SwiftVets.com

[Somebunny]

Forgive me if this is already on here somewhere, but I was just reading the article on MSNBC and noticed this part of it:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6323933/

Reporter Lai Ling Jew, who was embedded with the Army’s 101st Airborne, Second Brigade, said Tuesday on MSNBC TV that the news team stayed at the Al-Qaqaa base for about 24 hours.

‘No move to secure the weapons’
“There wasn’t a search,” she said. “The mission that the brigade had was to get to Baghdad. That was more of a pit stop there for us. And, you know, the searching, I mean certainly some of the soldiers headed off on their own, looked through the bunkers just to look at the vast amount of ordnance lying around.

“But as far as we could tell, there was no move to secure the weapons, nothing to keep looters away.”

Are they trying to do damage control now?

[Nomorelies]

The NBC story stands because it is recorded. The MSNBC story is their cable news channel that is deliberately blocking all trugh through its network. Even Joe Scarborough (Scarborough Country) is so sick of the network that he will not come back to his show. Pat Buchanan is being used as a shiill for their political agenda. They are playing hardball and will do everything in their power to help John Kerry. Don't be fooled. MSNBC is THE most biased network on the air.

Their ratings are so low that they are turning their format into the "Jerry Springer" News Network to try to bring in the wild-eyed kool-aid drinking jackasses. Anything for a buck.
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[noc]

But here is information from troops that were there:

http://www.nationalreview.com/kerry/kerryspot.asp

A gentleman sending me e-mail from a ".mil" address writes:

But I was there at Al QaQaa on April 10th with the 101st, I can rest assure you that [NBC producer interviewed on MSNBC earlier today] Lai Ling Jew is lying about it, she seems to be expressing a convenient contrary opinion of the time. The very first thing we do when we move into an area is clear it of any enemy combatants, including going inside warehouses full of ordinance, which we did immediately when we reached there.

Another gentleman sending me e-mail from a ".mil" address writes:

Operational plans in modern warfare are continually rolling and are available to combat commanders in a real time network environment. The original pre-invasion Operation Plans listed the Al-QaQaa weapons depot as a priority security site. After the 101st Airborne Division inspected the site, the security priority was downgraded and the Operational Plan was modified.

So first, I would assume that before the 101st stopped at the site for 24 hours, they would at least send guys with guns through to make sure there weren't any hostile forces at al-QaQaa. I don't care how big the site is, no commanding officer is going to leave a bunch of buildings unchecked for badguys who might try to attack his guys. Also, wouldn't "securing" this site mean checking for booby traps? Wouldn't our guys want to know what's in these buildings that they're walking around?

And I would assume that the process of securing al-QaQaa — "a priority security site" would include checking for explosives in all these buildings they're securing. So that the message, "hey, guys, careful if we get attacked and have to defend this position - there are 350 tons of high-grade explosives over in that storage bunker over there" gets to everybody who needs to hear it.

[Son of a VET]

[gleanerl]

john gibson just said on his show 'big story...', that fox has a reporter who was one of the embeds with nbc at the time and disputes the 'no search undertaken' biz...
more on it later with brit hume, he said.
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Is sloppiness in speech caused by ignorance or apathy? I don't know and I don't care.
William Safire (1929 - )

[noc]

More from our troops:

MORE FROM A KERRY SPOT READER WHO WAS THERE [10/26 05:07 PM]

More from a Kerry Spot reader with a ".mil" e-mail address, stating he was among the soldiers who secured Al QaQaa on April 10th with the 101st:

I can tell you what happened at my squad level. When we arrived there, humvees with Mark-19's and other mounted weapons immediately secured the parameter with appropriate manpower backup. On the foot level we broke up into squads and went building to building and cleared them; mind you, we couldn't do them all. But we found what had been typical finds, caches of AK-47's, artillery rounds and bullets. There was absolutely no talk of a big find, and what I could sense no worries of anything that should have been there. Of course, we were still worried about the possibilities of chemical weapons but they never panned out.

I am a little perturbed at the gross mischaracterization of what went on there. From what I remember of the NBC crew, they did not go out with us, and they may have in fact been asked to not to go on the search with us, due to the dangers that may have possibily come up. Now this part is my opinion, but don't you think that if they had gone out with us they would have video?

Thanks to this guy for what he did, and sharing what he could.

You read words like this, from a guy who has put it on the line for his country, and wonder who heck thinks they have the right as a Monday Morning Quarterback to tell guys like him they botched the job.

[Nomorelies]

[Debs]

Just a little tidbit I found here:

www.globalsecurity.org/org/news/2003/030405-chem-readiness01.htm

...UN weapons inspectors went repeatedly to the vast al Qa Qaa complex, most recently on March 8. But they found nothing during spot visits to some of the 1,100 buildings at the site 40 kilometres south of Baghdad. ...

Now just when did the U.N. inspections' teams go in and label, seal and secure the supposed explosives at this sight, as it appears they had found nothing there as of March 8, 2003 and were not allowed into Iraq once the war started?

Debbie
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"No greater love..."

[noc]

Ok this one is very definative:

YET ANOTHER SERVICEMAN REFUTES THE TIMES ACCOUNT [10/26 05:23 PM]

From yet another Kerry Spot reader with a ".mil" e-mail address:

You are correct in your bottom line conclusion. Here is a second follow up.

I was serving as a [identifying information removed by the Kerry Spot] staff member during the time in question. The Commander on the site had complete real time intelligence on what to expect and possibly find at the Al-QaQaa depot. The ordinance in question was not found when teams were sent in to inspect and secure the area. When this information was relayed, Operational plans were adjusted and the unit moved forward. Had the ordinance in question been discovered, a security team would have been left in place.