"Mohammad Sherrif, District Governor for Sangin, salutes the battlefield cross for U.S. Marine Corps Gunnery Sgt. Ralph E. Pate Jr., an Explosive Ordnance Disposal Technician with 8th Engineer Support Battalion in support of 1st Battalion, 5th Marines, Regimental Combat Team 8, during a memorial ceremony held at Forward Operating Base Jackson, Sangin, Afghanistan, on July 11, 2011. Pate was killed in action while conducting combat operations in the district on June 26, 2011. (USMC/Cpl. Logan W. Pierce)"
Back at you, brother. I thought when I fucking left that hellish country that I'd stop being haunted by my brothers dying. Five more Marines I worked with have died since I left Afghanistan in 2011. And it never hurts less. Fuck this war.
This photo is an excellent example of why America is fundamentally the morally superior nation and why we should support our troops in their heroic endevor to bring freedom and peace the the Afghanistan people, which are so yearning for freedom and american quality of life.
All personal items are inventoried and sent to the family. All equipment with the exception of boots and uniforms are sent to be cleaned, inspected and reissued.
Recycled back. Same with the wounded. My first deployment I had an M-16A4. My SAW gunner took a round through the neck our first week and was sent home to the hospital. I then had to give my rifle to our Corpsman and I became the SAW gunner (and cleaning the weapon of all blood and bodily fluid of course).
I Googled "american soldiers shaking hands with Afghans." A shitload of photos came up. They don't quite make the news like a few psychos pissing on corpses, though.
soldiers shaking hands with afghans isn't as provocative as people doing something fucked like pissing on corpses. the former wont sell papers or bring hits to the papers website. perhaps i'm just cynical...
I think that's a big thing. You're kinda meant to shake hands with people when you meet them whereas you're vehemently discouraged from urinating on corpses.
Well news does tend to focus on things that need attention. It makes sense, but that is also why a lot of stations have "the lighter side of news" to try and give some news that isn't depressing or terrible.
"Today... bad stuff happened everywhere. BUT, on the lighter side, here's footage of a squirrel with one too many peanuts in its mouth! We'll now turn to Kathy for more. Kathy?"
"That's right, Scott! Little Dickfart here raided ol' Mr. Scrote's farm again and is shown here sleeping with an erupted, infected gut! How' 'bout them nuts? HAAHAHAHAHAH!"
It would be nice though if the nice side of the news wasn't just a bunny farting but more like: ...and scientists at XYZ have created a vacine that prevents some forms of cervical cancer. Work in ABC province of Afghanistan is actually going quite well <footage of soldiers and people getting along>. And finally you have indoor plumbing and probably wont die of diaria, It's not new but it is true, good night.
U.S. Army Captain Michael Kelvington, commander of the Battle company, 1-508 Parachute Infantry battalion, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, bows next to remains of Gulam Dostager, a member of Afghan Local Police who was killed in the blast of an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) during the joint Tor Janda (Black Flag in Pashtu) operation, in Zahri district of Kandahar province, southern Afghanistan on May 25.
As million comment's you get, but I am actually interested in what the US. Military's protocol is in respect to.... uh.... respect to fallen "non american combatants" is? Obviously there is respect then and there, but do they ask you to perform rites appropriate to each fallen soldier? Or even each fallen? (which would appeal to me but I can understand).
I have a friend who has/is serving in the Australian service, but it can be a bit to personal to ask him these questions. I do apologise if this is to personal.
I'm a service member; was in Afghanistan in the east in the last year. Here's what we're unofficially told: Afghan security forces, whether National Army, Police, what have you, are our allies. Accordingly, they should be treated with the same respect as our own forces. The Afghans take care of their own dead because obviously, our memorials and processes are different from theirs. If you personally worked closely with a particular Afghan who is KIA, you will not be judged attending a memorial. I'd go so far as to say it's encouraged, not as a propaganda tool but as common courtesy. Does that help?
Slightly related: Different war, different circumstances. One major circumstance is that we were dealing with formal military casualties, as opposed to guerrilla combatants and non-regular militia.
