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Really Stupid Headlines: "Staff Sgt. Robert Bales carried a lot of firepower in Afghan shooting spree"
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Media Blunders
Mar 24, 2012, 12:26:56 AM3/24/12
to
No shit, Sherlock. He's in a fucking war zone. What's he
supposed to have? A slingshot?
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/sgt-robert-bales-a-
pistol-a-rifle-grenade-launcher-combination-shooting-spree-
article-1.1050106
Army Staff Sgt. Robert Bales was armed to the teeth when he
strolled off a base near Kandahar this month to slaughter 17
Afghans — men, women and children — the military charged Friday.
Bales walked off the American base dressed in full combat gear
and packing a 9-mm. pistol and an M-4 rifle outfitted with a
grenade launcher.
The Army-issued Beretta pistol carries a 15-bullet magazine,
while the gas-operated M-4 — a compact version of the better-
known M-16 — fires a 5.56-mm. round at a rate of 700 bullets per
minute.
For unleashing hell, Bales has been charged with 17 counts of
premeditated murder, officials said. Nine of the victims were
children.
Bales, who was slapped with 29 total charges, faces the death
penalty if he is convicted of murder.
The last U.S. soldier executed by the military was Army Pvt.
John Bennett, who was hanged in April 1961 for raping and
attempting to drown an 11-year-old Austrian girl.
The March 11 massacre in the Panjawi District — the birthplace
of the Taliban — has imperiled the American mission in
Afghanistan, the Pentagon said.
“We are under some very trying circumstances,” Marine Corps Gen.
John Allen, commander of U.S. forces in Afghanistan, told
Bloomberg News.
The Afghans “understand these kinds of things happen and are not
happy about it,” Allen said.
In announcing the charges, Pentagon spokesman Navy Capt. John
Kirby shed no new light on what caused Bales to snap.
But he confirmed that the 38-year-old father of two was also
charged with an additional six counts of attempted murder and
six counts of assault.
During the killing spree, Bales also allegedly wounded a man, a
woman, and four children. The dead bodies were found in the
villages of Balandi and Alkozai.
Bales, 38, of Lake Tapps, Wash., is imprisoned in Fort
Leavenworth, Kan., where six other servicemen are sitting on
Death Row.
None of them were convicted of atrocities against foreign
civilians.
Lethal injection is now the official method of execution, but it
has yet to be used.
Bales’ lawyer, John Browne, said the military will have a hard
time making those charges stick.
He said Bales suffered a brain injury earlier, while serving in
Iraq, and has only a hazy recollection of the March 11 massacre.
Military investigators said Bales was drinking on his base
before the murders.
And The Los Angeles Times has reported that Bales admitted to
his superiors that he killed several military aged men, but made
no mention of the murdered women and children.
Since his incarceration, Bales’ prior arrests in the U.S. for
assault and other charges have come under the microscope.
It was also revealed that Bales had a $1.3 million securities
fraud judgment hanging over his head for bilking an Ohio couple
out of their nest egg in 2000, when he was working as a
stockbroker.
With News Wire Services
csiem...@nydailynews.com
voi...@edit.nydailynews.com
kg...@nydailynews.com
smcla...@nydailynews.com
CIRCH...@nydailynews.com
supposed to have? A slingshot?
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/sgt-robert-bales-a-
pistol-a-rifle-grenade-launcher-combination-shooting-spree-
article-1.1050106
Army Staff Sgt. Robert Bales was armed to the teeth when he
strolled off a base near Kandahar this month to slaughter 17
Afghans — men, women and children — the military charged Friday.
Bales walked off the American base dressed in full combat gear
and packing a 9-mm. pistol and an M-4 rifle outfitted with a
grenade launcher.
The Army-issued Beretta pistol carries a 15-bullet magazine,
while the gas-operated M-4 — a compact version of the better-
known M-16 — fires a 5.56-mm. round at a rate of 700 bullets per
minute.
For unleashing hell, Bales has been charged with 17 counts of
premeditated murder, officials said. Nine of the victims were
children.
Bales, who was slapped with 29 total charges, faces the death
penalty if he is convicted of murder.
The last U.S. soldier executed by the military was Army Pvt.
John Bennett, who was hanged in April 1961 for raping and
attempting to drown an 11-year-old Austrian girl.
The March 11 massacre in the Panjawi District — the birthplace
of the Taliban — has imperiled the American mission in
Afghanistan, the Pentagon said.
“We are under some very trying circumstances,” Marine Corps Gen.
John Allen, commander of U.S. forces in Afghanistan, told
Bloomberg News.
The Afghans “understand these kinds of things happen and are not
happy about it,” Allen said.
In announcing the charges, Pentagon spokesman Navy Capt. John
Kirby shed no new light on what caused Bales to snap.
But he confirmed that the 38-year-old father of two was also
charged with an additional six counts of attempted murder and
six counts of assault.
