Watch Your Mouth, General

A U.S Marine general is getting a lot of heat from our liberal- multicultural - politically correct- elitist media because of some things he said at a forum/ panel discusion in San Diego.

From the Boston Globe:

Marine general says it's 'fun' to shoot some in combat

WASHINGTON -- A decorated Marine Corps general said, "It's fun to shoot some people" and poked fun at the manhood of Afghans as he described the wars US troops are fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Lieutenant General James N. Mattis, a career infantry officer who is now in charge of developing better ways to train and equip Marines, made the comments Tuesday while speaking to a forum in San Diego.

According to an audio recording, he said, "Actually, it's a lot of fun to fight. You know, it's a hell of a hoot . . . It's fun to shoot some people. I'll be right up front with you. I like brawling."

He added, "You go into Afghanistan, you got guys who slap women around for five years because they didn't wear a veil. You know, guys like that ain't got no manhood left anyway. So it's a hell of a lot of fun to shoot them."

His comments were met with laughter and applause from the audience. Mattis was speaking during a panel discussion hosted by the Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Association, a spokeswoman for the general said.

Hagee also said, "While I understand that some people may take issue with the comments made by him, I also know he intended to reflect the unfortunate and harsh realities of war."

Among Marines, Mattis is regarded as a fighting general and an expert in the art of warfare. Among his decorations are the Bronze Star with a combat distinguishing device and a combat action ribbon, awarded for close-quarters fighting.

He is currently the commanding general of the Marine Corps Combat Development Command in Quantico, Va., and deputy commandant for combat development.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), a Muslim civil liberties group, called on the Pentagon to discipline Mattis for the remarks.

"We do not need generals who treat the grim business of war as a sporting event," said the council's executive director, Nihad Awad. "These disturbing remarks are indicative of an apparent indifference to the value of human life."

HeavyHanded begs to differ. "People" who are more than willing and even take pleasure in sawing the heads of people and who strap bombs on unsuspecting mentally retarded boys (see earlier post on 18 yr old Down Syndrom "suicide" bomber) are the ones who have an "indifference to life." These are the animals we are fighting. At least the good general called them "people." I think he was being overly kind.

The article continues:

Pace and Hagee praised the general's service.

"His actions and those of his troops clearly show that he understands the value of proper leadership and the value of human life," Pace said.

Hagee called Mattis "one of this country's bravest and most experienced military leaders," and said he was confident he would continue to serve with distinction.

As a lieutenant colonel, Mattis led an assault battalion into Kuwait during the first war with Iraq. He commanded troops during the war in Afghanistan, and during the second war in Iraq, he commanded the First Marine Division during the invasion and also when the unit returned for counterinsurgency operations.

Betsy Newmark from Betsy's Page opined:
"I think the great, great majority of the American people are going Yee-haw! That's what we like in our fighting men. And these people we're fighting are evil. In Iraq they send a Down's Syndrome child to kill people trying to vote. If the Marines bring themselves to the point that they enjoy killing such vermin, I don't mind at all and I bet most people don't mind. It's nice to know that there ares some military out there who aren't overcome by political correctness.

I think it's the same attitude that the great majority of people have towards the supposed torture of prisoners at Abu Ghraib. That's why the American people aren't going to get whipped up about some memo that Albert Gonzales wrote concerning torture."

Neal Boortz chimes in:
"Immediately the headlines blared that a Marine general said it was 'fun to shoot people.' No ... he didn't say it was fun to shoot "people." He said it was fun to shoot men who had been slapping women around for five years. Frankly, I agree with him. Thankfully the Marines and the Joint Chiefs are defending him, so it looks like his head won't roll over this one. He did issue an unnecessary apology saying he might have chosen his words better. Nonsense...his words were right on target.

Pacifist leftists who claim that 'war is not the answer' will try to use this as some sort of 'gotcha' against American troops to try and portray them as bloodthirsty killers. On the contrary, there was nothing wrong with Lieutenant General Mattis' remarks.

Hell, if given the chance to shoot and kill Osama Bin Laden, Al-Zarqawi or any of the other insurgents, you're damned right it would be a lot of fun. Might even be worth stuffing the head and mounting it on the wall."