For those of us -- and there are millions -- who have gone
through U.S. Army basic training or Marine Corps boot camp the
complaints of Senator Richard Durbin regarding the treatment of the
prisoners at Camp Delta in Guantanamo are laughable.
One wonders what Durbin and the folks at Amnesty International
would say if their little darlings had been forced to stand at
attention in 100-degree heat for two or more hours at Fort Jackson
or Camp Lejeune in full combat gear, with 60 pounds of ammo and
equipment, waiting for a general inspection. "What time did you get
up, soldier?" the inspecting officer invariably asks the first
trooper in line. The answer is always the same. "Reveille, sir." As
long as you said that, you didn't have to admit you and your
buddies had been up for 36 hours straight "G I-ing" the barracks,
the company street, your weapons and everything that moved or stood
in the area.
"Drop down and give me 20, 30, 50," the training cadre would
demand, and the shaved head recruit falls to the ground and
completes his push-ups -- sometimes to the point of exhaustion for
those not in top condition. The heel of the corporal on your back
tends to make the task a bit more difficult. Gosh, we should have
had some of those ACLU lawyers.
Another fine element of training occurs when a drill sergeant's
mouth is so close to yours his shouts spit saliva till it runs down
your face. One flinch brings an order for 30 perfect push-ups or an
evening of jogging around the company area with a rifle held with
both hands above one's head while the miscreant shouts the General
Orders.
Definitely too tough for those unfortunate terrorists.
Senator Durbin, whose biography shows he spent the Vietnam War
in law school, knows nothing of an American soldier's training life
-- and we are talking about only those first eight weeks of basic
training, not the far tougher regimen for Ranger, SEAL, Recon or
Special Forces.
He says he's appalled the Gitmo terrorists had to sit or stand
in stress positions while under interrogation. What about crawling
into and cleaning out an eight-foot deep grease pit attached to
each mess hall. That's a nice little punishment for arriving late
to formation. Or what about a 25-mile march with a full field pack,
your weapon and ammo, and only one canteen of water?
Senator Durbin is deeply worried about the impression that is
caused internationally when a terrorist prisoner complains his
"space" has been invaded by a female interrogator. Oh, dear me, did
that female make the poor prisoner feel badly? An American soldier
yearns for such "intimidation." A recruit has no "space." He or she
is government property.
From what type of mental illness does Senator Durbin suffer?
What country has Durbin been inhabiting? From what planet does this
civilian feather merchant come? Senator, don't insult the hundreds
of thousands of on-duty servicemen and women and the millions of
veterans by your politically inspired pettifogging complaints.
Perhaps Senator Durbin doesn't understand what it takes to be an
American soldier or Marine. Perhaps he thinks the families of the
terrorists should be thought of before the families of the victims
of 9/11 or those of our fallen warriors. He speaks of Guantanamo as
an embarrassment. It is he who embarrasses those who have
served.
topics:
Law, NATO
