[Vision2020] Diversity At It's Finest
John Harrell
johnbharrell@yahoo.com
Sat, 5 Apr 2003 20:23:26 -0800 (PST)
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Hello Visioneers!
The following article shows American "diversity" at it's best...
Cheers! John Harrell
Ron Harris : Marines' diversity offers puzzle for Iraqi guessing game
By Ron Harris Post-Dispatch
updated: 04/05/2003 05:07 PM
http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/news/stories.nsf/News/9AE822E37184955086256CFF007EF079?OpenDocument&Headline=Ron+Harris+%3A+Marines'+diversity+offers+puzzle+for+Iraqi+guessing+game+
TWENTY MILES SOUTH OF BAGHDAD, 7th MARINES - The Marines were
less than 48 hours into their invasion of Iraq when Pfc. Michael Lara of
Raymondville, Texas., was first asked the kind of question that he and some other
Marines would hear repeatedly from civilians.
Lara, 19, was standing guard in the turret of his Humvee manning a machine gun
along the Shatt Al-Basra bridge in southern Iraq when an old man and his two sons
asked permission to pass across the strategic checkpoint.
As Marines waved the man through, he suddenly turned to Lara and asked,
"Kuwaiti?"
A stunned Lara paused for a second because he wasn't sure the man was talking to
him.
"Kuwait?" the man asked again.
"Naw," Lara responded, "American, Mexican.
"But I don't think he believed me," Lara, a member of Weapons Company, 3rd
Battalion, said later. "He just keep looking at me."
As the Marines move across the country towards Baghdad, their racial and ethnic
diversity has caught the Iraqis by surprise. In what has become an almost comical
game, locals frequently try to figure out soldiers' ethnicity, with guess often way off
the mark.
Cpl. Raul San Martin, a 23-year-old Mexican-American from Los Angeles, said he
was first mistaken for Iraqi, then Kuwaiti as he was standing guard a few days ago
in defense of the Marines' position at a soccer stadium in the town of Numaniyah.
"He kept asking if I was one thing and then the other, and I was thinking, 'Well,
now I know that if I wanted to, I could get a job for the CIA," San Martin said
Saturday as he again was standing guard, this time along a road leading into
Baghdad.
The Marines just take the guessing game with a smile.
"They're just curious," said Cpl. Henok Tefera, 30, who was born in Ethiopia but
now calls Columbus, Ohio, home. "You tell them, we're U.S., we're all U.S."
Sometimes the questions leave the Marines confused.
"Yeah, these kids asked me if I was Iraqi," Navy Corpsman Ron Dawson, 20, an
African-American from Columbus, Ga., said incredulously. "I don't look Iraqi. At
least I certainly don't think I look Iraqi."
But Corpsman Benedict Bito, 19, of Alameda, Calif., may have gotten the strangest
question while at his post in Numaniyah.
"One kid asked me was I related to (martial arts movie star) Jackie Chan," said
Bito, who is Filipino. "I was standing guard in the square and the people started to
stare at me. At first, they told me I was Chinese, then they said Korean and finally
one guy thought I was Vietnamese.
"They just couldn't believe I was American."
Cpl. Quentin Milroe of Chicago encountered that same disbelief a few days ago
when he and other members of India Company visited a small village about four
miles south of the town of Afak looking for weapons caches.
"So, we went to this area and the elder of the village came out, and we started
asking him were there any weapons in the village," said Milroe, a 24-year-old
African-American. "This elder just kept staring at me, and then he made a gesture
for me to speak."
When Milroe didn't, the elder said to him, "Syrian. Syrian."
"I said no, American," Milroe said.
Positive, however, that he had Milroe's identity pegged right, the elder refused to
accept that response and turned to Lt. Adrian Haskamp, a 27-year-old Puerto
Rican and India Company platoon leader.
"I guess he thought maybe because I was doing all the talking he figured out that I
was in charge," said Haskamp of Greensboro, N.C. "So, he points to Milroe and
says to me 'Syrian. Syrian'"
Haskamp said he gestured no and repeated, "American."
Their business concluded, the elder turned and started back heading toward his
house, but as he did, Milroe and Haskamp said they could hear him muttering to
himself in disbelief, 'Syrian. Syrian."
