A friend of mine on Facebook asked how I felt about this story.
“5 U.S. Soldiers Killed In Iraq By Comrade”
The United States military said Monday that five American soldiers had been shot at one of the main American bases in Baghdad. At least one news agency said the killer was an American soldier who had opened fire on fellow troops. Marine Lt. Tom Garnett, a military spokesman, said “the shooter is a U.S. soldier and he is in custody.”
+83 people dugg this story
That the bad guys get us makes me sad but it is an eventuality that we recognize as an occupational hazard. It comes with the job. If you want to live forever, soldier is probably not what you want to be when you grow up.
In the grand scheme of things, the number of casualties in this war is pretty low. Vietnam cost as many personnel in one month, even some weeks, than have been lost in this whole war.
No one mourns the loss of a soldier more than his fellow soldiers. Ask anyone who wears a black bracelet of a fallen comrade. In many cases, long after everyone else has accepted the loss, the fellow soldier will still have nightmares caused by the wondering what else he might have done to save his buddy. He will still break down and weep for his friend.
Soldiers trust no one except each other. So who do you trust when you discover that you can’t trust your fellow soldier?