"It's like a suspense movie that lasts eight hours," said 2nd Lt. Joseph Powell, of Murrells Inlet, the 23-year-old leader of the South Carolina National Guard platoon. "It's kinda like being on edge all that time, but it lasts so long it's like a boring on edge."

Assuming these guys survive, they're going to have one hell of a hard time adjusting when they come home.

Sounds like a good way to get deaf.

acanuck: mental midgets i

You alllllllmost had me. Until riiiiiiiiiight there.

I couldn't help but read the quoted soldier (Joe) in Forest Gump's voice.

/be safe y'all

Yup.

Btw, this article is awesome. What a job to have!

You thought your job sucked...

Sounds like good ol Battlefield 2 when one would lay land mines down and every moron in a car would run them over.

big balls no doubt

Not exactly a new concept, but it is more efficient than clearing manually with a knife and probing..

Does anyone remember the one featured on futureweapons, that looks vaguely like a road-smoother (technical term not found)..?

So the Max Power way?

Joe's platoon, which is part of Task Force Thor, prays together in a huddle before beginning a mission.

If we fell through the looking glass and Iraqi troops were in the US doing this, Pat Robertson and Glenn Beck would grow long beards and bless the Christian suicide bombers.

Lanny Budd: Joe's platoon, which is part of Task Force Thor, prays together in a huddle before beginning a mission.

If we fell through the looking glass and Iraqi troops were in the US doing this, Pat Robertson and Glenn Beck would grow long beards and bless the Christian suicide bombers.

Read your own quoted text. They were obviously praying to Thor.

enemy's brainiacs

You have no idea how many of these guys strap explosives to themseleves and try to run onto a post and blow up people. 98% of the time the only person they kill or even hurt is themselves. It must have happened at least 5 times in one 2 month period last year.

/ Ill give you a 4/10

Does it annoy anyone else that they keep calling these "improvised" explosives devices? I mean, after all these years, I'm sure the bomb makers have enough experience that they aren't exactly winging it anymore.

maril412: Does it annoy anyone else that they keep calling these "improvised" explosives devices? I mean, after all these years, I'm sure the bomb makers have enough experience that they aren't exactly winging it anymore.

Improvised refers to the materials they're using...

MadCat221

Now that's an amazing picture. Sort of a pity it doesn't say Verizon on it.

Sounds like the Husky's the only vehicle big enough for Spc Joe's balls

Marley: "It's like a suspense movie that lasts eight hours," said 2nd Lt. Joseph Powell, of Murrells Inlet, the 23-year-old leader of the South Carolina National Guard platoon. "It's kinda like being on edge all that time, but it lasts so long it's like a boring on edge."

Assuming these guys survive, they're going to have one hell of a hard time adjusting when they come home.

Came here to say basically the same thing. This is such a high-risk situation, even if the machines are pretty well-armoured, etc, that it's going to fark these dudes up mentally. Probably even worse once they get desensitized and it becomes a "boring on edge."

Marley: "It's like a suspense movie that lasts eight hours," said 2nd Lt. Joseph Powell, of Murrells Inlet, the 23-year-old leader of the South Carolina National Guard platoon. "It's kinda like being on edge all that time, but it lasts so long it's like a boring on edge."

Assuming these guys survive, they're going to have one hell of a hard time adjusting when they come home.

Yeah, until they find themselves embroiled in the Machiavellian machinations of the local PTA/Youth Soccer League.

Word to the wise: stay in the shiat.

This really isn't a new idea, and has been a major idea in mine sweeping since mines were invented. But yeah that must be a wild job.

Regarding the term "improvised" I agree that after a point it is not improvised. Even if the materials are not standard weapons grade, if you plan something out carefully and procure needed components that is not improvisation.

Lastly, the enemy really isn't very smart. We've got shoe bombers, underwear bombers, Times Square bomber as all obviously incompetent. The 9/11 guys were effective, but really weren't particularly crafty and in fact were known to not be particularly smart. The actual insurgents in their own land obviously have some wisdom in how to fight invaders, and that indeed makes a tough enemy, but it is not due to some genius or anything.

Marley: Assuming these guys survive, they're going to have one hell of a hard time adjusting when they come home.

Imagine when someone in the next cubical starts popping bubble-wrap.

acanuck: ...meh, it's like the Bugs Bunny, Marvin the Martian escalation.

It's easy to have the trigger set off on a second or third detect, or better yet, on sensing the amount of iron nearby and not going off it's armored to the hilt. Then again, there's always SMS to a cellphone, as happened in the Spain train disaster, or even a kid's R/C radio and servo.

