Please Help This is a Matter of Life and Death

[Looking53]

Please help. Guys I know this is not the normal place to do this but This is a matter of life and death[/b]. The Pentagon is holding up the deployment of a vehicle to Iraq that would neutralize the IED (road side bomb). It is call the IED buster. There are 17 prototypes made and they have been tested and work 90% of the time. These vehicles should have had their field testing starting 8 months ago here in Iraq. Field testing would of involved actually using them. IEDs now accounting for almost all on the non-accident death and injuries here. A soldier in the camp I am in was killed a couple of days ago by an IED. He would probably be alive if we had this vehicle here.

 

Ok how can you help? Well the internet is a powerful communication tool. People contact your friend and contact your senator and representative and let them know about this vehicle and that the Pentagon is hold it up. I have contacted 20 Senators by phone and Senator Dole's office is trying to do something. Greg Riels of her office is taking the lead in this.

 

Please email Greg at (greg_riels@Dole.Senator.gov. The more emails he gets on this subject the more leverage he has in getting the Pentagon to deploy this vehicle.

 

Thanks Guys

[Elen]

Sorry to hear about a guy you lost but he would be for sure alive ( like all others)  if he staied in the USA but was not in Iraq

[BC]

Looking,

There are ways to defeat this ied buster device. It's not a magic bullet. Putting it to use simply gives the bad guys the chance to test newer methods that are immune... then it's back to square one.  

Fight the virus, not the symptoms.

[Looking53]

Look whether we should or should not be overhere is debatable. But to the men and women who have to be over here that is not the issue they have to deal with. I guarantee you none of them really want to be here. They are doing their job and trying to get home safely. Also most of the IEDs kill women and children here. So if you don't want to help USA soldier how about helping the Iraqis that live in fear of these things daily. The Iraqis lose about 10 of them a day to these bombs. Yesterday a father of 6 lost his wife and 4 of his kids to one of these devises

[Bruce]

I thought this is political and we are not allowed to discuss it ?

[BillyB]

Looking,

I signed up for the Army during the first gulf war to liberate the people of Kuwait. It's no problem for me to write a letter to help save people's lives as you request to speed things up.

I know a lot of Iraqi's in the States that appreciate what you're doing for them and has good things to say about you. Many of them want to return home when there is stable leadership. Keep up the good work.

I've stayed out of all potiltical discussions since I've been here but I had to comment on this issue affecting the lives of men and women doing a difficult job.

[Looking53]

Thanks Billy B. Rough week over here. 2 more guys killed and 3 wounded. Again IED. It funny because in a few days I have to go out where they got hit.

It not that I am afraid. I just I don't want any one else hit. I was never in the military so this is a new experence. I know one thing at 52 I am an old fart around here.

Again Billy I thank you for folks over here.

[Cold Warrior]

I wasn't aware of a new vehicle but I'll contact Dole's Office. The IED is just a simple bomb in a cone structure. I knew some work was being done on jamming the infra -red transmiters. Is this a new version of the Buffalo?

[Looking53]

With getting into detail they are not simple any more. They are armor piercing, directional sending, multiple projectiles, with remote controlled detonation. The simple one didn't work very well. The new ones are very lethal.

 

Thanks Cold Warrior

[Goldtop]

Absolutely, I'll send an email. Politics be damned, these are good men and women and deserve the best we can give them.

[Looking53]

Thanks Goldtop, you are probably doing this too but please email your friend too and get them to email their Senators and Senator Doles office. Her office seems to be the key.

[Cold Warrior]

A little know tactic used by the Israelis is to carry around copies of the koran in their tanks, jeeps etc. The Palestinians know this and do not firebomb for fear of burning the Koran.