`Scrounging' for Iraq war puts GIs in jail

[NNN0LHI]

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/chitribts/20041212/ts_chicagotrib/scroungingforiraqwarputsgisinjail&cid=2027&ncid=1478

Six reservists, including two veteran officers who had received Bronze Stars, were court-martialed for what soldiers have been doing as long as there have been wars--scrounging to get what their outfit needed to do its job in Iraq.

Darrell Birt, one of those court-martialed for theft, destruction of Army property and conspiracy to cover up the crimes, had been decorated for his "initiative and courage" for leading his unit's delivery of fuel over the perilous roads of Iraq in the war's first months.


Now, Birt, 45, who was a chief warrant officer with 656th Transportation Company, based in Springfield, Ohio, and his commanding officer find themselves felons, dishonorably discharged and stripped of all military benefits.


The 656th played a crucial role in maintaining the gasoline supply that fueled everything from Black Hawk helicopters to Bradley Fighting Vehicles between Balad Airfield and Tikrit. The reservists in the company proudly boast that their fuel was in the vehicles driven by the 4th Infantry Division soldiers who found Saddam Hussein (news - web sites) hiding in a hole last year.

more

[cornermouse]

1. And on it goes (sigh).

[tech3149]

2. Disgraceful

I tried to rate the story, but yahoo won't let me.

It sounds like severe lack of command intelligence.

[Ice4Clark]

3. I was able to rate it.....11 votes now all 5's

[JohnOneillsMemory]

21. CHILLING THE WHISTLEBLOWERS+HIDING THE EVIDENCE

of not supporting the troops and getting them killed through incompetence, the story that is killing troop morale right now.

So these examples are being made to keep soldiers from telling how they invaded Iraq DESPITE the Pentagon!

Check it out!-Another female commander getting the Martha Stewart/Janis Karpinski treatment. (Karpinski was unqualified to run the prison 'system' in Iraq dumped on her but, like Kaus here, did what she could with no resources. She was kept out of the loop of General Miller's Gitmo-ization of interrogation at Abu Ghraib and then made the scapegoat when it became a scandal.)

>snip<
The commanding officer of the company, Maj. Cathy Kaus,
>snip<
Kaus, the commander of the 656th, said that officers with the 544th Maintenance Battalion, whose command her company fell under, informed her the day before their scheduled push into Iraq that they could not provide her company support in moving the company's six containers. She said she discussed the problem with Birt and her other chief warrant officer, and the two told her they could solve it.
>snip<
OUR TROOPS IN IRAQ HAVE BEEN BETRAYED BY THE PENTAGON AND KNOW IT!!

They need to organize, go into low-duty self-protection mode, and get the hell out as soon as possible.

HEY FREEPERS-IF YOU KNOW ANYONE IN THE PENTAGON MAKE THEM SUPPORT OUR TROOPS LIKE PATRIOTS INSTEAD OF USING THEM FOR CANNON FODDER.

[Vidar]

4. rated 5. now 4.87, 19 votes.

[GeorgeGist]

5. And these are the War Criminals?

Priorities, priorities, priorities.

[JPace]

6. This is outrageous...

no wonder the soldiers are beginning to turn on the command lately. I hope they do more of it. Now if the press will do its job the military is not going to get away with garbage like this.

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

39. I hate to say it as an army veteran but.......

a full fledged mutiny may be in order.

[Paleocon]

41. I agree....

As a vet I can't imagine that, but if I was still in and serving in Iraq without the equipment I needed I'd be one noisy SOB...

[fob]

47. In TODAY'S service where bush*s transgressions are visited upon

those that would dare re-raise the question of bush*s transgressions, you would most likely be "one noisy SOB", in Gitmo.

/madness

[tuckessee]

43. Maybe so....

but they should do it because of the illegality of the mission, not because they don't have the right stuff to keep them safe while subjugating innocent, hapless Iraq.

