Lynch's story is far more complex and different than those initial reports. Much of the story remains shrouded in mystery, in large part because of official Army secrecy, concerns for Lynch's privacy and her limited memory.

The Post's initial coverage attracted widespread criticism because many of the sources were unnamed and because the accounts were soon contradicted by other military officials. In an effort to document more fully what had actually happened to Lynch, The Post interviewed dozens of people, including associates of Lynch's family in West Virginia; Iraqi doctors, nurses and civilian witnesses in Nasiriyah; and U.S. intelligence and military officials in Washington, three of whom have knowledge of a weeks-long Army investigation into the matter.

The result is a second, more thorough but inconclusive cut at history. While much more is revealed about her ordeal, most U.S. officials still insisted that their names be withheld from this account.

Lynch tried to fire her weapon, but it jammed, according to military officials familiar with the Army investigation. She did not kill any Iraqis. She was neither shot nor stabbed, they said.

Lynch's unit, the 507th Maintenance Company, was ambushed outside Nasiriyah after taking several wrong turns. Army investigators believe this happened in part because superiors never passed on word that the long 3rd Infantry Division column that the convoy was following had been rerouted. At times, the 507th was 12 hours behind the main column and frequently out of radio contact.

Lynch was riding in a Humvee when it plowed into a jackknifed U.S. truck. She suffered major injuries, including multiple fractures and compression to her spine, that knocked her unconscious, military sources said. The collision killed or gravely injured the Humvee's four other passengers.

Two U.S. officials with knowledge of the Army investigation said Lynch was mistreated by her captors. They would not elaborate.

Tipped that Lynch was inside Saddam Hussein General Hospital in Nasiriyah, the CIA, fearing a trap, sent an agent into the facility with a hidden camera to confirm she was there, intelligence sources said.

The Special Operations unit's full-scale rescue of the private, while justified given the uncertainty confronting U.S. forces as they entered the compound, ultimately was proven unnecessary. Iraqi combatants had left the hospital almost a day earlier, leaving Lynch in the hands of doctors and nurses who said they were eager to turn her over to Americans.

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Another interesting fact...I read an interview with her father yesterday where he was asked about her "memory loss" and about her "limited memory".

He basically said, "She doesn't have any memory problems and remembers everything."  But then he said they had been instructed not to talk about it until the investigation was complete.

I don't know any more than the rest of you guys.  But I'm willing to give her the benefit of the doubt.

One thing for sure.  While she was getting injured in the Iraqi desert, I was sitting on my nuts in Texas.  She's more of a hero than me.

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I don't know any more than the rest of you guys.  But I'm willing to give her the benefit of the doubt.

One thing for sure.  While she was getting injured in the Iraqi desert, I was sitting on my nuts in Texas.  She's more of a hero than me.

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A bone is thrown and all the goddamned dogs come and bark their stupid comments out. Yeah I'm talking about the first two responses to the thread.  Keep your dumbass comments to yourself please.

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she's an attractive 19-year old

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What's that movie where Denzel goes around investigating that chopper pilot's death, Lou Diamond Phillips drives a Mustang head-on into a train...shit, just watched it the other day.

Anyway, this is all sounding too familiar.

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I agree with most of what you said, but this is attractive?
[url]http://www.nationalalliance.org/gulf2/lynch.jpg[/url]

CBS News did nothing improper in dangling possible book and TV deals while pursuing an interview with rescued soldier Jessica Lynch, a spokeswoman said Monday. There was a clear distinction between the request for an interview with Lynch and possible deals with MTV, Simon & Schuster and other Viacom divisions, CBS News spokeswoman Sandy Genelius said. Other networks made similar inquiries, she contended.

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I was sitting on my nuts in Texas.

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So what you are really saying is that you want everyone to know you can't be duped by your Govt's. propaganda. Kudos for being a brilliant and free thinker. Although you seem very willing to accept the Washington Post's version of events. No big deal though you are still brilliant. Aren't you?

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A bone is thrown and all the goddamned dogs come and bark their stupid comments out. Yeah I'm talking about the first two responses to the thread.  Keep your dumbass comments to yourself please.

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No, I think what he wanted everyone to know was that there's a movie out there that may have some similarity to current events.  

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If I didn't know better, I'd think some of you guys figured she staged the whole thing herself.  She was an American soldier severely injured in combat.  She was rescued by a Special Operations group.  Where is the conspiracy?  She was bound to achieve some fame given the situation, but that is hardly her fault.

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You must be one of the guys who thought she should get the Medal of Honor, and her bust on Mount Washington, for killing dozens of the enemy until she ran out of ammo, then engaging in hand to hand combat... [rolleyes]

The Special Operations unit's full-scale rescue of the private, while justified given the uncertainty confronting U.S. forces as they entered the compound, [red]ultimately was proven unnecessary.[/red] Iraqi combatants had left the hospital almost a day earlier, leaving Lynch in the hands of doctors and nurses who said they were eager to turn her over to Americans.

