U.S. troops sit down in Haiti! A bright light of reason in troubled relief effort...

[FailureToCommunicate]

U.S. troops sit down to lower tensions at food distribution site. Story heard yesterday on NPR radio:

"Food Melee In Port-au-Prince

But a different story emerged in some areas of the city Tuesday. On a golf course in Port-au-Prince, NPR correspondents witnessed a scene that bordered on chaos as U.S. soldiers from the 82nd Airborne tried to keep order while food was distributed.

Thousands of Haitians converged on the makeshift aid distribution point. What started out as a fairly orderly operation quickly got out of control as some 25,000 people swarmed the site.

In a bid to restore calm, U.S. Army Capt. John Hartzog ordered his men to take three steps back and sit down. It worked, as many Haitians apparently sensed the gesture was meant to ease the tension.

"I'm thinking about possibly, maybe not tomorrow, but the next day ... having them sit down right off the bat," Hartzog said. "We've tried different things. Sometimes it goes smooth, sometimes it doesn't."


story link:
<http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=122762500>


I doubt his methods were "by the book" but it worked that day. Captain John Hartzog deserves a medal!

[Warpy]

1. He does, it was completely outside procedure

and was just off the wall enough to work. It won't work in all situations, but it's certainly worth a shot.

Going "relax, there's enough for everybody" is the best way to avoid a riot, and just saying that is never enough.

[leveymg]

2. Thank gawd for guys who think to operate outside "the book."

Can you imagine what might have happened if he ordered his men to "lock and load" and "disperse the crowd"?

[Renew Deal]

3. I hear they're carrying unloaded primary weapons and not wearing helmets.

I don't think they want it looking like a war zone.

[FailureToCommunicate]

4. True, but Haitians have seen U.S. troops on their island too many times before and

not for humanitarian purposes...

[gorfle]

5. I'm not sure I agree with this tactic.

Look, the reason we sent soldiers with guns is so that they can maintain order through force in the face of civil chaos.

There is a reason why some of the early relief workers fled in the face of that chaos - it was too dangerous to stay and they had no means to change the situation.

I believe that this time what the Captain did served to defuse the situation.

But I do not believe that sending in defenseless people into civil chaos is a smart move.

[lostnfound]

6. Listen to DemocracyNow for another perspective. nt

[FailureToCommunicate]

8. "civil chaos" ? Well that is the meme that CNN keeps replaying. Desperate people

may actually "loot" a store to get food. Would WE remain calm and orderly if our kids were dying in from of us?

[gorfle]

9. I did not say there was no reason for the chaos.

Desperate people may actually "loot" a store to get food. Would WE remain calm and orderly if our kids were dying in from of us?

I did not say there was no reason for the civil chaos, nor was I making any commentary at all on the civil chaos.

My commentary is that it is probably not a good idea to send defenseless people into a civil chaos situation. That is why we sent soldiers with guns.

[14thColony]

10. The UN, the Red Cross, Medecins Sans Frontieres;

These groups send defenseless people into civil chaos situations all the time. And even with no bullets a solider or Marine is not as defenseless as you might think. If you've ever seen hand-to-hand combat drill with rifles, you'll know why. The fact is the captain made a snap decision to defuse a tense situation that could have led to otherwise innocent people (and troops) getting hurt or killed. This is what we want in our company-level officers - the ability to adapt to the situation to accomplish the mission while employing the least amount of force required, which is exactly what he did.

[FailureToCommunicate]

11. Very good points... I just hope this commander gets some kind of pat on the back.

[nadinbrzezinski]

13. I went to a few of those, my only protection was a red cross

and faith in people. I still ordered medics out of riot situations.

[nadinbrzezinski]

12. Actually having been in more than a few shindigs

the army gets two reactions, if you keep a low posture, aka muzzles down. and do things like this, your mere presence keeps order. On the other hand, you go aggressive. you lose control.

Also 25K, vs a few men... Custer comes to mind... there are no Indians over there Colonel Custer!!!!

Leading Medics meant that even MY UNARMED medics had to be told to keep a sterm but low profile presence.

[JDPriestly]

7. Would it help if our soldiers wore something other than their uniforms.

They are not there to fight with people. They are there to help.

I can understand that the Haitians do not realize that our National Guard, for example, traditionally intervened in emergencies in the United States. That used to be their main job as I recall it from my childhood.

Soldiers in the military fought war. The reserves were called in for domestic emergencies. I was pretty young. Do I have the names of these organizations mixed up?

[nadinbrzezinski]

14. No, the uniform is what helped to calm people down

same role as your local cop... the uniform is many a times enough

[Codeine]

15. Haitians aren't stupid.

They know those folks are there to help.

[EmeraldCityGrl]

16. I am so proud of our military.

What a contrast to what the troops in the ME are doing.

This what I always imagine in my "perfect world" dreams.

[Uncle Joe]

17. That was a brilliant decision by the Capt. and this is a good picture.

?t=1263997569&s=4

Kicked and recommended.

Thanks for the thread, FailureToCommunicate.:thumbsup:

[FailureToCommunicate]

18. Thanks Uncle Joe! Yes, that photo is great. Glad you included the link. We are

using that photo on the collection cans to place around our high school -with the money going to Partners In Health, Haiti.

Couldn't resist this morsel of good news in a sea of terrible news last few days...