thedrifter
08-11-06, 04:12 PM
Friday, August 11, 2006
Marines riding in beefed-up Humvees
Extra armor has pluses and minuses.
Q: Some time ago there was a lot of concern about Humvees in Iraq not having enough armor to protect the troops inside them. Are they all armored now?
A: Virtually all of the Humvees, or high-mobility multipurpose wheeled vehicles, used by Marines in Iraq are now heavily armored, except for those that never go "outside the wire" – that is, Humvees driven around inside the big U.S. bases where there is no IED threat. Many of the Humvees I rode in also featured new equipment such as onboard GPS tracking systems and certain anti-IED devices that I can't talk about in detail. Most of them even have air conditioning.
All that stuff is good – and it's a big change from two years ago, when the Marines I was with patrolled in "high-back" Humvees whose only armor was a couple of sheets of steel bolted to the sides.
Still, there are trade-offs. Adding 3,000 or 4,000 pounds of armor to a 5,000-pound vehicle reduces speed, and encasing Marines in cocoons of armor and ballistic glass reduces visibility. Keeping the new electronic gadgets cool enough to operate bleeds off some of the air conditioning and often leaves the Marines sweltering in the tightly enclosed space. And recent reports suggest that up-armored Humvees are more prone to fatal rollovers.
The bottom line is that everybody wants the heavy armor when bullets fly or an IED goes off – it saves lives. But the rest of the time – which is most of the time – the heavy armor can make a tough job even tougher.
Q: How do the Marines you know react to the recent allegations of rape and murder leveled against some U.S. soldiers in Iraq?
A: With disgust, if the allegations are true. The general attitude is, "If they did it, hang 'em" – and they mean that literally.
At the same time, we should remember that what makes the allegations so intensely newsworthy is how unusual and rare they are.
The truth is that U.S. forces in Iraq probably have the lowest rate of crimes against civilians of any invading or occupying military force in the history of the world.
For example, World War II is often known as "The Good War," and its veterans deservedly described as members of "The Greatest Generation." Nevertheless, in the World War II European theater alone, almost 450 American GIs were sentenced to death for the rape or murder of civilians, and almost 100 were actually executed, usually by hanging.
The point is that the actions of those few didn't sully the reputation of the millions of Americans who served honorably in World War II. Neither should the actions of a tiny few tarnish the reputation of the hundreds of thousands of Americans who have served honorably in Iraq.
CONTACT US: Have a question about Iraq? Contact Dillow at 714-796-7953 or GLDillow@aol.com
Ellie
Marines riding in beefed-up Humvees
Extra armor has pluses and minuses.
Q: Some time ago there was a lot of concern about Humvees in Iraq not having enough armor to protect the troops inside them. Are they all armored now?
A: Virtually all of the Humvees, or high-mobility multipurpose wheeled vehicles, used by Marines in Iraq are now heavily armored, except for those that never go "outside the wire" – that is, Humvees driven around inside the big U.S. bases where there is no IED threat. Many of the Humvees I rode in also featured new equipment such as onboard GPS tracking systems and certain anti-IED devices that I can't talk about in detail. Most of them even have air conditioning.
All that stuff is good – and it's a big change from two years ago, when the Marines I was with patrolled in "high-back" Humvees whose only armor was a couple of sheets of steel bolted to the sides.
Still, there are trade-offs. Adding 3,000 or 4,000 pounds of armor to a 5,000-pound vehicle reduces speed, and encasing Marines in cocoons of armor and ballistic glass reduces visibility. Keeping the new electronic gadgets cool enough to operate bleeds off some of the air conditioning and often leaves the Marines sweltering in the tightly enclosed space. And recent reports suggest that up-armored Humvees are more prone to fatal rollovers.
The bottom line is that everybody wants the heavy armor when bullets fly or an IED goes off – it saves lives. But the rest of the time – which is most of the time – the heavy armor can make a tough job even tougher.
Q: How do the Marines you know react to the recent allegations of rape and murder leveled against some U.S. soldiers in Iraq?
A: With disgust, if the allegations are true. The general attitude is, "If they did it, hang 'em" – and they mean that literally.
At the same time, we should remember that what makes the allegations so intensely newsworthy is how unusual and rare they are.
The truth is that U.S. forces in Iraq probably have the lowest rate of crimes against civilians of any invading or occupying military force in the history of the world.
For example, World War II is often known as "The Good War," and its veterans deservedly described as members of "The Greatest Generation." Nevertheless, in the World War II European theater alone, almost 450 American GIs were sentenced to death for the rape or murder of civilians, and almost 100 were actually executed, usually by hanging.
The point is that the actions of those few didn't sully the reputation of the millions of Americans who served honorably in World War II. Neither should the actions of a tiny few tarnish the reputation of the hundreds of thousands of Americans who have served honorably in Iraq.
CONTACT US: Have a question about Iraq? Contact Dillow at 714-796-7953 or GLDillow@aol.com
Ellie