More on the 2007 incident in Iraq

I finally had some time to watch the video, and … well, it might be tough to watch. It appears completely authentic. War is an ugly business, especially when mistakes are made.

Watching, I can’t imagine how the helicopter crew saw AKs and RPGs, but I will accept that they thought that is what they saw. Obviously, RPGs are bad news for helicopters; if someone has an RPG and is preparing to fire it, that is something that must be addressed by the helicopter.

I think, in the end, this is probably one of those textbook examples of “bad things happen in a warzone”. In the end, I’m not sure that these kinds of events can be fully eliminated, as humans in high-stress situations can make errors.

What is frustrating to me is the never-ending cavalcade of stupid celebrity gossip that counts as “news” in our country now. I don’t care about whether or not Sandra Bullock has a prenup, or if Corey Haim was “doctor shopping” before his death.

Now, I agree with Joseph, who mentioned in the comments that news organizations should source. They should. I guess this particular incident was the one that pushed me over the edge about our obsessively celebrity-driven, fluff-filled mass media.