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I don't recall ever hearing her claiming to have been in a firefight after the ambush.  The army might be fucking up the story, trying to make it more than it is, but if so it's not her fault.  

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I am having a hard time with the whole "Humvee just run into a truck" story.  Those Humvees are built tough, don't go that fast, and who in the world can't see a huge truck ahead of them(even with the sand/wind).

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A bone is thrown and all the goddamned dogs come and bark their stupid comments out. Yeah I'm talking about the first two responses to the thread.  Keep your dumbass comments to yourself please.

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Nope. You're one of those barking dogs aren't you? All I'm saying is, give the poor kid a break. Like, Old Painless, I'm giving her the benefit of the doubt.  I have not pre-judged her
unlike some of you idiots who seem to have the straight skinny on everything that happens in the world.

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I don't recall them denying it either. In fact, they put the best face on it to play up the "rescue"...[rolleyes]

In fact, they put the best face on it to play up the "rescue"...[rolleyes]

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Rolling your eyes at the word "rescue" makes you seem just as much the victim of propaganda as anyone (in this case, Leftist propaganda).

Going into a building in unsecured enemy territory during a war, to extract a servicemember is indeed a "rescue".
That there were no armed enemy at the site does not change this.
It was/is a war, after all.

To say it was not a rescue, when common sense says otherwise, demonstrates an agenda.



What exactly does that mean, anyway?
The announcment of her recovery was terse, at best.
When and how was a "best face" put on it?
There was no reputable original "info" about her capture.  How could the military confirm or deny something about which there were no eyewitnesses?

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The enemy left the area the day before. Are you telling me our vaunted "intelligence" didn't know that??

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The enemy left the area the day before. Are you telling me our vaunted "intelligence" didn't know that??
 Would you keep such a target under constant surveillance, once you discovered it, to make sure the target wasn't moved?? (You can bet your ass THEY did! Ergo, they knew the enemy had withdrawn.)

Come daylight, they coulda sent a coupla MP's with sidearms, and an ambulance to pick her up...

But then, we wouldn't have all the neat "rescue" footage for tv. [rolleyes] [:D]

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I am having a hard time with the whole "Humvee just run into a truck" story.  Those Humvees are built tough, don't go that fast, and who in the world can't see a huge truck ahead of them(even with the sand/wind).
I don't really trust any of the "news" stations anymore.  I will just wait to hear from the soldiers themselfs before making my mind up.

Either way they were there serving...

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Right now all the best info indicates that Private Lynch was just a soldier who got caught in a bad situation.

It just happens that she is a young, attractive female, with all of the resulting political and social implications.

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Boy oh boy, there is a lot of chest-beating and shit-talkin' by a bunch of non-hacks who weren't there when the balloon went up. [rolleyes]

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The enemy left the area the day before. Are you telling me our vaunted "intelligence" didn't know that??
 Would you keep such a target under constant surveillance, once you discovered it, to make sure the target wasn't moved?? (You can bet your ass THEY did! Ergo, they knew the enemy had withdrawn.)

Come daylight, they coulda sent a coupla MP's with sidearms, and an ambulance to pick her up...

But then, we wouldn't have all the neat "rescue" footage for tv. [rolleyes] [:D]

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Forgive my ignorance, what did/do you do?

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Dude, did you see the pic above?
I will agree though that she can probably be made to be passable.

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I never claimed to do anything. Besides, what I did or did not do during my military service is germane to the discussion at hand.

What is central to the discussion at hand is how people like to rag on PFC Lynch & her serivce in Iraq in order to make themselves seem like superior intellectuals & conspiracy theorists/ to illustrate their self-important to the entire board/ to belittle her because she is female and somehow unworthy of the respect due a soldier wearing the uniform/ et al.

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She has gained quite a bit of fame because of who she is and what happened to her, as opposed to what she actually did. Not to knock her, but some others appear to have actually performed heroic acts. Yet we don't know their faces, or in some cases even their names. And no one is suggesting that we buy Master Sgt. Robert J. Dowdy's survivors an AR. I haven't seen anyone belittle Lynch, but there never was much evidence of her heroics, and what evidence did exist seems to have fizzled with better info. It appears she basically did her job, and we have to respect that, but that in no way makes her a hero.

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According to whom?  The Washington Post?  The British press?  The Iraqis in the hospital?  The part about being cautious when it comes to propaganda goes both ways.  

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I've seen other pictures that make her quite a bit more than passable. But that's not really the point: even in the BDU photo, she is quite a bit better looking than any other soldiers from her outfit (that I've seen), and not what you usually expect to find in a foxhole.

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I can't believe that you'd be so dim.

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Well said.  And we have to be careful to criticize the government or media for exaggerating or embellishing the story, and not make it her problem.  She's not the problem, and she's not the hero.  She's a kid who did her job, and if given the chance, would probably prefer to remain anonymous rather than put up with all the media circus.