---------------------------------
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<P>Hello Visioneers!</P>
<P>The following article shows American "diversity" at it's best...</P>
<P>Cheers! John Harrell</P>
<P> </P>
<P> Ron Harris : Marines' diversity offers puzzle for Iraqi guessing game </P>
<P><BR> By Ron Harris Post-Dispatch<BR> updated: 04/05/2003 05:07 PM</P>
<P><A href="http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/news/stories.nsf/News/9AE822E37184955086256CFF007EF079?OpenDocument&Headline=Ron+Harris+%3A+Marines'+diversity+offers+puzzle+for+Iraqi+guessing+game">http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/news/stories.nsf/News/9AE822E37184955086256CFF007EF079?OpenDocument&Headline=Ron+Harris+%3A+Marines'+diversity+offers+puzzle+for+Iraqi+guessing+game</A>+</P>
<P><BR> TWENTY MILES SOUTH OF BAGHDAD, 7th MARINES - The Marines were<BR> less than 48 hours into their invasion of Iraq when Pfc. Michael Lara of<BR> Raymondville, Texas., was first asked the kind of question that he and some other<BR> Marines would hear repeatedly from civilians. </P>
<P> Lara, 19, was standing guard in the turret of his Humvee manning a machine gun<BR> along the Shatt Al-Basra bridge in southern Iraq when an old man and his two sons<BR> asked permission to pass across the strategic checkpoint. </P>
<P> As Marines waved the man through, he suddenly turned to Lara and asked,<BR> "Kuwaiti?" </P>
<P> A stunned Lara paused for a second because he wasn't sure the man was talking to<BR> him. </P>
<P> "Kuwait?" the man asked again. </P>
<P> "Naw," Lara responded, "American, Mexican. </P>
<P> "But I don't think he believed me," Lara, a member of Weapons Company, 3rd<BR> Battalion, said later. "He just keep looking at me." </P>
<P> As the Marines move across the country towards Baghdad, their racial and ethnic<BR> diversity has caught the Iraqis by surprise. In what has become an almost comical<BR> game, locals frequently try to figure out soldiers' ethnicity, with guess often way off<BR> the mark. </P>
<P> Cpl. Raul San Martin, a 23-year-old Mexican-American from Los Angeles, said he<BR> was first mistaken for Iraqi, then Kuwaiti as he was standing guard a few days ago<BR> in defense of the Marines' position at a soccer stadium in the town of Numaniyah. </P>
<P> "He kept asking if I was one thing and then the other, and I was thinking, 'Well,<BR> now I know that if I wanted to, I could get a job for the CIA," San Martin said<BR> Saturday as he again was standing guard, this time along a road leading into<BR> Baghdad. </P>
<P> The Marines just take the guessing game with a smile. </P>
<P> "They're just curious," said Cpl. Henok Tefera, 30, who was born in Ethiopia but<BR> now calls Columbus, Ohio, home. "You tell them, we're U.S., we're all U.S." </P>
<P> Sometimes the questions leave the Marines confused. </P>
<P> "Yeah, these kids asked me if I was Iraqi," Navy Corpsman Ron Dawson, 20, an<BR> African-American from Columbus, Ga., said incredulously. "I don't look Iraqi. At<BR> least I certainly don't think I look Iraqi." </P>
<P> But Corpsman Benedict Bito, 19, of Alameda, Calif., may have gotten the strangest<BR> question while at his post in Numaniyah. </P>
<P> "One kid asked me was I related to (martial arts movie star) Jackie Chan," said<BR> Bito, who is Filipino. "I was standing guard in the square and the people started to<BR> stare at me. At first, they told me I was Chinese, then they said Korean and finally<BR> one guy thought I was Vietnamese. </P>
<P> "They just couldn't believe I was American." </P>
<P> Cpl. Quentin Milroe of Chicago encountered that same disbelief a few days ago<BR> when he and other members of India Company visited a small village about four<BR> miles south of the town of Afak looking for weapons caches. </P>
<P> "So, we went to this area and the elder of the village came out, and we started<BR> asking him were there any weapons in the village," said Milroe, a 24-year-old<BR> African-American. "This elder just kept staring at me, and then he made a gesture<BR> for me to speak." </P>
<P> When Milroe didn't, the elder said to him, "Syrian. Syrian." </P>
<P> "I said no, American," Milroe said. </P>
<P> Positive, however, that he had Milroe's identity pegged right, the elder refused to<BR> accept that response and turned to Lt. Adrian Haskamp, a 27-year-old Puerto<BR> Rican and India Company platoon leader. </P>
<P> "I guess he thought maybe because I was doing all the talking he figured out that I<BR> was in charge," said Haskamp of Greensboro, N.C. "So, he points to Milroe and<BR> says to me 'Syrian. Syrian'" </P>
<P> Haskamp said he gestured no and repeated, "American." </P>
<P> Their business concluded, the elder turned and started back heading toward his<BR> house, but as he did, Milroe and Haskamp said they could hear him muttering to<BR> himself in disbelief, 'Syrian. Syrian."</P><p><br><hr size=1>Do you Yahoo!?<br>
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