Another "Mercy Killing"

At first, I confused this story with this one, but actually they are separate incidents:

A military court has found a US army captain guilty of killing a wounded Iraqi man in central Iraq last year.
Capt Rogelio Maynulet, 30, said he shot the man, who had been wounded in a clash with US soldiers, in order to end his suffering...

Karim Hassan, 36, was killed on 21 May last year near the central Iraqi town of Kufa.

US troops fired at a vehicle they thought was carrying militants linked to the radical Shia cleric Moqtada Sadr.

The hearing was told that the car's passenger was killed immediately, while the driver was badly injured.

Lt Colin Cremin testified that Maynulet and others in his unit had described the incident to him, saying the driver "had half his brain hanging out, there was nothing more that could be done for him".

In closing remarks on Thursday, the prosecution had said Maynulet had "played God" when he shot the man.

Of course there are any number of incidents where shooting the wounded can't at all be considered "mercy killing" (but which seem to bring on howls of delight from the wingnuts--I dunno, maybe they get off on watching people die, as long as they're comfortably sitting in their cozy houses). Regardless, it speaks volumes as to our patronizing--and utterly contradictory--attitudes towards Iraqi citizens. The disconnect in this: unable to decide whether to liberate or shoot them, whether to build a school or raze a city, combined with a none-too-subtle racist approach (I see a LOT of "white man's burden" rhetoric coming from the Bush administration, even as they pretend to mouth the opposite) is unbelievable. "Mercy killing" likewise smacks of racism: I seriously doubt anyone in this country would advocate two bullets to the head of, say, someone seriously hurt in a car wreck.

I've noted previously (don't feel like scouring my archives, but it's there) that I'm ambivalent about convictions and sentences for US soldiers who do this--by recognized standards, these men ARE guilty of criminal acts, yes--but the entire enterprise is an exercise in thuggery on an international scale, one that was supposed to be the crowning achievement of the dauphin before the old saying about the best laid plans of mice and men came crashing down on his flight-suited strut. Under those circumstances, foot soldiers are--well, mere foot soldiers. Pawns in a very deadly game.

And, again, I'll mention that we should be VERY concerned that some individuals could be badly affected by their experience in combat.