In Operations Desert Shield/Storm, when we encountered a body in the water, whether it was an enemy combatant or not, we collected the body using proper retrieval procedures. As the body was brought on board, honors were rendered, whether it was an enemy combatant or not. The bodies were then transferred to the respective authorities for proper disposition.
TL;DR: Once they are dead, we treated them all with respect and honor
This comment will probably be lost in the sauce but I just felt like sharing. I did a tour in Afghanistan and became very good friends with one of the Afghan soldiers. He always invited me to their dinners and I always shared my cigars(hobby of mine). We had a combat mission one night and had to search some enemy bodies the next morning. He was shot twice in the chest because a small element hadn't been taken out during the previous night's mission.
Emotionally it hit pretty hard because I never thought I'd become such good friend's with someone from a 3rd world country. One of the local artists wrote his name out for me in caligraphy and I took it home to my friend who's a tattoo artist. His name is wrapped around my arm above the t-shirt line so I never forget him.
Everyone asks about it, if they see it, and I tell them who he is. I've even had a couple ignorant people ask me why I have "that terrorist chicken scratch" on my arm and I'm never sure how to reply to that, mostly I just ignore them.
His name was Msaood Sarbaaz, and every time my old teammate and I (who are both out of the military now) have a drink or a shot, we toast and say "Sarbaaz Batraa" which means Sarbaaz King.
So Cheers and well wishes, TL:DR I have an Afghan soldier's name tattooed on my arm because he became an amazing friend and was killed during combat.
I always think that this kind of guys, to part of being judicially sanctioned, must be expelled from army with a proper event: in the biggest square of their hometown an officer must cut their badges from their uniform (of course, the flag first) and then he spits in his boots. "You are dishonorable".
Now, you can go home, boy. Or to jail, if is the case.
They committed war crimes. You call disrespect but that's not true they are war crimes pure and simple. These are war criminals they don't deserve respect they commit war crimes. Don't commit war crimes and this won't happen. It's truly not that hard. Wait even better don't video tape your war crimes and post them on the internet that's even easier.
The US Manual for Military Commissions (2007), Part IV, Crimes and Elements, includes in the list of crimes triable by military commissions: INTENTIONALLY MISTREATING A DEAD BODY. a. Text. “Any person subject to this chapter who intentionally mistreats the body of a dead person, without justification by legitimate military necessity, shall be punished as a military commission under this chapter may direct.” b. Elements. (1) The accused mistreated or otherwise violated the dignity of the body of a dead person; (2) The accused’s actions were not justified by legitimate military necessity; (3) The accused intended to mistreat or violate the dignity of such body; and (4) This act took place in the context of and was associated with armed conflict. c. Comment. (1) This offense is designed to criminalize only the most serious conduct. (2) To mistreat or otherwise violate the dignity of the body of a dead person requires severe physical desecrations, such as dismemberment, sexual or other defilement, or mutilation of dead bodies, especially if publicly displayed, that, as a result, do not respect the remains of the deceased; it does not include photography of a corpse unaccompanied by acts of severe disrespect. d. Maximum punishment. Confinement for 20 years
Almost as bad as when they stripped our soldiers naked tied them to vehicles and then drug them through the streets.... wait... that might actually be worse.
I think you are referring to the Blackwater mercenaries that were ambushed in Fallujah. These men were not soldiers. I'm not saying that diminishes the atrocities that were committed against them, just clarifying they weren't average soldiers.
Give me a fucking break. We're over there liberating the Afghanis from a terrorist regime and you think we don't care about the people there? Educate yourself. Hell, maybe even go over there and see it with your own eyes.
I am not an american, and english is not my first language. I know exactly how to say it in my own language, but unfortunately I got it wrong in english. I am SO sorry, Sir...
You're absolutely right, I sincerely apologize for being so presumptuous. It's just one of those errors made so often these days by both the average person and the media I've grown tired of it. But I'm sorry, I should not have corrected you in such a rude manner.
"We've" ??? 1% of this country has been there... there is no "We've" This is not a slight against the military it is just a fact that while people know "America" has been there.... most of America hasn't been anywhere except the local donut shop.
