Afghan photos fallout: Has criticism of Palin crossed the line?

[doodle]

While Palin is still in Israel and asking them why they are apologizing all the time ( LINK (http://www.jpost.com/DiplomacyAndPolitics/Article.aspx?id=213043) ), German paper's publishing of gruesome photos of a soldier from Palin's tightly knit hometown of Wasilla posing with killed Afghan civilians is starting to brew a controversy back here in America. Palin is outspoken supporter of wars and often sees them in religious context invoking god, but apparently guilt by association in current photo scandal is resulting in fresh attacks on Palin. Claims earlier made about the said soldier having been a Palin family acquaintance and a visitor to their home have not been confirmed by MSM:


The Morlocks And The Palins
08 Nov 2010

Wasilla is a small place, family connections can go back a long way, and BFFs remain BFFs. Bristol's BFF's brother, Jeremy Morlock, is profiled here and here.


http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/the_daily_dish/2010/11/the-morlocks-and-the-palins.html


But that is not stopping attacks like these that have started to surface:


Photos of GI Posing With A Dead Afghan as a Trophy Released
March 21, 2011

Photos have been released showing an American GI posing with a dead Afghan like a hunter's trophy. The first soldier depicted is from Sarah Palin's town of Wasilla, Alaska. The gruesome photos give a sick image of what Palin's hunting philosophy looks like when taken to an extreme.

The photo shows Cpl. Jeremy Morlock of Wasilla, Alaska, smiling as he lifts the head of an Afghan's partially nude and bloody corpse by the hair. It is just one of three similar graphic photos published by Der Spiegel that comes from a collection of over 4,000 unearthed in their investigation.



http://politics.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474979152089

These attacks seem to refer to some Palin trophy photos of entirely different nature and fully legal:

Caution, graphic trophy photo
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/photos/uncategorized/2008/10/09/palin_shoots_caribou_in_alaska.jpg


Do you think these attacks have crossed a line?
Are these fair attacks at a time when Palin is considering running to be next commander in chief of US military?


Ilario Pantano

http://timeswampland.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/2010-05-21-pantano.jpg?w=296&h=222

--A Manhattan-born former Goldman Sachs trader

--Once accused of premeditated murder

About that "murder": In 2005, Pantano, a former U.S. Marine, emptied two M-16 clips--or up to 60 rounds--at two unarmed Iraqis in his custody.

P.S. See also Florida House GOP candidate Allen West, best known for firing his gun near the head of an Iraqi in 2003 to terrify the man during an interrogation

Read more: http://swampland.blogs.time.com/2010/10/27/how-bad-is-it-for-democrats/#ixzz1HJOKfTJJ


Palin endorse controversial N.C. Republican
Ilario Pantano, the ex-Marine who killed two Iraqi prisoners, snags two high-profile endorsements in House race

http://www.salon.com/news/politics/war_room/2010/10/28/giuliani_palin_for_pantano

Governor Sarah Palin endorses Allen West
Deerfield Beach, FL - March 30, 2010 - Republican Congressional candidate Allen West (FL-22) expressed his gratitude for Governor Sarah Palin's endorsement. ...
http://anotherblackconservative.blogspot.com/2010/03/sarah-palin-endorse-col-allen-west.html



Caution: gruesome war trophy photo published by German paper:
http://www.spiegel.de/images/image-194553-galleryV9-ocbh.jpg

[t0rnado]

What line?

[QueenB4Liberty]

I don't see the problem.

[sailingaway]

Criticism of Palin crossed the line about the first week after she was nominated to be VP. It was like with Rand. Completely unfair and spun beyond belief. Even after seeing what they did to Ron in the primary, it set me back on my heels and made me like her, reflexively, just as a person. Then Kristol became her foreign policy adviser, etc. And she was ok with the bailouts, which I thought were immoral.

[doodle]

What line?

Political correctness.

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_niS0GYP5ReA/TLPB9z5dm6I/AAAAAAAABQ8/_UdtkBcNE9c/s1600/crossing-a-line.gif

[mczerone]

The criticism of Palin crossed the line of disparaging hunting. These photo ops are "at the extremes" of nationalism, racism, and inhumanity, but not hunting. It's that the soldiers have coped by making brutal murder more like hunting, not that they have taken the ideals of hunting to any kind natural extreme.

[doodle]

I don't see the problem.

When Palin comes back to America from her foreign policy crash course tour, instead of being asked about Libya, Iraq, DADT, bailouts, gropings at airports ( did not happen to Palin during this trip), economic problems, reporters would likely seek her comments on this photo scandal about a soldier in her home town she may have only known through her daughter.
It just increases number of questions she will have to rehearse for in case she is part of any debates.

[doodle]

Reportedly, this is the photo that Flikr had removed and video interview:

http://gawker.com/#!5683761/bristol-palins-fro+yo-buddy-is-sister-to-us-soldier-accused-of-murdering-afghans

[BlackTerrel]

on this photo scandal about a soldier in her home town she may have known through her daughter.

I don't think anyone gives a crap about two people from the same town. The town I come from has some people far worse than that soldier,

[doodle]

I don't think anyone gives a crap about two people from the same town. The town I come from has some people far worse than that soldier,

Good point. Hard to claim that Palin's war speech could inspire anyone to do such things as are being claimed.

Worry here maybe that Afghans or some US reporters may ask Palin to comment on this and she may end up apologizing even if he did not visit her house often at all. Reports of him being prom date of Bristol Palin also seem sketchy.
Recently Obama apologized for something people living in this country did to prisoners in some poor South American country (STD experiments) many decades ago. As former mayor of Wasilla, can Palin be forced to comment on this in debates?

[doodle]

German paper link:


Photo Gallery: The 'Kill Team' in Afghanistan

http://www.spiegel.de/fotostrecke/fotostrecke-65981.html

[RyanRSheets]

In light of this horrible attempt to dig up anything whatsoever, it is even more ironic that Ted Kennedy was glorified as a hero. Palin probably would be a murderer if she was in power, but trying to associate the actions of her daughter's friend's brother is just stupid.

[BlackTerrel]

Good point. Hard to claim that Palin's war speech could inspire anyone to do such things as are being claimed.

Worry here maybe that Afghans or some US reporters may ask Palin to comment on this and she may end up apologizing even if he did not visit her house often at all. Reports of him being prom date of Bristol Palin also seem sketchy.
Recently Obama apologized for something people living in this country did to prisoners in some poor South American country (STD experiments) many decades ago. As former mayor of Wasilla, can Palin be forced to comment on this in debates?

Are you on drugs?

[doodle]

Off topic but where did that come from.



A U.S.-Afghan investigation discovered about $43-million worth of American-supplied drugs for military hospitals were missing, and expensive diagnostic equipment was found in private medical offices.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/keeping-an-eye-on-afghanistan-and-military--personnels-fitness/2011/03/18/ABB3YE9_story.html

[Tinnuhana]

If we have the best ideas for the country, I would hope that we could "sell" them during debates without entering the morass of ad hominem attacks. The last thing I want to do is call other candidates for the 2012 primaries "fringe" the way Ron was treated in the last election. I hope we can be above it all. With all the dirt they're digging up on each other, this separation will draw people to the message.