I just heard a very sad radio interview on CBC with Ethan (McCord?), a US vet who was in the now infamous Iraq video in which the Black Hawk Helicopter took out some hostile Iraqis and then later shot up the civilian van with kids inside which arrived on the scene a few minutes after the first attack. He related that he first learned of the video a few weeks ago when he saw it by chance on the nightly news.
This infantryman was called to the site by the copter after the attack, nd he described the carnage firsthand, and also described how he rescued a little girl with a serious head wound from the van. He saw himself carrying the girl on the video.
He also described how he was subjected to derision (“get the sand out of your vagina”) and threats of negative reports on his record by his CO, when he asked for counselling after the incident.

He believed that the full-scale attack on the rescuer van was excessive, and that a warning shot should have been sufficient to stop the van from interfering.

He has apparently co-authored some kind of apology letter to the Iraqi people, which I’m sure will give aid and comfort to the enemy. He is now against the war in Iraq and now believes it is doing more harm than good.

Although he was only a low level soldier without policy expertise, the interview was poignant for the way he was able to convey some of the horrors of the reality of war.