[Nickster]

7. For the love of......

WTH is wrong with these people? Either let them scrounge for parts to do their job, or give them the stinkin supplies they need in the first place? What is so damned hard about that? These people deserve to lose their jobs back home as well because of this crap? It's not like these people were dealing dope and buying hot rods for their own personal pleasure. Hell, these guys probably saved lives by stealing that equipment. Someone stop the world, I want off!

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

40. Really

Where's the $87 million going to anyhow?

[ThorsHammer]

45. Halliburton and friends (nt)

[TheWraith]

48. 87 BILLION. (Billion? with a 'B'?) NT.

[Cooley Hurd]

8. Sounds like Radar's friend "Sparky" from M*A*S*H...

If you needed anything, from Hydrocordizone to a 3-day pass, all you had to do was call "Sparky," and it was on its way...

[Rose Siding]

20. That's just what I was thinking

I remember hearing someone (I don't remember who- just someone who I recognized at the time as having ample authority for an informed opinion) speak of the US' unheralded advantage in WWII- D-Day, in particular.

He said that the innovation of the average GI- the ability to react mentally and implement his own ideas- was what won the battle and that the German military structure did not have the flexibility to adjust for evolving situations in the immediate.

It made lots of sense to me at the time but I've wondered how it fit with the more absolute command structure we have now. Following orders isn't new, of course, but doesn't it seem to be emerging as a more doctrinaire concept? When you see a situation like this it sure seems like it.

snip>
Several weeks later, Birt and other reservists scrounged a third vehicle, an abandoned 5-ton cargo truck, and stripped it for parts they needed for repair of their trucks.


"We could have gone with what we had, but we would not have been able to complete our mission," said Birt, who was released from the brig on Oct. 17 and is petitioning for clemency in hope that he can return to the reserves.


"I admit that what we did was technically against the rules, but it wasn't for our own personal gain. It was so we could do our jobs."

[Cooley Hurd]

26. And, you just KNOW there must be an armor black market in Iraq...

If they're scrounging for armor plating at landfills and scrap yards, then you know someone must also be selling it under the table...

[blackhorse]

36. A surplus of rigid thinking

It seems ironic, but the maturation of the all volunteer army has apparently become one that has very little tolerance anything that is outside of regulations.

When the army had draftees, wartime was often seen as an environment where the regulations were ignored because they simply didn't fit the situation. It appears now there are some fools trying to make wartime GIs use a logistics system that does not often produce what the troops need, when they need it.

I noticed ill-advised adherence to regulations as early as '95 in Bosnia. The troops had started keeping local stray dogs as pets. It was a good deal for both parties: the dogs got fed and provided "guard duty" in return. Higher rankers in the army decided these dogs were a health hazard to the troops (no idea why). With that, army veterinarians showed up at the troops' duty stations and announced they were there to give the dogs shots for their own good. The troops assumed it was the standard type of shots that dogs get when they're pets, but they weren't. The shots killed the dogs that got them. Frankly, I'm surprised that none of these veterinarians were shot by angry soldiers.

Other examples of idiocy are the bans on beer and the anti-smoking campaign. We can probably all agree that abuse of just about anything can be unhealthy. But, um, bullets can be VERY unhealthy. So, let the poor SOB take a smoke and drink a beer a day if he/she wants.

So, with this story, it looks like some self-righteous moron has ruined the careers of two men who tried to make things work in an environment where just about everything is broke in one fashion or another. Yeah, this kind of thing will kill morale in a hurry.

BH

[tsuki]

9. The Navy even has a term for it. Midnight requistioning.

[MADem]

49. AKA "comshaw"

It used to be an honored practice. If you had a real comshaw artist in your ranks, you were considered very fortunate.

Times sure have changed...

[quaoar]

10. Un-fucking-believable

For Birt and Kaus, the court-martial and confinements are a devastating end to long and successful military careers. Both are holding onto a thin thread of hope that they will be granted clemency by Lt. Gen. Thomas Metz, commander of the multinational forces in Iraq, so their benefits will be reinstated and they will have a chance to continue their military careers.