During the killing spree, Bales also allegedly wounded a man, a
woman, and four children. The dead bodies were found in the
villages of Balandi and Alkozai.
Bales, 38, of Lake Tapps, Wash., is imprisoned in Fort
Leavenworth, Kan., where six other servicemen are sitting on
Death Row.
None of them were convicted of atrocities against foreign
civilians.
Lethal injection is now the official method of execution, but it
has yet to be used.
Bales’ lawyer, John Browne, said the military will have a hard
time making those charges stick.
He said Bales suffered a brain injury earlier, while serving in
Iraq, and has only a hazy recollection of the March 11 massacre.
Military investigators said Bales was drinking on his base
before the murders.
And The Los Angeles Times has reported that Bales admitted to
his superiors that he killed several military aged men, but made
no mention of the murdered women and children.
Since his incarceration, Bales’ prior arrests in the U.S. for
assault and other charges have come under the microscope.
It was also revealed that Bales had a $1.3 million securities
fraud judgment hanging over his head for bilking an Ohio couple
out of their nest egg in 2000, when he was working as a
stockbroker.
With News Wire Services
csiem...@nydailynews.com
voi...@edit.nydailynews.com
kg...@nydailynews.com
smcla...@nydailynews.com
CIRCH...@nydailynews.com
Obwon
Mar 24, 2012, 8:07:06 AM3/24/12
to
On 24 Mar 2012 04:26:56 -0000, "Media Blunders"
at that time, nor was he assigned to any combat mission at
that time either. So then, why all the weaponry?
<idj...@nydailynews.com> wrote:
>No shit, Sherlock. He's in a fucking war zone. What's he
>supposed to have? A slingshot?
Be that as it may, he was not assigned any patol duties
>No shit, Sherlock. He's in a fucking war zone. What's he
>supposed to have? A slingshot?
at that time, nor was he assigned to any combat mission at
that time either. So then, why all the weaponry?
David Hartung
Mar 24, 2012, 8:28:22 AM3/24/12
to
On 03/24/2012 07:07 AM, Obwon wrote:
> On 24 Mar 2012 04:26:56 -0000, "Media Blunders"
> <idj...@nydailynews.com> wrote:
>
>> No shit, Sherlock. He's in a fucking war zone. What's he
>> supposed to have? A slingshot?
>
> Be that as it may, he was not assigned any patol duties
> at that time, nor was he assigned to any combat mission at
> that time either. So then, why all the weaponry?
Ever served in the military?
> On 24 Mar 2012 04:26:56 -0000, "Media Blunders"
> <idj...@nydailynews.com> wrote:
>
>> No shit, Sherlock. He's in a fucking war zone. What's he
>> supposed to have? A slingshot?
>
> Be that as it may, he was not assigned any patol duties
> at that time, nor was he assigned to any combat mission at
> that time either. So then, why all the weaponry?
Ever been in a combat zone?
Ever been in a combat zone in which the enemy could be right outside the
gate of your base?
If not, then perhaps you should reconsider your question.
Gunner Asch
Mar 24, 2012, 3:19:44 PM3/24/12
to
On Sat, 24 Mar 2012 08:07:06 -0400, Obwon <Ob...@real.com> wrote:
>On 24 Mar 2012 04:26:56 -0000, "Media Blunders"
><idj...@nydailynews.com> wrote:
>
>>No shit, Sherlock. He's in a fucking war zone. What's he
>>supposed to have? A slingshot?
>
>Be that as it may, he was not assigned any patol duties
>at that time, nor was he assigned to any combat mission at
>that time either. So then, why all the weaponry?
Because when you are in country..your weapon is never far from your
>On 24 Mar 2012 04:26:56 -0000, "Media Blunders"
><idj...@nydailynews.com> wrote:
>
>>No shit, Sherlock. He's in a fucking war zone. What's he
>>supposed to have? A slingshot?
>
>Be that as it may, he was not assigned any patol duties
>at that time, nor was he assigned to any combat mission at
>that time either. So then, why all the weaponry?
reach?
Or do you think they should lock them up in an arsenal someplace and
only be issued them when they go on patrol?
The tangos would love that. Makes all those troops into sitting ducks
and the arsenals treasure troves to either attack and steal, or to
simply blow up. Then all those troops are dead meat.
You are what...17-20? Never been around weapons and never had a thought
in your life you could call original?
Gunner
"The danger to America is not Barack Obama but a citizenry
capable of entrusting a man like him with the Presidency.
It will be far easier to limit and undo the follies of an
Obama presidency than to restore the necessary common sense
and good judgment to a depraved electorate willing to have
such a man for their? president.. Blaming the prince of the
fools should not blind anyone to the vast confederacy of
fools that made him their prince".
Message has been deleted
Obwon
Mar 25, 2012, 7:02:47 AM3/25/12
to
information and asking these questions, knows what they're
talking about. Why do you assume that they don't?
