TODAY'S LETTERS: Column About Civilian Casualties in Iraq

By: E&P Staff Today, readers respond to Greg's Mitchell's column about civilian shootings in Iraq. One death in particular was getting quite a bit of attention because the boy was the son of a Los Angeles Times employee.


A Rare Look at a Civilian Casualty In Iraq

Yes, you have hit the nail on the head. I can see your point about the news worthiness of comparing the relative few collateral accidental civilian deaths by Americans versus the intentional mass murder of tens of thousands of civilians by the terrorists in Iraq. If terrorists shoot at Americans there should be no return fire. Good point.

Bob Connors


Why is is not reported about some of the thousands of innocent and faceless murdered by the 'terrorists' that kill their own in the name of Allah? Obviously it doesn't serve to advance your anti-American bias to report on those poor folks. They are blown to pieces by the murderous Islamists that kill their fellow Muslims daily. Only the ones who are attempting to stop those sub human beasts, and giving the others a chance to live in relative peace are your target! Of course that wouldn't fit your template.

Your bias is well-known.

Mike Pease


I'm a combat vet of Vietnam. (1st Air Cav, June '67-June '68, Chinook crewchief/door gunner). I feel that we got involved over there as incompetently as we got in Iraq. It's hard to occupy another nation and be liked. We become the "red coats" of 1776. We've become the devil (Saddam) that the angel (USA) set out to destroy.

If someone is punished for a wrongful shooting, it's always the soldiers on the bottom of the pile. For some reason Americans seem to be disgusted by "double tapping' wounded Iraqi's, but dropping a 500 pounder on the same building would have been okay. If Lt. Calley had called in an air strike on My Lai, he'd have retired as a Colonel around 1997....If using the A bomb on Hiroshima was okay, then what Calley did was okay. Of course neither is okay, both were crimes against humanity, as is our continued occupation of Iraq. But Truman was at fault for Hiroshima, LBJ for My Lai, Bush for Iraq's mess, not the soldiers on the bottom of the pile.

I'm a combat vet against all wars. Trust me, when in combat like that, one becomes very callous. Not everyone does, but I did. The black soldier that refused to shoot civilians at My Lai should have gotten a medal. I'm glad I wasn't there, I think I would have been a shooter. Sad.

Wade Kane, SMSgt Air Guard (Ret)
Crescent City, Fla.