[TicToc]

Gentlemen, allow me to apologize for inciting this issue to begin with. It was not my intent. So that I may explain. I have been in the military for 13 years. I have deployed 3 times in the last 4 years, two of those have been to OEF. I control air strikes from forward locations (forward usually being in that muddy/dusty/hot/cold/wet hole right next to my Infantry brothers.) I am not special, I am not unique, I am however tired of what I see as bashing. The post that I made originally in this thread was my first. I have however been reading the site for weeks and it is no less than the third such thread. Please do not misunderstand my intent. everyone has the right to say and do as they please and I had/have no intention of fighting that. I do however feel that it is my place and my right to correct inaccuracies, especially where they will or may lead to a misunderstanding of the situation as a whole, or if it is purposefully inflammatory. If the intent was to bring up war crimes in the T2K world, or what psychological stress can push men to do than I would understand that and take no issue with it. That however is not how I perceived the threads intent. Regardless, in my typical tactless way I attempted to make a correction that would have been better left alone and if not left alone handled in a more polite fashion.

As for my feelings on the situation. I haven't followed it closely so I am not sure of the exact details, or if the exact details are even clear yet. What I can say is that events like this should not happen, but the reality is that they will happen. Without citing the specific background of the Soldier in question, you cannot expect men to deploy, come home train, deploy, come home only to go back into what they know is going to be pre-deployment training, to see they comrades and brothers killed by weapons that he cannot defend against or engage an enemy that he cannot see. When he does see his enemy that enemy is dressed as a civilian, is surrounded be non combatants, and will use those innocent people to his advantage by putting them in harms way to save his own life. He is fighting an enemy without that is without honor, that murders and maims his own people in reprisal and for political gain. Please do not misunderstand, this is not a sob story or a pity part for servicemen. Nor is it an excuse for an atrocity. That being said war is a terrible thing and it does terrible things to people (especially when they are not cared for properly). So long as human engage in the art or armed conflict men will commit crimes and atrocities while engaged in that conflict. Not an excusal, a matter of understanding the human condition under those circumstances.