Son slain in war, dad re-enlists

[deadparrot]

FORT WORTH -- Father and son, Paco and Paquito, watched the television when a Girls Gone Wild commercial came on.

"I can't stand that ... ," Paco said to his son. "Look at these college guys, having the time of their life with daddy's money."

Paquito probably knew a lecture was coming on. He was 17, just a few weeks beyond throwing his mortarboard into the air at the Eastern Hills High School graduation, wondering what would happen next.

Paco went on, because this is sometimes what fathers do -- talk to the televisions when they're really talking to their sons.

http://www.dfw.com/226/story/40573.html

[Bozita]

1. So damned sad, The search for revenge continues, and the war will end ... when?

So goddamned sad!

[lebkuchen]

2. Paquito's wound

A single shot rang out as Martinez stood in the street. It hit him in the back, just outside his protective armor plate....He couldn't feel his legs...

I spoke to an anesthesiologist who was in Iraq during the Mosul mess tent explosion (around 200 injured, 4 anesthesiologists), who told me that while there, a very accurate Iraqi sharpshooter had taken out a lot of US soldiers. He was able to aim between the helmet and kevlar. One soldier lived through it (presumably is still alive) and is quadriplegic.

Eventually, one of our soldiers took out the sharpshooter, but, of course, others took his place.

Neck pads are becoming part of the uniform, only just lately--was in the paper a couple of weeks ago that they're being shipped out to Iraq. It's meant to stop schrapnel, but maybe it will assist against a bullet as well, per the "Bible stories" during Vietnam.

http://www.estripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=43033&archive=true

[TheGriz]

3. You refer to "Juba"

The famed sniper of Baghdad.

Its uncertain whether or not he was real or whether he was a myth built up for propaganda purposes, and there are many shooters. An insurgent believed to be Juba was killed but the sniping continues... really, anyone is capable of finding a quiet concealed spot and taking potshots.

[lebkuchen]

6. "Sniper Dude" has replaced "Juba"

And so it goes...

http://www.estripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=43291&archive=true

[carla]

4. Paquito's wound

seems to have caused brain damage in his father. I'm sure his wife is very proud of his decision to go get himself killed for the POTUS(Piece Of Tainted Ugly Shit)'s Oil War and Halliburton profits...
The word foolish is reserved for this type of bravado.

[lebkuchen]

7. nonsensical, to be sure

I get fed up when I hear parents who have just lost their child in Iraq talk about what an honor it was for their kid to have died to keep the US free. You'd think w/as much as they have invested in the war, they'd be squared away on what's really going on.

[NNN0LHI]

5. I can understand him wanting to kill some Iraqis after they invaded us and killed his son

Oh, wait a minute. His son invaded the Iraqis country.

Cancel that first thought.

Don

[ComerPerro]

8. lol

[lebkuchen]

9. We spoke to MN and IA NG last summer

and they were going back a second time, also for revenge. I get the feeling from our 3 killed per day body count that the Iraqis are feeling equally vengeful.

[renate]

10. after reading the article I'd say that this isn't the decision of a Bushbot

His intent seems to be to honor his son.

Plus, there's this: He is, after all, a sharp critic of the invasion of Iraq and was even before Paquito died there. And what good does it do him to join the military, at his age, with the possibility of deploying to the very place where his son was killed?

And this: Iraq is a "terrible mess" that in Martinez's view was wholly unnecessary, quite unlike the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan. But young men and women are still there and probably for some time, so Martinez believes that he can share some of his experience to bring more of them home alive.

I'd call him a hero.