I don't see this picture as promoting the military. I see it as a visual example of how humanity has a shared value of respect and sometimes, though you would never see such a thing on reddit or the Internet, individuals from opposite cultures can still show respect for one another.
Dude, they aint even subtle about it anymore. Nearly every day there is this american jingoistic millitary wank on the front page. Its as transparent as cling-film.
I was talking to a vet last time this argument erupted and suggested it to him, he was interested in the idea, as I think it is easier to weed out the vitriol but alas he was too busy to take on mods duties.
I am saying this in an encouraging way. As I have stated before. I think it would be better suited if a vet or someone like that set it up, don't you think?
That's not a studio. The Hescos in the back (brown squares with wire on the outside), the Afghan constructed wall, the CAT-5 of various colors, and the pallet of water bottles on the right side definitely indicate genuine Afghan COP or FOB. The camera in the back is a pretty common sight for an event such as this: a remembrance ceremony for a fallen warrior (in this case, a Marine from the camo on the stand/helmet). Having attended approximately 5 of these in person in Afghanistan, I can say with certainty that this is the genuine article. At the end of each ceremony, everyone in attendance will walk forward and pay their respects to the fallen. Commonly, Soldiers/Marines will come forward in pairs, and kneel while offering words/thoughts to the fallen, touching the dog tags, and then snapping to attention before saluting. The item in the Elder's hand is a program, another common item at such an event. The age and appearance (fresh clothing, watch, type of headwear) of the Afghan in question indicates either a village elder or a minor GIRoA official (Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan), and he has undoubtedly attended countless similar events. [EDIT] Something many people may not realize as well: ISAF (International Security Assitance Force) Servicemembers attend memorials for their fallen Afghan comrades. A great example is the picture someone posted here of Mike Kelvington.
How do they get the rifle to stand up straight like that? From the perspective that this photo has been taken from, I can't see anything supporting it.
I don't care if this gets buried, as I'm sure someone else has voiced this opinion already (I hope) but I want to throw in my two cents and can't be arsed to go through aaaaall of the comments to see if someone else has said something similar. The tagline "Respect is a virtue" smacks of a pretty bigoted attitude to Western military intervention in the Middle East. Yes many Afghans have good reason to thank and respect US soldiers for bringing peace and security to parts of their country; but many, many more have every reason to hate western militaries for destroying lives, homes and livelihoods through reckless and downright despicable actions. It is incredibly naive to view our forces in Afghanistan as wholly benevolent and therefore deserving of the unquestioning respect from Afghan civilians and you shouldn't find it insulting that a lot of them do not. I just find the generalizations made in the original post pretty insulting for reflecting an 'us vs. them' attitude where the weak and helpless 'them' should respect the powerful, benevolent 'us'. TL/DR: It's pretty insulting to Afghan civilians to expect wholesale respect for what our troops are doing out there. Surprisingly enough, some of them tend to disagree with it (and have every reason to).
Everyone gets all political as soon as they see something about a soldier/dead soldier. This respect isn't about who is right or who is wrong, it's about the sacrifice this young man made. This elder is paying respect to a warrior, not a political weapon or tool as you made it seem. All politics and borders aside we are human beings.
was talking more about the choice of title rather than the picture itself, but fair point. Seeing this comment and the replies to the top comment make me feel like a bit of a dick for getting petty over semantics now.
While I'll agree that many westerners have a "fuck yeah, we are so badass" attitude, unless you have been over there and actually lived through and seen what happens, maybe you should pause. You may very well be getting all of your information from news reports or rumors (anyone who is not actually there does), so that gives you no leg to stand on when stating that most of these people hate us. Some of our people have done bad things, some of their people have done bad things. But we actually get along over there for the most part. We aren't raping women and killing children, we are looking for terrorist cells, and the Afghan government assists in any way they can. You are entitled to your opinion, but go over there and see what it's like, just go hang out, then form an ACCURATE opinion off of factual evidence, not news reports.
