Months have passed since the media first broke out with stories about the Abu Ghraib prison abuse scandal. One of the soldiers charged in connection with the scandal, was PFC Lynndie England, a small-town tomboy from West Virginia. For weeks, the media continued to whore the pictures of a cigarette-smoking Lynndie, clad in desert BDU's, pointing and laughing at a naked detainee, and in one case, alledgedly dragging a nude prisoner around with a leashe.
When I first heard about this, I was angry! I felt like the entire world was looking at every American soldier with disgust. I was embarrassed and ashamed because of Lynndie and her comrades.
A few weeks after the scandal erupted, I was surfing the net and ended up staring at a page about Lynndie. It was a simple, sloppy little page with a couple of pictures of the pre-scandal Lynndie, and a bit of text. Something caught my eye-- I noticed a note at the bottom of the page that noted the site was set up by Lynndie's friends and family. They were declaring her innocence. At first, I scoffed. How could she be innocent with the proof of her brutal acts all over the media? How ignorant do these people think we are? I mentioned this over the telephone to my mom.
Mom took a breathe and said, "Well, there are still people out there who love her. I wouldn't give up on you if you were in this situation. It's that one family against an entire world... I want you to just think about it while I stir my beans."
So I tried to put myself in Lynndie's shoes. That's when I realized that she and I have a lot in common. We're both small-town, Kentucky tomboys who joined the military to pay for college (indeed, Lynndie was born in the great state of Kentucky). We were both Military Police officers in a unit full of men, and I think it's safe to assume that Lynndie and I, along with most females in the male-dominate military, know that that fact alone can make you a follower. You do what you can to be "one of the boys" and to fit in even though you have tits and a vagina.
Tonight I sit here with the latest issue of People magazine turned to a one-page article on Lynndie. There is a picture with her sitting in a white, plastic chair with SPC Charles Graner cuddling her from behind-- both with a smile on their faces, and in black, bold letters, the name of the article reads, Prison Scandal Soldier Lynndie England Gives Birth To Son.
The article says that it's been over two months since Lynndie has spoken to SPC Graner, who is the father of her newborn, the man she planned to marry once they returned home from Iraq. Graner is still in Iraq, awaiting his own fate in the scandal, while she faces her upcoming court-martial and possible prison time.
At twenty-one years old, Lynndie England is looking at a maximum 38 years in prison for laughing a man's cock with a lit Marlboro dangling from her lips. I've seen more animosity on a playground, for crying out loud!
And it scares me, ya know. Because I know, and I'll admit, that if I were Lynndie England, I would have done the same thing because I was a follower and I'm not above doing something stupid to fit in. Those kids were told that they were fighting a war against a heinous and vicious terrorist enemy. And although I think what they did was wrong, wrong, wrong, I can't help but feel as though these soldiers felt like they might have been doing the right thing.
I can't remember a time that our unit wasn't under the watchful eyes of our superiors, so I'm wondering where Lynndie's officers were during this astrocity. And why don't we know their names? And why aren't they being scrutinized by the whole world? Because Lynndie England is the scapegoat in this scandal. And if she were here right now, I would tell her I'm sorry our military and our government let her down.
♥-
V
Interesting comparison excerpt between Jessica Lynch and Lynndie:
Which begs the question: Shouldn't the American media whores who devoted so much time to the deification of Jessica Lynch, now be required to interview at length the female flip side of our little imperial war? If Jessica Lynch was the pure alabaster Joan of Arc, the perfect Barbie doll, homecoming queen from smalltown America, Lynndie England represents her exact opposite, a cigarette-dangling, wise-cracking dame in desert-camo dungarees, and the Pentagon's worst nightmare. Lynndie England--the name itself has a perfect Hollywood ring to it--is the villainess in this public relations nightmare, an otherworldly species that appeared beautiful at first glance but became, as time passed, like the alien progeny of Donald Rumsfeld--a creature so scary and dangerous she almost resembles his own daughter!
SOURCE OF EXCERPT
When I first heard about this, I was angry! I felt like the entire world was looking at every American soldier with disgust. I was embarrassed and ashamed because of Lynndie and her comrades.
A few weeks after the scandal erupted, I was surfing the net and ended up staring at a page about Lynndie. It was a simple, sloppy little page with a couple of pictures of the pre-scandal Lynndie, and a bit of text. Something caught my eye-- I noticed a note at the bottom of the page that noted the site was set up by Lynndie's friends and family. They were declaring her innocence. At first, I scoffed. How could she be innocent with the proof of her brutal acts all over the media? How ignorant do these people think we are? I mentioned this over the telephone to my mom.
Mom took a breathe and said, "Well, there are still people out there who love her. I wouldn't give up on you if you were in this situation. It's that one family against an entire world... I want you to just think about it while I stir my beans."
So I tried to put myself in Lynndie's shoes. That's when I realized that she and I have a lot in common. We're both small-town, Kentucky tomboys who joined the military to pay for college (indeed, Lynndie was born in the great state of Kentucky). We were both Military Police officers in a unit full of men, and I think it's safe to assume that Lynndie and I, along with most females in the male-dominate military, know that that fact alone can make you a follower. You do what you can to be "one of the boys" and to fit in even though you have tits and a vagina.
Tonight I sit here with the latest issue of People magazine turned to a one-page article on Lynndie. There is a picture with her sitting in a white, plastic chair with SPC Charles Graner cuddling her from behind-- both with a smile on their faces, and in black, bold letters, the name of the article reads, Prison Scandal Soldier Lynndie England Gives Birth To Son.
The article says that it's been over two months since Lynndie has spoken to SPC Graner, who is the father of her newborn, the man she planned to marry once they returned home from Iraq. Graner is still in Iraq, awaiting his own fate in the scandal, while she faces her upcoming court-martial and possible prison time.
At twenty-one years old, Lynndie England is looking at a maximum 38 years in prison for laughing a man's cock with a lit Marlboro dangling from her lips. I've seen more animosity on a playground, for crying out loud!
And it scares me, ya know. Because I know, and I'll admit, that if I were Lynndie England, I would have done the same thing because I was a follower and I'm not above doing something stupid to fit in. Those kids were told that they were fighting a war against a heinous and vicious terrorist enemy. And although I think what they did was wrong, wrong, wrong, I can't help but feel as though these soldiers felt like they might have been doing the right thing.
I can't remember a time that our unit wasn't under the watchful eyes of our superiors, so I'm wondering where Lynndie's officers were during this astrocity. And why don't we know their names? And why aren't they being scrutinized by the whole world? Because Lynndie England is the scapegoat in this scandal. And if she were here right now, I would tell her I'm sorry our military and our government let her down.
♥-
V
Interesting comparison excerpt between Jessica Lynch and Lynndie:
Which begs the question: Shouldn't the American media whores who devoted so much time to the deification of Jessica Lynch, now be required to interview at length the female flip side of our little imperial war? If Jessica Lynch was the pure alabaster Joan of Arc, the perfect Barbie doll, homecoming queen from smalltown America, Lynndie England represents her exact opposite, a cigarette-dangling, wise-cracking dame in desert-camo dungarees, and the Pentagon's worst nightmare. Lynndie England--the name itself has a perfect Hollywood ring to it--is the villainess in this public relations nightmare, an otherworldly species that appeared beautiful at first glance but became, as time passed, like the alien progeny of Donald Rumsfeld--a creature so scary and dangerous she almost resembles his own daughter!
SOURCE OF EXCERPT
Like everyone thinks, "Well, if I'd lived in Germany in 1933, I would have told everyone not to vote for Hitler." Sure you would.