Marines Ordered to Disarm Before Panetta Speech

[Steelgrave]

If Panetta is afraid of his own troops, he should resign or simply rule from his carpeted office. When Clinton was first elected (with his notorious "I hate the military" comment hanging in the air), an old friend of mine who never served due to medical issues asked me if I thought there would be a coup. I told him then (and believe it now) that "you don't know our troops or you would never ask that question". I guess you can never completely protect a public figure from one nut, but I have to believe that if a Marine decided to point a weapon at Panetta that it would have been other Marines who got to him first, well ahead of any security.

[Steelgrave]

Just read on NYTimes that an Afghan national tried to blow up a car near Panetta as he was de-planing...

So he disarms the men most capable of protecting him? Makes me wonder what they were thinking.  :o

[Martok]

Yeah, this was an insult to Marines everywhere.  Screw the Afghans. 

So he disarms the men most capable of protecting him?

I was wondering this as well.  Surrounded by hundreds/thousands of Marines carrying weapons, it's hard to imagine how I might feel any safer than that! 

[Gusington]

There has to be a lot we don't know. Maybe there was a threat that involved someone disguised as a US Marine.

[LongBlade]

There has to be a lot we don't know. Maybe there was a threat that involved someone disguised as a US Marine.

Yup. It makes no sense on the surface.

I've got to give Panetta the benefit of the doubt.

Still, you'd think they'd just uninvite the platoon with the guy in question and find something else for them to do, wouldn't you?

Makes. No. Sense.

[Gusington]

^Which would be more offensive, disarming or being uninvited?

And then could they specify the threat to one platoon or was it just a generic US Marine in general?

[LongBlade]

Everything is speculation at this point - except that disarming Marines in a warzone is generally a dumb idea.

[MIGMaster]

I think Panetta probably realizes what a dick he is and was scared - the book on the killing of Bin Laden by Chuck Pfarrer certainly paints a very negative picture of Panetta....

[bayonetbrant]

Panetta has always been a pretty square guy without any real hidden agenda and a willingness to listen to a LOT of people before making decisions.  He was my wife's congressman in California for a long time.

I will agree that it seems like a pretty dumb decision, but I doubt it was made with any malicious intent.  I think it was probably more of an over-reaction without much consideration to the potential over-reaction on teh interwebz

[Staggerwing]

I think Panetta probably realizes what a dick he is and was scared - the book on the killing of Bin Laden by Chuck Pfarrer certainly paints a very negative picture of Panetta....

Huh! I was under the impression that Panetta was one of the prime reasons the raid even happened, that he pushed hard
and even may have done an end run around the POTUS who then had to act like it was always official.

[MIGMaster]

According to the book he was very much in support of the raid and even had an actor in mind to play him when they did a movie based on the mission !!!! The book also makes some points about Panetta wanting to publicize raid details in order to ensure he got recognition. Quite a damning little piece actually. Pfarrer indicates that the special forces community did not appreciate his efforts.

[Smuckatelli]

There has to be a lot we don't know. Maybe there was a threat that involved someone disguised as a US Marine.

This was very much like our ROE in 1983.....it sucked but at least we were able to carry our weapons...they just couldn't be loaded.

[Staggerwing]

According to the book he was very much in support of the raid and even had an actor in mind to play him when they did a movie based on the mission !!!! The book also makes some points about Panetta wanting to publicize raid details in order to ensure he got recognition. Quite a damning little piece actually. Pfarrer indicates that the special forces community did not appreciate his efforts.

After a little googling, and with all due respect to Mr Pfarrer, I'm left with the impression that he seems to have his own agenda
which may or may not involve generating a bit of controversy in selling his screenplays as he is an author and screenplay writer
with an OBL movie project of his own to peddle. Several pentagon officials strongly contradict a number of his assertions
although the bit about the chopper crashing after the raid rather than before may have some traction based on a few local
witnesses. As far as Panetta wanting a bit of glory- that is hardly uncommon in cabinet officials in any administration going
back to the primordial gov't ooze the first bureaucrat slithered out of after discovering it had grown legs.

[LongBlade]

Panetta has always been a pretty square guy without any real hidden agenda and a willingness to listen to a LOT of people before making decisions.  He was my wife's congressman in California for a long time.

I will agree that it seems like a pretty dumb decision, but I doubt it was made with any malicious intent.  I think it was probably more of an over-reaction without much consideration to the potential over-reaction on teh interwebz

If you want to try to put a positive spin on it, I could speculate that it was done to impress someone inside the Afghan govt. Perhaps to show how disciplined US troops are. Combined with the alleged attack on him at the airport I might speculate that he was set up, but in the end all's well that ends well. And perhaps he won't make that mistake again.

[Centurion40]

Panetta has always been a pretty square guy without any real hidden agenda and a willingness to listen to a LOT of people before making decisions.  He was my wife's congressman in California for a long time.

I will agree that it seems like a pretty dumb decision, but I doubt it was made with any malicious intent.  I think it was probably more of an over-reaction without much consideration to the potential over-reaction on teh interwebz

Yeah.  It will probably turn-out to be an over-reaction from a recommendation made by a civilian bureaucrat (or USAF General/politician) in DoD.