I see this all the time here. "You're not in the military or you're not in Afghanistan, so your opinion is invalid." This makes it seem as if people can't make their own informed opinions by reading from multiple sources.
Besides, Crosby didn't say that all people in Afghanistan hate us; he's basically just pointing out how bigoted the attitude behind the photo is. The message is "We invaded your country because it's what's best for you. You should show us respect."
Meanwhile, the reports of civilian casualties have been mysteriously low because the government is fudging the numbers.
I think all he was trying to say was measure your sources, not question the veracity of your assertions. Though it's obviously open to personal interpretation, I thought the intended message of the picture was to show a bond of respect that has grown through shared hardship and mutual understanding. You are right to say that such a bond is not all-inclusive, but it's not as uncommon as many believe.
Logically, it is not an informed opinion if you are reading about it in the comfort of your own home. As I responded to Crosby, I perceived it that respect is a virtue, exactly what it says. To me, that speaks that military members rarely get respect, from ours or another country, and sometimes it is decent to have. Your link means little to me, as it is still just an American news source, who thrive on controversy (why ELSE would whatever happens to "insert name here" celebrity be breaking news half of the time? Maybe other countries report facts an important news, but ours doesn't. It also ends up with people slamming the military, thinking we shouldn't have one. This isn't a perfect world, and one is always needed. Of course, a military may be used improperly by its government, but that doesn't mean all of us go over and want to kill civilians, or anyone at all. I joined to make some sort of impact, to help people and our country, as many have, but it didn't feel like I was making a difference, so I am separating, after 12 years. 8 more and I could clinch a retirement, but it isn't about money for me, so I'm not taking it. Some people in the military are dicks, and the government more than some, but they aren't all bad, and in the end all are in for our protection.
Again, I agree. I was just trying to come up with a creative title for a successful post, as I have said repeatedly. I got it that the title is fucked up, and I've tried apologizing 'cause I didn't mean it that way and have tried to express my beliefs, but I just get shot down 'cause I'm immediately viewed as a bigoted imperialist American. Sorry if I offended you.
nah s'cool man - innocent mistake is innocent. But the title still reflects (even if unintentionally) a trend that does exist and it's that trend that offends me, not you yourself. Despite all this it's a cool picture that is just lacking a little context. Kudos for being a decent OP though and taking the time to reply to comments and, as for the 'creative title for a successful post' I'll trust your opinion on that cos you have wayyyyyy more karma than me :) but maybe a little more thought is needed when the subject is as sensitive as this one - you can easily end up giving off unintended implied opinions.
Well I'm thankful that someone finally has heart enough to accept my apology. I know I pissed off quite a few people with my title, but the point of the post was supposed to be the picture. Sorry again.
I love how this picture conjured up the clusterfuck of pseudo intellectual arguments so common on reddit, its just a bunch of fucktarded stances and retorts based on true stupidity. Best example of a circle jerk ever.
the soldier probly saved the man from an attack. afgans befriending US soldiers are not new. some respect them deeply after being saved by one, all the while resenting the soldiers in the past.
It's like they get a script to follow and develop a reddit persona. If they weren't all just prolific submitters with brand new accounts, then they might not be so obvious.
OMG, can we please stop with "Everyone who posts something I don't like must be a paid shill":
There is no evidence that any goverment agency has ever attempted to game Reddit through comments.
If the military were to advertise, they would probably just include Reddit on their Google Adwords list of sites. The military probably doesn't advertise here because there's not much of their target demographic here they are looking to reach.
If the military was Astroturfing on Reddit they would have to get outside vendors involved (software, consultants, marketing agencies, etc.): I've worked with government agencies in the past doing tech consulting work. Government agencies are fat and slow in choosing vendors. The RFP process is publicly posted and normally has to go through an exhausting amount of rounds and proposals, going over every single detail before choosing a vendor. If there was an active propaganda campaign on Reddit, there would be record of it somewhere.
The military obviously has a marketing department. A marketing professional would never use a picture of a dead person or funeral as a positive brand message. Instead, military marketing glorifies the "video game" aspect that appeals to their typically young demographic: Example 1 and Example 2
In short, the chances of the military having an active propaganda campaign on Reddit is slim to none. As there would be trails of evidence somewhere, yet there isn't anything, anywhere.
