DOUBLE TAP

This was posted on the Swiftvets.com forums by Powsmias.

"Double Tap"



Marine Response to a simple question

Regarding the news blurb about the Marine who put two rounds ("double
tap") in a wounded insurgent's head in Fallujah, here's a response from a
Marine:

"It's a safety issue, pure and simple. After assaulting through a target,
we put a security round in everybody's head. Sorry al-Reuters, there's no
paddy wagon rolling around Fallujah picking up "prisoners" and offering
them a hot cup a joe, falafel, and a blanket. There's no time to dick
around on the target. You clear the space, dump the chumps, and move
on.

Are Corpsman expected to treat wounded terrorists? Negative. Hey Libs,
worried about the defense budget? Well, it would be waste, fraud, and
abuse for a Corpsman to expend one man-minute or a battle dressing
on a terrorist. Its much cheaper to just spend the $.02 on a 5.56mm FMJ.

By the way, in our view, terrorists who chop off civilian's heads are not
prisoners, they are carcasses. Chopping off a civilian's head is another
reason why these idiots are known as "unlawful combatants." It seems
that most of the world's journalists have forgotten that fact.

Let me be very clear about this issue. I have looked around the web, and
many people get this concept, but there are some stragglers.


Here is your typical Marine sitrep (situation report): You just took fire
from unlawful combatants (no uniform - breaking every Geneva Convention
rule there is) shooting from a religious building attempting to use the
sanctuary status of their position as protection. But you're in Fallujah
now, and the Marine Corps has decided that they're not playing that game
this time. That was Najaf. So you set the mosque on fire and you hose down
the terrorists with small arms, launch some AT-4s (Rockets), some 40MM
grenades into the building and things quiet down. So you run over there,
and find some tangos (bad guys) wounded and pretending to be dead. You
are aware that suicide martyrdom is like really popular with these
idiots, and
they think taking some Marines with them would be really cool. So you
can either risk your life and your fire team's lives by having them
cover you
while you bend down and search a guy that you think is pretending to be
dead for some reason. Most of the time these are the guys with the grenade
or a vest made of explosives. Also, you don't know who or what is in the
next
room. You're already speaking English to the rest of your fire team or squad
which lets the terrorist know you are there and you are his enemy. You are
speaking loud because your hearing is poor from shooting people for several
days. So you know that there are many other rooms to enter, and that if
anyone is still alive in those rooms, they know that Americans are in the
mosque. Meanwhile (3 seconds later), you still have this terrorist (that
was just shooting at you from a mosque) playing possum. What do you
do? You double tap his head, and you go to the next room, that's what!

What about the Geneva Convention and all that Law of Land Warfare
stuff? What about it. Without even addressing the issues at hand, your first
thought should be, "I'd rather be judged by 12 than carried by 6."

Bear in mind that this tactic of double tapping a fallen terrorist is a
perpetual mindset that is reinforced by experience on a minute by minute
basis. Secondly, you are fighting an unlawful combatant in a Sanctuary,
which is a double No-No on his part. Third, tactically you are in no
position to take "prisoners" because there are more rooms to search and
clear, and the behavior of said terrorist indicates that he is up to no
good. No good in Fallujah is a very large place and the low end of no good
and the high end of no good are fundamentally the same .. Marines end up
getting hurt or die. So there is no compelling reason for you to do
anything but double tap this idiot and get on with the mission.

If you are a veteran, then everything I have just written is self evident.
If you are not a veteran, then at least try to put yourself in the
situation. Remember, in Fallujah there is no yesterday, there is no
tomorrow, there is only now. Right NOW. Have you ever lived in NOW
for a week? It is really, really not easy. If you have never lived in NOW
for longer than it takes to finish the big roller coaster at Six Flags, then
shut your hole about putting Marines in jail for "War Crimes."


wow, war is hell.
God bless them all and thank you brothers.
_________________
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