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Originally posted by JohnnyR
Soooo.. did anyone listen to Glenn Beck today? Apparently if you don't think Osama was killed Sunday you will now be refered to as "Deathers" When I heard him say that I spit my drink out. So now we have Birthers, Truthers and Deathers....Anyone else find it curious that there is always a silly name made for people who don't accept the "official story" ?
Americans are fascinated by the anonymous U.S. Navy SEALs who daringly raided Osama bin Laden's Abbottabad, Pakistan compound this week, but one canine commando is attracting especially fervent interest.
According to the New York Times and the British tabloid The Sun, a military dog (not pictured) was strapped onto one of the assault team members as he was lowered out of a Black Hawk helicopter and began the operation that killed the notorious terrorist on Monday. But who is this canine hero?
Sadly, we know very little, and the Pentagon hasn't confirmed that a dog was even on the mission, much less release information about the canine's name or breed.
"Little is known about what may be the nation's most courageous dog," the Times' Gardner Harris writes. He speculates that the dog was most likely a German shepherd or a Belgian Malinois, since those are the breeds most often found in the military's 2,700-strong military dog program. (A new breed, however, is becoming popular with the troops. Labrador retrievers have begun to "wander off-leash 100 yards or more in front of patrols to ensure the safety of the route.")
The Pentagon and White House are keeping tight-lipped about the details of the operation, but that, of course, hasn't prevented commentators from speculating on the dog's role based on the functions of other war dogs in combat. "It's possible that the commandos brought a specialized search dog, which would have been sent in ahead of the humans to find explosives or people hidden inside the building," Slate's Brian Palmer writes. Or the dog could have been a "combat tracker"--canines who are specially trained to sniff out individuals and then follow their trail. Saddam Hussein was found in a hole under a hut--the assault team could have decided that they needed a good tracking dog in case bin Laden had a similar idea.
Dogs are increasingly important in America's combat operations abroad, and some have been outfitted with special (and adorable) "doggles" to protect their eyes, oxygen masks to protect their lungs as they parachute out with soldiers at high altitudes, and even waterproof vests that contain infrared cameras that transmit video back to servicemen watching a monitor yards behind them. Check out Foreign Policy's beautiful photo essay on military dogs here.
Originally posted by BlackOps719
reply to post by brewing
I had to nab that pic.....for some reason I find it hysterical!
Originally posted by Drew99GT
Originally posted by BlackOps719
reply to post by brewing
I had to nab that pic.....for some reason I find it hysterical!
It looks like the dog had to wear nuclear blinders to mitigate the blinding amount of bull # in the Bin Laden story.
Originally posted by tangotemper
Another reason why it stinks. 20 or so heavily armed Seals - 40 minute firefight and only three people killed? When most of the bad guys were competent with weapons? Who was shooting for 40 minutes, at whom, and why was there no local alarm raised, or military backup brought in (the academy was only a few minutes away, and the area populated with retired Pakistani generals. Where was the bodyguard for OBL? OBL himself was moderately comfortable with an AK47. High walls alone do not a defence make.
There is something missing from the story.
Originally posted by BlackOps719
"Little is known about what may be the nation's most courageous dog," the Times' Gardner Harris writes.