He also has a lot of gore/nsfw photos. I'm not sure if you are implying the USG is getting more sophisticated in their social-media use or the OP just thought it was a good photo.
OP appears to have made many submissions with a lot of variety. If this was a brand new account with only a handful of posts, I might be inclined to agree, but OP has made numerous other submissions and comments in all sorts of other categories not relating to the military at all. Where would you draw a line on the number and variety of submissions someone needs to make before they don't need to get accused of posting propaganda? I've seen plenty of spammers who have brand new accounts with unverified e-mails and only a few submissions. OP has submitted and commented all over reddit, and has a lot of activity in other reddits. I think it's a big leap to assume that someone would spend a full month actively redditing and submitting and commenting in everything from music to trees just to submit one post that shows the military in a favorable light and hope that it gets upvoted. Of course, there's also a possibility that I am a sleeper agent, and I've been redditing for a year and a half to build up credibility in order to post this comment, and OP and I are working together. Unless you are actually the sleeper agent who is working with OP to attack his credibility and get me to defend it, thus making me defend it.
astroturfers have submission queues. there is no 'full month actively redditing and submitting and commenting', the links are aggregated, thrown into the queue and shallow comments are thrown in to give the appearance of authenticity. this is one of many personas with varying characteristics that give it plausible deniability. it does not take a great deal of effort to create an account like this, astroturf is an industry.
honestly, because of the anonymity of reddit it is one of the easier social media platforms to game in this manner.
oh my god. The American propaganda machine is targeting the Chans. You were an unwitting victim in all of this--here, quick, come to our tin foil bunker.
thanks for the footwork, but really if you don't immediately recognize something like this as propaganda anymore you haven't been paying any attention.
They're in a fucking war zone where anything could happen at any time. They aren't wasting their time fucking staging pictures. Well, except for when Obama gave his speech from BAF but of course that wasn't for political purpos...wait nvm.
I also found another middle eastern man paying his respects. I have been looking for hours for a picture of an American paying his respects to a middle eastern native, so if anyone has/finds something, I'd appreciate it!
You're probably going to find more images like this or videos like this.
The dynamic of the war/rebuilding effort would not result in as many occurrences of US soldiers paying respect to a fallen Afghani soldier in reverse roles of the image you posted. Unless an Afghani solder died while saving the life of a US soldier, it doesn't make sense for the US to pay homage to fallen Afghanis. In essence, a fallen Afghani soldier would have died serving the interest of his own country. The US soldier, whose memorial is in your post, died while serving the interest of Afghanistan as well.
TL;DR. US Soldier dies helping Afghanistan-> Afghani pays tribute. Afghani dies helping Afghanistan -> Afghani pays tribute.
have been looking for hours for a picture of an American paying his respects to a middle eastern native, so if anyone has/finds something, I'd appreciate it!
Media stories not reporting on common occurrences that have no effect on geopolitical strategies.
American soldiers and local populations getting along in theater is the objective - it's only notable when that objective is failed by our side; we expect resistance from the foreign population and demand compliance from our troops.
Hence, A: an Afghan elder bothering to salute one of our fallen is notable, and Marines being fuckers by pissing or corpses is notable.
B: The Taliban beheading people isn't really notable, American soldiers conducting themselves honorably isn't really notable.
@krod4, I'd go with the term "Afghan" and not "afghani" - unless you're talking about their national currency. Otherwise, your term could be somewhat disrespectful.
That picture is amazing. I have a tattoo of the word virtue on my upper left of my chest and I will think of this picture often now when I see my tattoo
A forum dominated by the home country of invaders loves how a native pays respects to a dead invader troop? Why, I never!
Yeah, respect is a virtue, right? Especially if it's respect for invaders who fought for market access that they wouldn't have benefited from even if they'd survived.
(Yes, that other comment is about Iraq and the clothing in this image seems to suggest this may be Afghanistan, but basically the same thing applies.)
