Horse Laughs

I've personally met or talked over the phone with some of my readership, and I know there are both serving military, military historians, and herealdic scholars amongst you. This one's for you - but I've explained the significance of the picture and the extremely subversive "in joke" for everyone else.

Quoted from The Command Post :

Things MSM isn't reporting - again.

Updating a previous post, this from the blog of PFC Charles Maib, a US Army reporter in Iraq. He's in the 1st Cavalry, and took the intriguing photo below, so this one is literally "straight from the horse's mouth". :

No one ever sat at the table. The meeting was informal and took place with Kerry leaning against the table and other Soldiers surrounding him. Someone mentioned hockey, and Kerry said he had just been playing ice hockey the other day, and it had aggravated his knee. He ask the troops a few questions. He wanted to know how they felt about the "bait and switch about the WMDs." He wanted to know if we were angry. The Soldiers responded that they really didn't care about WMDs. Their mission was to protect and to rebuild. Kerry ask about quality of life and morale. The troops responded that it couldn't be better. They watch DVDs and hang out with friends in their spare time. They really have everything they could ask for. He then ask is there was anything that he could tell Congress for us, a message he could deliver. The troops said to spread the word that we are doing good work over here, but CNN, and ABC, and FOX doesn't want to show us rebuilding sewage stations and renovating schools and helping families. They only want to show death.

Military Mavens will note two things about this photo : the mirror-reversed 1st Cavalry patches authorised only in a combat area, "to show that the cavalry never retreats". And the second thing is that either Specialist Lacourse is quite coincidentally scratching her palm, or giving one of the POW signals for "I am acting under duress".

We report, you decide. Me, I'm cleaning tea off the keyboard and laughing my head off.

Hat Tip : Blackfive

Anyone who thinks that the Armed Forces of the "Coalition of the Willing" are a bunch of zombified robots without an independent thought in their heads, should look at this thoroughly subversive and disrespectful-to-the-Great-and-Powerful photo. People who are soldiers are still people, it's just that they're practiced in making swift decisions and making the most of opportunities, while not prejudicing good discipline. They're also not averse to making their thoughts and opinions about Politicians known, when they can get away with it, and sometimes even when they can't. Things like giving Hillary Clinton's helicopter the (unofficial) callsign "Broomstick One".

Update : I'm sure this is just a coincidence, too.



Hat Tip : Cumudgeonly and Sceptical