David Hartung
Mar 25, 2012, 7:09:32 AM3/25/12
to
zone, should not be armed unless he is actively engaged in a mission.
Given the situation as it is reported in the media, for our militatry to
be unarmed unless actually on a mission would be foolish, hence my comment.
Gunner Asch
Mar 25, 2012, 9:06:07 AM3/25/12
to
One then can safely assume you have been blowing smoke out of your ass
on this subject. Correct?
Gunner
Obwon
Mar 26, 2012, 12:20:54 PM3/26/12
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On Sun, 25 Mar 2012 06:09:32 -0500, David Hartung
I didn't get the impression that they were saying he was
unarmed, but that he was more heavily armed than is
usual/reasonable for the position and duties of his post.
unarmed, but that he was more heavily armed than is
usual/reasonable for the position and duties of his post.
Obwon
Mar 26, 2012, 12:24:19 PM3/26/12
to
as well as those around him, the military is noting that he
was unaccustomedly more heavily armed than he should have
been for a person with his assignment. You, obviously,
need to read the story, rather than debate my report of it.
Gunner Asch
Mar 26, 2012, 2:40:53 PM3/26/12
to
Obwon
Mar 27, 2012, 6:34:01 AM3/27/12
to
On Mon, 26 Mar 2012 11:40:53 -0700, Gunner Asch
Note specifically the phrase "the military charged" :
"Army Staff Sgt. Robert Bales was armed to the teeth when he
strolled off a base near Kandahar this month to slaughter 17
Afghans — men, women and children — the military charged
Friday."
Here ya go:
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/sgt-robert-bales-a-pistol-a-rifle-grenade-launcher-combination-shooting-spree-article-1.1050106
Like I said, I expect that the military knows what they're
talking about, if they say that Bales was unusually heavily
armed.
"Army Staff Sgt. Robert Bales was armed to the teeth when he
strolled off a base near Kandahar this month to slaughter 17
Afghans — men, women and children — the military charged
Friday."
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/sgt-robert-bales-a-pistol-a-rifle-grenade-launcher-combination-shooting-spree-article-1.1050106
Like I said, I expect that the military knows what they're
talking about, if they say that Bales was unusually heavily
armed.
Gunner Asch
Mar 27, 2012, 3:00:53 PM3/27/12
to
1. All service pistols have 15 rd capabilities (except for the old .45)
All squads in combat units are so equipped.
M4s wth the M203 grenade launcher are moderately rare in Afghanistan.
Typically it will be an M16A4WS so equipped.
Feel free to google images
http://gdb.rferl.org/30402FA5-C90B-4E6E-88EE-28636DD6A835_mw800_mh600.jpg
etc etc etc
Obwon
Mar 28, 2012, 7:40:53 AM3/28/12
to
On Tue, 27 Mar 2012 12:00:53 -0700, Gunner Asch
I don't doubt that the writer may have written something
suspect. They are after all "embeded" and we've all come to
know what that means. In any event, I merely fowarded the
article for further discussion, I'm not well versed enough
with weaponry to evaluate those offers so I don't see a
reason to try yet, at least in this case. That is, unless
someone here wants to take up the Afghani claims that there
was more than one shooter. For the political impact of the
matter, one shooter or two is hardly much of a matter since
the act itself creates major political damage.
While a second shooter if proven, would ratchet things up a
notch or two, it would hardly be any more significant than
the political damage already done. There we are trying to
tamp down the resistance and boom, things blew up in our
faces again. We've got yet another wave of animus to deal
with, on top of everything else.
suspect. They are after all "embeded" and we've all come to
know what that means. In any event, I merely fowarded the
article for further discussion, I'm not well versed enough
with weaponry to evaluate those offers so I don't see a
reason to try yet, at least in this case. That is, unless
someone here wants to take up the Afghani claims that there
was more than one shooter. For the political impact of the
matter, one shooter or two is hardly much of a matter since
the act itself creates major political damage.
While a second shooter if proven, would ratchet things up a
notch or two, it would hardly be any more significant than
the political damage already done. There we are trying to
tamp down the resistance and boom, things blew up in our
faces again. We've got yet another wave of animus to deal
with, on top of everything else.
Gunner Asch
Mar 31, 2012, 4:56:39 AM3/31/12
to
On Wed, 28 Mar 2012 07:40:53 -0400, Obwon <Ob...@real.com> wrote:
>There we are trying to
>tamp down the resistance and boom, things blew up in our
>faces again. We've got yet another wave of animus to deal
>with, on top of everything else.
How were we trying to tamp down the resistance?
>There we are trying to
>tamp down the resistance and boom, things blew up in our
>faces again. We've got yet another wave of animus to deal
>with, on top of everything else.
By killing them, no?
Do think a bit harder before writing things so abjectly buffoonish.
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