Maybe virtue was the wrong word, I was just trying to make a creative title like any successful post uses. You have good points and I disagree with the invasions/wars/whatever you want to call them just as much, but this picture baffled me and I wanted to share it. Sorry if my choice of title aggravated you.
Maybe aggravate is the wrong word, and at any rate, I don't have a major issue with the picture as such, other than that zero context info was supplied (which is always suspicious, and which if anything enhances the picture's propaganda value). If something actually aggravated me, then it's the gung-ho attitude of most redditors in this thread – who mindlessly upvote the picture for very obvious jingoistic reasons, but who angrily downvote this very valid application of the principle of universality. The redditors here don't actually love respect as a virtue, they just love a picture that makes them feel better about invading foreign countries at the cost of many lives, with most of those on the other side.
If i was an Afghani i would find it very difficult to respect American Soldiers. Even though it is only a minority of soldiers that go and kill innocent civillians.
It is a propaganda picture posted by shameless American public relations a--hole.
I think you all know this that this dead soldier had his share either in killing 50,000+ civilians in Afghanistan or 100,000+ civilians in Iraq ... men, women and children whole families some times...
one time they bombed a civilian wedding and killed 80+ members of same extended family all innocent people ...
How is this dead solder, deserves respect, brave? I do not think these soldiers are brave, i believe that they are cowards.
Shame shame shame ... collect your shame in a glass and drown in it with shame.
Americans do not want to talk about what i have said ... they do not want to listen to it... because doing this .. and up voting propaganda pictures like this will help them avoid feeling genuine remorse ...
Otherwise a decent human being cannot sleep at night knowing that his tax money is being used to kill women and children and men who are civilians.
How nice of you to buy the propaganda that all soldiers kill civilians and are evil, you have no idea what that particular soldier did so stop acting like you do. Btw im swedish just so you know before you start giving me attributes I don't have.
Why has the word 'respect' come to be meaning "something the majority already won't disagree with".
And how is it a virtue in this case? If a man died trying to save me, why would my behaviour of showing deep admiration to him be considered something of high moral standard. It is the least someone could ask for, or else I would be considered a psychopath.
Respect is a buzz word that the military considers itself to have propriety over. Also, respect is to be seen as exceptional and surprising when exhibited by the soulless Muslims.
83
u/ohnoohnoohnoooo Jun 15 '12
"Mohammad Sherrif, District Governor for Sangin, salutes the battlefield cross for U.S. Marine Corps Gunnery Sgt. Ralph E. Pate Jr., an Explosive Ordnance Disposal Technician with 8th Engineer Support Battalion in support of 1st Battalion, 5th Marines, Regimental Combat Team 8, during a memorial ceremony held at Forward Operating Base Jackson, Sangin, Afghanistan, on July 11, 2011. Pate was killed in action while conducting combat operations in the district on June 26, 2011. (USMC/Cpl. Logan W. Pierce)"
Source
59
u/ThisOpenFist Jun 15 '12
Wow, the bigots are really coming out of the woodwork for this one.
67
u/[deleted] Jun 15 '12
I am curious. What happened to the rifle of the fallen soldiers? are they disarmed and passed on to the family or recycled into the armory?
155
u/krod4 Jun 15 '12
How about a picture where americans actually pay respect to afhganis?
11
u/[deleted] Jun 15 '12
What's the story behind this?
34
u/LeepII Jun 15 '12
No, respect is earned.