Our biggest weakness is that we have mental midgets in uniform against the enemy's brainiacs and have had that disadvantage in every foreign war America has fought.

Of course, there's always the question of WTF are we doing there in the first place?

yeah if only the military had some way to jam all sorts of communications in a bubbly around their vehicles.....oh wait Link (new window)

Cosmic Crab: Marley: Assuming these guys survive, they're going to have one hell of a hard time adjusting when they come home.

Imagine when someone in the next cubical starts popping bubble-wrap.

They run them over with a tank?

I wish to autocross one of these.

beowulf980: acanuck: ...meh, it's like the Bugs Bunny, Marvin the Martian escalation.

It's easy to have the trigger set off on a second or third detect, or better yet, on sensing the amount of iron nearby and not going off it's armored to the hilt. Then again, there's always SMS to a cellphone, as happened in the Spain train disaster, or even a kid's R/C radio and servo.

Our biggest weakness is that we have mental midgets in uniform against the enemy's brainiacs and have had that disadvantage in every foreign war America has fought.

Of course, there's always the question of WTF are we doing there in the first place?

yeah if only the military had some way to jam all sorts of communications in a bubblybubble around their vehicles.....oh wait Link (new window)

ftfm

Cosmic Crab: Marley: Assuming these guys survive, they're going to have one hell of a hard time adjusting when they come home.

Imagine when someone in the next cubical starts popping bubble-wrap.

That would have to be some big-ass bubble wrap.

Trucker: Cosmic Crab: Marley: Assuming these guys survive, they're going to have one hell of a hard time adjusting when they come home.

Imagine when someone in the next cubical starts popping bubble-wrap.

That would have to be some big-ass bubble wrap.

Like sir mixalot...big-ass rap lol.

The right way to deal with IEDs is to simply level whatever town or neighborhood the IED goes off in, until the locals understand they will lose EVERYTHING if an IED goes off in their town. Amazing how quickly they'll make sure NOBODY sets up IEDs in their town. Unfortunately, our guys have to die so their leadership can feel better about themselves.

"We're going to need a bigger bomb."

RHMolBio: You thought your job sucked...

Meh. Provided that you are going to be in a convoy, it would seem like this is the safest seat in the house.

It's not like you can even see very much as the IED goes off, anyway, when you are on top of it. Might be more thrilling to watch from behind.

Oooooh, I'm impressed. The British only invented flail tanks and mine rollers 65 years ago!

rockforever: So the Max Power way?

Isn't that the wrong way? Yes But Faster!

mark12A: The right way to deal with IEDs is to simply level whatever town or neighborhood the IED goes off in, until the locals understand they will lose EVERYTHING if an IED goes off in their town. Amazing how quickly they'll make sure NOBODY sets up IEDs in their town. Unfortunately, our guys have to die so their leadership can feel better about themselves.

idiotic man

jabelar: Lastly, the enemy really isn't very smart. We've got shoe bombers, underwear bombers, Times Square bomber as all obviously incompetent. The 9/11 guys were effective, but really weren't particularly crafty and in fact were known to not be particularly smart. The actual insurgents in their own land obviously have some wisdom in how to fight invaders, and that indeed makes a tough enemy, but it is not due to some genius or anything.

The 9/11 guys were more or less lucky, they just thought of something no one in their right mind would have thought to do. The same is a problem in computer security, many exploits are things no right thinking person would have come up with on their own, even when testing the security of a situation. And others are plain accidents, I'm sure the first person that found a memory leak exploit wasn't thinking "hey, I'll put in 257 characters for my name and see if that affects security."

The Hurt Locker 2:Electric Boogaloo!

mark12A: The right way to deal with IEDs is to simply level whatever town or neighborhood the IED goes off in, until the locals understand they will lose EVERYTHING if an IED goes off in their town. Amazing how quickly they'll make sure NOBODY sets up IEDs in their town. Unfortunately, our guys have to die so their leadership can feel better about themselves.

Hearts and minds... you're not winning them.

Every war where we talk about "winning hearts and mind" WE'VE LOST!

There wasn't any talk of "winning hearts and minds" in WWII.
WE BEAT THEM INTO TOTAL BLOODY AND COMPLETE SUBMISSION!

THAT is how you win wars. Recommend you examine how the Brits first conquered Iraq in the 20's. THEY BUTCHERED IRAQIS until they became compliant. Works.