Birt and Kaus were dishonorably discharged, and unless they receive clemency, they lose all military benefits, including the right to have the U.S. flag draped on their coffins.

This month, Birt received a certified letter from the trucking company he worked for as a shop foreman, telling him that it could no longer employ him because of his felony conviction. Kaus said her employer, sporting goods manufacturer Huffy Corp., has informed her that it is unlikely she will be allowed to come back to work because of her conviction.


These soldiers should get medals for getting the job done in the face of incompetence. Instead, their careers are ruined. Meanwhile, the real war criminals are planning which inaugural parties to attend next month.

[wordout]

12. these guys are lucky they're alive an going home.

"..including the right to have the U.S. flag draped on their coffins."

it would be ultimate dishonor to have a us flag draped on my coffin. id rather have some freeper mark swastikas on my cold forehead than that.

[Occulus]

14. and peripherally connected to that

we have the whole other issue of employers being able to fire employees for their nonviolent felonies. I've never understood why we send people to jail- excuse me, "rehabilitation centers"- and profess a belief in the system that eventually these men will get out of jail and get a second chance, only to be told when they leave jail after having completed their sentence that they don't deserve a second chance in the first place.

Wouldn't blame these guys too much if they simply snapped because of this. I bet they really feel like they've somewhat wasted their time in their military service...

I also wonder if this isn't a message to all soldiers. You know, something along the lines of, "do not question the leadership of the military. If you do, prepare to be destroyed" or some such.

Maybe somebody at the top got mad at the guy who asked Rummy a question regrding this very issue and decided to make an example of somebody.

[uncle ray]

11. and nobody gives a second thought to

whoever decided, "hey, we don't need this truck, let's just leave it here for whoever finds it to use"...THAT'S the person who deserves the court marshal.

not to mention they claim to not even be able to figure out which unit originally had the trucks! incredable that they can't check something as simple as a serial number, and a person would think in this 21st century war that we'd have GPS units installed in every vehicle, etc. how many millions of dollars worth of equipment have been lost in this way? hell, how many SOLDIERS have we "lost" because we don't keep track of them?

[Ilsa]

13. Damned if they do, dead if they don't.

Having to steal supplies so they aren't left to be killed. And Rummy's army dishonorably discharges them. This is disgraceful.

[tabasco]

15. They must have stolen something from Halliburton too.

Only possible explanation.

When I was a commander of a regular army unit helping after Hurricane Andrew, I "acquired" Army 5k generators and gave them to relief groups that desperately needed them.

COME AND GET ME ASSHOLES !

[TahitiNut]

28. That's the key. The military supply system is privatized ...

... and it's all about profits. No longer is it a Logistics and Supply operation within the military; it's about Halliburton&Co "convenience stores" and "big box stores" with a monopolized and price-fixed market where life and death are the motivators. Gasoline? Halliburton charges the military over $2/gallon in a country where it sells for less than $0.20/gallon at the corner gas station. War profiteering is no longer punished and prevented - it's rewarded under the Busholini Regime.

[spinbaby]

44. On a related note…

I was listening to Lynn Cullen on the radio today and she was telling of a soldier had been blown up in a car bomb, lost several limbs, and then--when he was discharged---was billed for equipment not returned to the military.

[impeach the gop]

16. Damn these cowards bushtista

Rot in hell and burn slowly for the horrors you
maggots have spread thruout the world. Saddam gassed
his own people? Rape Rooms? Terrast EVil ??? Bush has
more blood and torture and evil than all the dictators
combined. Burn bush!! You tell me how anyone can look
me in eye and say bush is "our leader" I'm sick to my
stomach thinking about this cockroach and all the crimes
these stupid people worship him for. Damn this is some
fried brains for sure.

[dkofos]

17. WTF

They need to spend more time going after the real WAR criminals

:mad: :mad: :mad:

[alfredo]

18. Send this to your congressman/woman and

to media outlets. I have sent it to a veterans group too.

Push for clemency!!!!