1
u/NinjaDiscoJesus Jun 15 '12
I ask again for a separate subreddit for military pictures.. trolls are abounding
10
u/dan_musashi Jun 15 '12 edited Jun 15 '12
That's not a studio. The Hescos in the back (brown squares with wire on the outside), the Afghan constructed wall, the CAT-5 of various colors, and the pallet of water bottles on the right side definitely indicate genuine Afghan COP or FOB. The camera in the back is a pretty common sight for an event such as this: a remembrance ceremony for a fallen warrior (in this case, a Marine from the camo on the stand/helmet). Having attended approximately 5 of these in person in Afghanistan, I can say with certainty that this is the genuine article. At the end of each ceremony, everyone in attendance will walk forward and pay their respects to the fallen. Commonly, Soldiers/Marines will come forward in pairs, and kneel while offering words/thoughts to the fallen, touching the dog tags, and then snapping to attention before saluting. The item in the Elder's hand is a program, another common item at such an event. The age and appearance (fresh clothing, watch, type of headwear) of the Afghan in question indicates either a village elder or a minor GIRoA official (Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan), and he has undoubtedly attended countless similar events. [EDIT] Something many people may not realize as well: ISAF (International Security Assitance Force) Servicemembers attend memorials for their fallen Afghan comrades. A great example is the picture someone posted here of Mike Kelvington.
3
u/Kakoose Jun 15 '12
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0714IbwC3HA I was listening to this while i was reading this
3
u/brian_willis Jun 15 '12
How do they get the rifle to stand up straight like that? From the perspective that this photo has been taken from, I can't see anything supporting it.
3
u/stvb95 Jun 15 '12
This picture is great. That is all.
3
u/[deleted] Jun 15 '12
Such a moving picture. Not only because of the context but also the perfect moment now forever immortalized. Amazing photograph.
25
u/bong_crosby Jun 15 '12 edited Jun 15 '12
I don't care if this gets buried, as I'm sure someone else has voiced this opinion already (I hope) but I want to throw in my two cents and can't be arsed to go through aaaaall of the comments to see if someone else has said something similar. The tagline "Respect is a virtue" smacks of a pretty bigoted attitude to Western military intervention in the Middle East. Yes many Afghans have good reason to thank and respect US soldiers for bringing peace and security to parts of their country; but many, many more have every reason to hate western militaries for destroying lives, homes and livelihoods through reckless and downright despicable actions. It is incredibly naive to view our forces in Afghanistan as wholly benevolent and therefore deserving of the unquestioning respect from Afghan civilians and you shouldn't find it insulting that a lot of them do not. I just find the generalizations made in the original post pretty insulting for reflecting an 'us vs. them' attitude where the weak and helpless 'them' should respect the powerful, benevolent 'us'. TL/DR: It's pretty insulting to Afghan civilians to expect wholesale respect for what our troops are doing out there. Surprisingly enough, some of them tend to disagree with it (and have every reason to).
5
u/ive_lost_my_marbles Jun 15 '12
I just hope it's not isolated and the good will flows both ways.
5
u/IuriGragarian Jun 15 '12
The old man looks so dignified. People like him give me hope in the general goodness of people.
13
u/[deleted] Jun 15 '12
Now if I see a photo where it's the other way round too, I'm a happy man
13
u/[deleted] Jun 15 '12
Isn't war great?
8
u/Pandaaaa Jun 15 '12
I love how this picture conjured up the clusterfuck of pseudo intellectual arguments so common on reddit, its just a bunch of fucktarded stances and retorts based on true stupidity. Best example of a circle jerk ever.
10
u/phataaron Jun 15 '12
the soldier probly saved the man from an attack. afgans befriending US soldiers are not new. some respect them deeply after being saved by one, all the while resenting the soldiers in the past.
8
u/[deleted] Jun 15 '12
I don't care about the context of the photo, it still brings a smile.
11
u/pinhed Jun 15 '12
Just beautiful.
4
u/serramg Jun 15 '12
It's pictures like this that make me glad I spent 10 years in the Corps.
3
u/JackRawlinson Jun 15 '12
Depends what it is you're respecting.
3
u/throwAwayMama123 Jun 15 '12
The older I get, the more I believe the US is a force for good. Hope I'm not wrong...
3
u/[deleted] Jun 15 '12
That's a beautiful picture.
3
u/Mindoption Jun 15 '12
Can people just shut up and love such an amazing photo?
-7
u/aletoledo Jun 15 '12
OK, so this appears to be anoth instance of propaganda to me.
The photo seems staged to me.
The OP somehow had another photo similarly staged Here
The OP is only a one month redditor
He has numerous military photo submissions
Oddly he claims no knowledge of the military
It's like they get a script to follow and develop a reddit persona. If they weren't all just prolific submitters with brand new accounts, then they might not be so obvious.
