Support the Troops

The Jackson Clarion-Ledger reports that an entire 17-member Army Reserve platoon is under arrest in Iraq for refusing orders to undertake what the soldiers called a "suicide mission."

The soldiers refused an order on Wednesday to go to Taji, Iraq — north of Baghdad — because their vehicles were considered "deadlined" or extremely unsafe, said Patricia McCook of Jackson, wife of Sgt. Larry O. McCook.

Sgt. McCook, a deputy at the Hinds County Detention Center, and the 16 other members of the 343rd Quartermaster Company from Rock Hill, S.C., were read their rights and moved from the military barracks into tents, Patricia McCook said her husband told her during a panicked phone call about 5 a.m. Thursday.

The platoon could be charged with the willful disobeying of orders, punishable by dishonorable discharge, forfeiture of pay and up to five years confinement.

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"I would not want any member of the military to be put in a dangerous situation ill-equipped," said [U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson], who was contacted by families. "I have had similar complaints from military families about vehicles that weren't armor-plated, or bullet-proof vests that are outdated. It concerns me because we made over $150 billion in funds available to equip our forces in Iraq."

"President Bush takes the position that the troops are well-armed, but if this situation is true, it calls into question how honest he has been with the country."