italian reporter and there is no cover up. The troops were probably doing their job and the Italians just failed to stop at the checkpoint.

[Geology_Guy]

Cool Maverick. I agree to disagree. Governments of all stripes are fishy things.

[bart]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Geology_Guy', 'Y')ou want my opinion? The troops did not target the Italian reporter and there is no cover up. The troops were probably doing their job and the Italians just failed to stop at the checkpoint.

[maverickdoc]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('bart', '[')list]There was no torture in Abu Ghraib.
Saddam had WMDs.
Bush's proposals will fix the social security problem.
No one in the White House leaked the information that Valerie Plume was a CIA agent.
The recent purge of the CIA had nothing to do with politics.
WAR IS PEACE
FREEDOM IS SLAVERY
IGNORANCE IS STRENGTH

[Jack]

Well, this is all very nice...but...

First of all, if I were on that dangerous road and a car approached after curfew...and didn't stop...the barrel on my machinegun would glow cherry red in short order. Which is hard with the standard issue 100 round belts...fortunately, you can link about 30 of them together.

As to the other points, if one is going to fight a war, one uses all available means. That includes managing information, as well as the more physical aspects.

Please understand that my chief disagreement with the Iraq war is that the U.S. has been entirely too fastidious. If one wishes to win, one neutralizes their opponents.

[bart]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'A')t least geo guy bothers to read, which is better than 99.99% of Americans. So I greatly respect his opinion

[maverickdoc]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('bart', '')$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'A')t least geo guy bothers to read, which is better than 99.99% of Americans. So I greatly respect his opinion

[Geology_Guy]

Bart,

Thanks for the nice words. I will accept faint praise . I am a conservative, but I try to listen to all sides. I try to never take any position at face value. I will listen to everyones point of view.

I do try to provoke discussion . Too many people lives their lives with out thinking.

[maverickdoc]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Jack', 'W')ell, this is all very nice...but...

First of all, if I were on that dangerous road and a car approached after curfew...and didn't stop...the barrel on my machinegun would glow cherry red in short order. Which is hard with the standard issue 100 round belts...fortunately, you can link about 30 of them together.

[Jack]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('maverickdoc', '
')Sure why stop with chemical weapons, use nukes. I heard that neutralizes, pretty well.

[TrueKaiser]

i don't think it takes that must effort to prove the united states guilt. she was already(before being captured by the resistance in iraq) poking around areas the army and the united states government did not want her to. so she probably saw something they didn't want her to see. and they didn't want that info out.

[maverickdoc]

Sorry Jack I am in a very combative mode right now . Watching too much fox news. How can you conservatives tolerate that nonsense?

According to the journalist they were not speeding, they did not ignore warnings (because there was none). It certainly will not be the first time the US forces killed a journalist in Iraq.

What exactly do you find too fastidious about how Iraq is being handled?

[Liamj]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Geology_Guy', '
')You want my opinion? The troops did not target the Italian reporter and there is no cover up. The troops were probably doing their job and the Italians just failed to stop at the checkpoint.

[TrueKaiser]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'A')nd they call the 911 hijackers gutless!

[Jack]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('maverickdoc', 'S')orry Jack I am in a very combative mode right now . Watching too much fox news. How can you conservatives tolerate that nonsense?