I sincerely hope this "war" doesn't degrade into these events becoming regular as it would certainly overshadow all the good being done by others there. Then, of course, this is exactly what our enemies are hoping for.
I couldn't agree with you more. A few isolated incidents like this and it is a propaganda victory for the other side (even one is actually, but a few can be painted as a "pattern"). It doesn't help convince the Iraqis that we are really on their side, and it is fodder for the anti-war crowd here.
What people forget is:
1) It is a war zone. Those guys are under a lot of stress. Sometimes people react poorly when under stress. It in no way excuses what they did (hence, my wanting these guys locked up for good if it is true as reported), but the reality is that the real story is our guys are so well disciplined that we don't see more of it.
2) There are murders, thugs, and people who just "flip out" here. How many murders were there in Baltimore City alone last year? This is 15 people murdered in this incident. People sometimes forget that the US military is a cross section of US society. If there are murderers and psychos in the US, then there will be some in the military. But when US servicemen and women commit violent crimes against a foreign population it becomes world news. It does need to be put into perspective.
So it really is too bad that many people will let this overshadow everything else and even use it to paint all servicemen and women as violent, unstable thugs.