Tweet
The only Challenger taken out was when it was hit by another challenger
-
Space is big. You just won't believe how vastly, hugely, mind- bogglingly big it is. I mean, you may think it's a long way down the road to the chemist's, but that's just peanuts to space.
Douglas Adams (Influential author) -
i know. there are only a couple of more mishaps left in the whole arsenal of propaganda. challenger collides with abrams. apache collides with abrams (rambo III-style scene). challenger self detonates. or, as the jamie shea incredibly noted when an f-16 was downed over yugoslavia: 'its motor stopped working'. of course it stops working when it's hit by a rocket.Originally posted by The Mad Monk
Try telling that to Serb...
According to this article:
Three Abrams tanks were lost in Basra. One became stuck in a ditch and had to be abandoned when the bridge it was crossing collapsed; two others were struck in the rear armor and set ablaze. The crews escaped in all three cases.
all i am saying is that there is nothing wrong with losing a couple of vehicles, especially for such a noble cause like iraqi freedom.Comment
-
Interesting that the Army Times article that was linked provided a better picture of what happened out there then anything from the mainstream media.Golfing since 67Comment
-
It is easy to crap all over the western journalists in the Iraq and with the US military, but they are in a difficult situation.
First, they have a natural tendency to believe their own government, just as any other person would. Most Americans would believe their government while rejecting comments from the Iraqi government. Even if they want to be neutral, it is not an easy thing to accomplish.
Journalists are also confined in terms of the information they receive. The US military keeps them on a short leash. They could try going out on their own, but to do so means becoming a potential target for both sides.
Then there is the pressure from the editors back home. The reporters in the field are told which stories should be covered. No matter what story they file, it is up to the editor at home to decide what goes on air or in print.
If a reporter had talked to Iraqi people five days ago and then reported that they were planning to fight for their country, the editors back home would have squashed the story because they believe they know better.Golfing since 67Comment
-
Other than the news being weenies and reporting the first thing they hear, there's a couple of reasons - one, you may have (likely have) vehicles out of comms, so you don't know if they're killed, damaged, or just out of comms for some other reason. If you don't know a vehicle is lost, you just put it in the unaccounted for column until you figure out what happened.Originally posted by LaRusso
as for american news, here's the example. big battle reported at najaf. 150, 300, 500, who knows how many iraqis killed. biggest battle so far. no data on american casualties reported, but some vehicles may be damaged. too hard to count your own ranks, but enough time to count dead iraqis in a sandstorm. go figure...
Enemy casualties are estimates, of course, not hard counts, and the first thing you want to know is who and what you're up against, so everybody gives their assessment and estimate, and those numbers and info get tallied pretty quickly at battalion and higher.
Subsequent reports confirmed destruction of 2 Abrams, without crew casualties, and revised the estimate of Iraqi casualties down to between 150 and 200, which is still an estimate, of course. (and probably high)When all else fails, blame brown people. | Hire a teen, while they still know it all. | Trump-Palin 2016. "You're fired." "I quit."Comment
-
While I respect your opinion more than the vast majority of 'Poly posters, MtG... you seem to have a lot of answers, but yet, you aren't in Iraq. I think you may be correct, but I'm just curious, where does your knowledge come from?To us, it is the BEAST.Comment
-
A lot of it is prior experience with how things are done, and not done. A lot of it is knowing people who are involved, or were last time. Some of it is knowing the specific systems and technology. Then a little mix of trying to read in between the lines. Like where the hell are those units we haven't heard anything about, that have no reporters embedded with them?
When all else fails, blame brown people. | Hire a teen, while they still know it all. | Trump-Palin 2016. "You're fired." "I quit."Comment
-
Precisely. To hear from the Russians, the only action taking place is from units that have been "declared". As said earlier, the Russian press hasn't said anything about the huge amount of action outside the main armored advance. Suspect.I came upon a barroom full of bad Salon pictures in which men with hats on the backs of their heads were wolfing food from a counter. It was the institution of the "free lunch" I had struck. You paid for a drink and got as much as you wanted to eat. For something less than a rupee a day a man can feed himself sumptuously in San Francisco, even though he be a bankrupt. Remember this if ever you are stranded in these parts. ~ Rudyard Kipling, 1891Comment
-
Thanks MtG
Anyone care to comment on the possibility of the reports from embedded reporters being, how you say... under the control of the military? I have no opinion either way because I'm not privy to information. I was just throwing around this idea
To us, it is the BEAST.Comment
-
Yeh, here's a link to the Army Times article...
A fabulous article.I came upon a barroom full of bad Salon pictures in which men with hats on the backs of their heads were wolfing food from a counter. It was the institution of the "free lunch" I had struck. You paid for a drink and got as much as you wanted to eat. For something less than a rupee a day a man can feed himself sumptuously in San Francisco, even though he be a bankrupt. Remember this if ever you are stranded in these parts. ~ Rudyard Kipling, 1891Comment
-
"superior Iraqi forces"... that was a laugh.
The Russians, France and Germans... all scum. We'll see in the end who should be kicked out of the UN. France - I expected more from those people. Saying we're allied with France is a slap in the face for Britain.
I really don't understand why the US cant conduct a war just like Russia or China would. If you're going to bomb a city, bomb it - the whole damn thing! There would be no capital to HAVE to take.
Who ever said the US needs to set any examples???Comment
-
...and in other news, there was some excitement last night when a Bradley Fighting Vehicle spontaneously combusted...Originally posted by LaRusso
i know. there are only a couple of more mishaps left in the whole arsenal of propaganda. challenger collides with abrams. apache collides with abrams (rambo III-style scene). challenger self detonates. or, as the jamie shea incredibly noted when an f-16 was downed over yugoslavia: 'its motor stopped working'. of course it stops working when it's hit by a rocket.
all i am saying is that there is nothing wrong with losing a couple of vehicles, especially for such a noble cause like iraqi freedom.No, I did not steal that from somebody on Something Awful.Comment
-
Last night news 11:00 pm Pacific said two M-1 were lost due to a wire guided anti tank missiles.Comment
-
Originally posted by MichaeltheGreat
A lot of it is prior experience with how things are done, and not done. A lot of it is knowing people who are involved, or were last time. Some of it is knowing the specific systems and technology. Then a little mix of trying to read in between the lines. Like where the hell are those units we haven't heard anything about, that have no reporters embedded with them?
is the article i posted on the previos page such a BS that it does not deserve any comment? i was really hoping for some comment of yours....
Comment
-
Everything in time. I had other stuff to do in the last couple of days. I'll try to get to it in the next day or so.Originally posted by LaRusso
is the article i posted on the previos page such a BS that it does not deserve any comment? i was really hoping for some comment of yours....
When all else fails, blame brown people. | Hire a teen, while they still know it all. | Trump-Palin 2016. "You're fired." "I quit."Comment
Comment