Mad Social Scientist

He who fights with monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you. ---Nietzsche

From Eric Umansky (picked up by Brad DeLong). See also this disheartening piece.

Clearly, most civilians left before the assault. It's unclear how many stayed behind. And it's unclear how many of those were wounded. We may never know. But here are two reports from civilians inside the town. The first is from an A.P. reporter who fled:

``I decided to swim ... but I changed my mind after seeing U.S. helicopters firing on and killing people who tried to cross the river.''

He watched horrified as a family of five was shot dead as they tried to cross. Then, he ``helped bury a man by the river bank, with my own hands.''

``I kept walking along the river for two hours and I could still see some U.S. snipers ready to shoot anyone who might swim. I quit the idea of crossing the river and walked for about five hours through orchards.''

The second is from a local doctor, as recounted by the LAT:

Late Tuesday, a bomb struck one side of the makeshift medical center. Ghanim ran out.

A second bomb hit, crashing through the roof and destroying most of the facility. Ghanim believes it killed at least two of the young resident doctors working there and most of the patients.

"At that moment I wished to die," he said. "It was a catastrophe."

Afterward, he said, he half-ran, half-wandered through Fallouja, dodging explosions that seemed to be everywhere. He took shelter in an empty house and did not move.

"Time stopped. I don't know how long I was there," he said. "The tanks hit anything that moved.

"I saw the injured people on the street, covered in blood, staggering, screaming, shouting, 'Help me! Help me!' but we could not get out and help them because we would be killed.

And this Reuters report picked up by Kos. (See also this followup)

The U.S. military has begun an investigation into possible war crimes after a television pool report by NBC showed a Marine shooting dead a wounded and unarmed Iraqi in a Falluja mosque, officials said on Monday [...]

The pool report by NBC correspondent Kevin Sites said the mosque had been used by insurgents to attack U.S. forces, who stormed it and an adjacent building, killing 10 militants and wounding the five.

Sites said the wounded had been left in the mosque for others to pick up and move to the rear for treatment. No reason was given why that had not happened.

A second group of Marines entered the mosque on Saturday after reports it had been reoccupied. Footage from the embedded television crew showed the five still in the mosque, although several appeared to be already close to death, Sites said.

He said one Marine noticed one of the prisoners was still breathing.

A Marine can be heard saying on the pool footage provided to Reuters Television: "He's fucking faking he's dead. He faking he's fucking dead."

"The Marine then raises his rifle and fires into the man's head. The pictures are too graphic for us to broadcast," Sites said.

The report said the Marine had returned to duty after being shot in the face a day earlier.

Sites said the shot prisoner "did not appear to be armed or threatening in any way."

Remember, almost 1200 US soldiers have died in Iraq (already about 70 this month), and tens of thousands of Iraqis. How many? The US refuses to count, which, combined with tales like those above, makes me think the number is on the high side. The Lancet study may be right.

Suppose it is, and we've flushed more than 100,000 lives down the drain so far. Why? For a war of choice that couldn't have ever improve US or regional security? To make Iraqis' lives *better*? To bring them freedom? If the above is "freedom", I'll take "tyranny".

Insightful man, Orwell. Just off by 20 years.