[merh]

19. Heck push for pardons

The weed that would be king never served a day in his life in a combat zone and was awol from the TNG and was never penalized. He should pardon these soldiers.

:argh:

[alfredo]

22. they're not rich enough.

[merh]

29. True,

so damned true. :cry:

[alfredo]

34. Be sure to contact your congressman, and cc it to your

local paper.

[merh]

35. I will,

there is hope that someone in my state will pay attention. Congressman Gene Taylor (fake dem) is on the military oversight commission (or whatever it is called). He was outraged on CNN that the soldiers are still not provided the supplies they need and was dogging Rummey the other night.

Thanks for the suggestion.

[alfredo]

23. auth says it all

[Cleopatra2a]

24. This is so stupid

At least the CC took one for the team and went to jail. Of course, if they would have said something, they would have probably laughed about it and went on with things. I wonder what made that one disgruntled guy so disgruntled?????

[For PaisAn]

25. This is shameful treatment of soldiers

I'm speechless.

[0007]

27. WTF

Birt received a certified letter from the trucking company he worked for as a shop foreman, telling him that it could no longer employ him because of his felony conviction. Kaus said her employer, sporting goods manufacturer Huffy Corp., has informed her that it is unlikely she will be allowed to come back to work because of her conviction.

[TahitiNut]

30. This has been the military's biggest club for a century.

I can't begin to count the number of times I heard some lifer-fuck tell guys that if the Army gave them 'bad paper' they'd never be able to find a decent job ever agin in their lives. It's the economic 'black ball' - it destroys a person's ability to earn a living. When I consider how totally corrupt the military 'good old boy' network is and gangs up on any boat-rocker, it appalls me.

[drdtroit]

31. Rated it a 5

It is unbelievable that these blind (and ignorant i must add) supporters of the boy king (replies to the article) can have the gall to blame Clinton.

There has to be a special place for these people in the next phase of their existences!

[Guarionex]

32. Supporting the troops INDEED!

I can't believe that troops still support this President and his regime...they are putting them out there to be bullet magnets for an unjust, unnecessary war...and then get court-martialed for trying to save their skins...

A mutiny now would be very appreciated, you dumb, soldier-drones!

[Calico Jack Rackham]

33. Un Fucking believable

You can sodomize children and innocent people in an Iraqi prison and only get a slap on the wrist, but if you use any means neccessary to requisition supplies to be used by troops in combat you are a criminal. What fucking bullshit.

I'm so glad I got out when I did and believe me folks I saw shit like this coming down the pipe a long time ago which was one of the reasons I got out. Troops were being charged and busted down for some really clown ass shit.

When is fucking Halliburton going to get charged with defrauding the American people?

[maddezmom]

37. rated a 5

You have given the news article `Scrounging' for Iraq war puts GIs in jail a rating of 5.
Its current average rating is 4.53 with 347 vote(s).

[Bigmack]

38. Hard to tell a bunch...

.. of guys with guns to play fair and follow the rules. People who threaten guys like that sometimes get "accidentally" shot in the ass.

My proudest scrounge (midnite requisition) in the Marines was the "liberation" of an entire pallet of beer from an Army supply dump... at gunpoint.

Any real soldier would know this is a chickenshit charge.

[maddezmom]

42. 6 Court-Martialed for Scrounging Equipment

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=519&ncid=718&e=4&u=/ap/20041213/ap_on_re_us/soldiers_scrounging

[maxrandb]

46. You Know how I knew the war was over

I had a dream the other night. The Germans were using carts. These carts just kept coming back to me in this dream. My God that's when I realized the war was over. I'm destined to do something great in this war, I just know it.

George Patton

[saigon68]

50. GEE I think I'll RE-ENLIST in this CLUSTER --- FUCK

This will do more damage to re-elistments than 100s of pictures of caskets. Everyone in the service has done this since the beginning of time.


SOME ONE HAS THEIR HEAD BURIED DEEPLY UP THEIR RECTUM !!!!!!

[struggle4progress]

51. ! eom