It Remains A Strange Tale

Despite what a commenter to this post says, the Giuliana Sgrena story remains a strange tale.

Oh sure, there have been other kidnapped individuals released in Iraq, some of them even after making a "save me" video.  But many have been beheaded, or worse.

And the fact that she writes for a communist paper and is staunchly anti-war may not be pertinent.  Then again, the fact that James Guckert/Jeff Gannon wrote for a conservative online news service and was pro-administration might not have been pertinent either.

So what else makes the story strange?  How about a car that was riddled with 300-400 rounds of military ammunition, but looks like a possible keeper from the local used car lot.  How about some serious inconsistencey in the speed at which they traveled?  How about some inconsistency in whether or not warning lights were flashed?  How about inconsistency in who shot at them and how?  How about questions whether the Italians let the U.S. know what was going on?  And so on.  Thanks to Dr. Rusty Shackleford at My Pet Jawa for the thorough sourcing.  My work schedule has not allowed me the time to nail them down myself.

I'll make the point again.  I suppose it's possible to believe that the U.S. intentionally targets journalists, as Eason Jordan intimated, and that a prime choice for targeting would be a high-profile abducted anti-war communist reporter from Italy, one of the European nations actually supporting us.  And then those U.S. soldiers would fail to kill her and only kill an Italian agent, despite a hailstorm of fire on the vehicle. This simple activity would a) alienate an ally, b) alienate anyone who just now is beginning to see the progress in Iraq, c) alienate anyone with sympathy for a kidnapped hostage, and d) cause the media to go even harder after the U.S. efforts. 

Or, alternatively, it's possible to believe that the U.S. didn't know she was coming, fired warning shots and flashed lights, then fired just enough to disable the car.  Tragically an Italian agent was killed, but the high-profile passenger was so minimally wounded that she could be released after simple medical treatment almost immediately.

Which is correct?  Look at the car, and read her statements.

Comments

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Laurence Simon offers a proposed additional question for the driver’s licensing exam in Italy:

You are approaching a checkpoint where there are armed troops waving flashlights and firing warning shots over your vehicle. You:

a) Stop
b) Speed up
c) Immediately make a U-turn and head for the nearest cafe for expresso and gelato
d) Crap your pants

to which I add:

e) Scream and waive like an Arab terrorist to further get the Americans’ attention
f) Proceed upwind from checkpoint, throw up hands to surrender and wait for U.S. troops to pass out
g) Surrender to anyone on road prior to hitting checkpoint, explaining that Italy has a fine tradition of surrendering in modern times commencing with Ethiopia in 1896
h) Play “My Way” by Frank Sinatra on car horn as you approach
i) Put on sunglasses to cut down the glare from the flashlights

…..you are free to add to the list