+++++++++++++++++++++
For Marines in Afghanistan: be careful where you fart
August 23rd, 2011 | Afghanistan | Posted by Gina Cavallaro
Marine Corps Times is a family newspaper and we only rarely have offensive language in our stories.
But this week the word “fart” appears in a story I wrote about the importance of trust between Marines and the Afghan national army soldiers they work with.
I didn’t want to write this little blog entry about farts. It’s not even on my beat. But my colleague Dan Lamothe, whose byline you have seen here quite often, shamed me into it.
“You owe it to all Marines,” he told me.
So here’s the news: audible farting has been banned for some Marines downrange because it offends the Afghans.
Dear Afghanistan: Please excuse our moments of any other than civilized politeness. We will reread Miss Manners. Reading? That is something civilized people do. Civilized people also don't live in rocky rubble like you do. Civilized people don't bomb the crap out of each other. Civilized people manage to run their own countries and fend for themselves. So excuse us for a moment of being uncivilized - like Afghans.
ReplyDelete