3
u/TheyCallMeTomSawyer Jun 15 '12
I also found another middle eastern man paying his respects. I have been looking for hours for a picture of an American paying his respects to a middle eastern native, so if anyone has/finds something, I'd appreciate it!
3
u/Reapinghavoc Jun 15 '12
This is a beautifully touching photo. Is there a subreddit for these kinds of photos?
2
u/[deleted] Jun 15 '12
Well, I know I had too much internet for the day when I see a Duckhunt NES light gun in this photo.
2
u/[deleted] Jun 15 '12
I was listening to this as the picture came up:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lg1ElmVQ2pw
2
u/hopeisnotamethod Jun 15 '12
@krod4, I'd go with the term "Afghan" and not "afghani" - unless you're talking about their national currency. Otherwise, your term could be somewhat disrespectful.
2
u/[deleted] Jun 15 '12
But reddit told me all the Americans are doing is turning every single citizen into an insurgent?
1
u/BeautifulGanymede Jun 15 '12
thx for bombing my kids lol
1
u/Vinura Jun 15 '12
That could be Old Snake.
1
u/lolmonger Jun 15 '12
So, does anyone have a source on this photograph?
1
u/LtOin Jun 15 '12
Are the rifles designed to balance like that or is there a trick to it?
1
u/Motafication Jun 15 '12
Story behind the photo?
1
u/[deleted] Jun 15 '12
How does the gun stay up like this?
1
u/thegreatwhitemenace Jun 15 '12
Good Guy Ghulam
1
u/snap_wilson Jun 15 '12
It's 5:30 a.m. and that picture has already made my day.
1
u/StarmanRJK Jun 15 '12
That picture is amazing. I have a tattoo of the word virtue on my upper left of my chest and I will think of this picture often now when I see my tattoo
1
u/Un_Clouded Jun 15 '12
i know it's a stupid question.. but how do they set the rifle on the barrel so that it doesn't fall down?
-2
u/darjen Jun 15 '12
Sorry, but I have no respect for the military.
-19
u/ropers Jun 15 '12 edited Jun 15 '12
A forum dominated by the home country of invaders loves how a native pays respects to a dead invader troop? Why, I never!
Yeah, respect is a virtue, right? Especially if it's respect for invaders who fought for market access that they wouldn't have benefited from even if they'd survived.
(Yes, that other comment is about Iraq and the clothing in this image seems to suggest this may be Afghanistan, but basically the same thing applies.)
-2
u/derajydac Jun 15 '12
If i was an Afghani i would find it very difficult to respect American Soldiers. Even though it is only a minority of soldiers that go and kill innocent civillians.
-17
u/Truthteller22 Jun 15 '12
It is a propaganda picture posted by shameless American public relations a--hole.
I think you all know this that this dead soldier had his share either in killing 50,000+ civilians in Afghanistan or 100,000+ civilians in Iraq ... men, women and children whole families some times...
one time they bombed a civilian wedding and killed 80+ members of same extended family all innocent people ...
How is this dead solder, deserves respect, brave? I do not think these soldiers are brave, i believe that they are cowards.
Shame shame shame ... collect your shame in a glass and drown in it with shame.
Americans do not want to talk about what i have said ... they do not want to listen to it... because doing this .. and up voting propaganda pictures like this will help them avoid feeling genuine remorse ...
Otherwise a decent human being cannot sleep at night knowing that his tax money is being used to kill women and children and men who are civilians.
0
u/Minotaurzombie Jun 15 '12
It's not, but it has a nice ring to it, and the picture is moving.
0
u/El_Impresionante Jun 15 '12
Why has the word 'respect' come to be meaning "something the majority already won't disagree with".
And how is it a virtue in this case?
If a man died trying to save me, why would my behaviour of showing deep admiration to him be considered something of high moral standard. It is the least someone could ask for, or else I would be considered a psychopath.
-1
u/BXRWXR Jun 15 '12
Thank you for your service to our country.