-Caveat Lector-
Wednesday, Feb. 17, 1999
Military defends missions
Some in area agree; others fear exercises
By JAMES A. SUYDAM
Staff Writer
The Corpus Christi City Council on Tuesday gave a unanimous thumbs-up
to the mysterious troops in Army helicopters that have been buzzing
the area
recently.
"Texas has a long, rich history of supporting the U.S. military,"
Mayor
Loyd Neal said before the council voted its support for the Special
Forces
exercises being conducted in the Coastal Bend.
Two soldiers -- who asked to be identified as J.D. Zumwalt and
Sam Joseph
-- briefed the council on the operations and addressed several
concerns about
citizen safety related to the exercises.
Zumwalt also expressed his exasperation with the conspiracy
theories that
have been fanned by their helicopters.
"Sometimes I wish we could paint them red, white and blue and put
a big
sign on them, `we are the good guys.' " Zumwalt told the council.
"We paint
them black so that the bad guys can't see us coming. I don't know
what X-Files
episode started all paranoia about the black helicopters. Those are
American
pilots with American soldiers who love this country in those
helicopters."
During the exercises, the soldiers have been seen swooping low over
residential areas in Annaville, Kingsville and Port Aransas in black
helicopters
with no lights. The soldiers, wearing black face masks and
night-vision goggles,
use explosives and sometimes fire live rounds during the exercises,
the soldiers
said.
"Our guys have been hurt and even killed during these types of
exercises,"
Joseph told the council. "But we have never had any significant civilian
injuries."
Zumwalt said that 50 to 60 soldiers are involved with the
two-week exercise,
and that they will be conducting one more operation in the city of
Corpus
Christi. Zumwalt said that the U.S. Army Special Operations Command
in Fort
Bragg had received permission from the city for the exercises and
that the
mayor, City Manager David Garcia and Police Chief Pete Alvarez had been
informed.
The unit has encountered problems in other cities where their
operations
were widely known about, Joseph said.
"We've had more problems with too many people knowing what's going on
than not enough," Joseph said.
In one case, he said, 200 people crowded onto the roof of an
abandoned
factory to watch the operation, threatening to collapse the roof and
slowing the
unit's vehicles.
"The bars emptied all because one guy knew about it and started
telling his
friends who told their friends who told their friends," Joseph said.
After several council members asked the soldiers about the
drills, City
Councilman Ed Martin asked for a vote by the council to show their
support for
the soldiers. Martin said he felt that the Army was right in not
notifying the
council.
"If you would have told us, we would have held a rally or something,"
Martin said.
Joseph said that all the Army could offer the city is its thanks for
cooperating.
"We're just here for two weeks, we know that. We have nothing to
offer
you but risk, we know that. The only thing we can give you is our
gratitude,"
Joseph said.
Staff writer James A. Suydam can be reached at 886-3618 or by
e-mail at
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
On Tuesday, we asked what you thought about the Army Special Forces
training exercises being conducted in the Coastal Bend. Responses
ranged from
gratitude that the military is training hard to protect the country
to theories that
the exercises are part of a dark government conspiracy.
Being an ex-Marine, I know that these training exercises are
necessary. I think
that if the buns of these people that are doing all the complaining
were on the
line, they would be more than glad to see these people doing what
they are
doing.
Number one, the military has absolutely no business whatsoever
preforming any
exercises using military equipment -- which is prone to have
accidents -- on any
civilian property. Number two, above that, they have no business
performing
their exercises without notifying everybody that lives in that area.
There's a lot of people out here that I've talked to that thought
something
went dangerously wrong at Koch Refinery and that we were all getting
ready to
get blown away or gassed. It shows a totally irresponsibility of
(Mayor) Loyd
Neal and the police chief to the citizens of Corpus Christi. And I
do very much
take offense to it and I do take offense to the military thinking
that they could
play their little games anywhere they want to. San Antonio said no
to them, I
wish our mayor had enough backbone to say no to them too.
I'm very much against what they are doing here in the Coastal Bend.
I don't
think it's necessary and that it's harmful to the cities where they
are training.
Military training doctrine is that the next war will probably be
fought in both
rural and urban areas. So it's only natural that the Army would want
to train in
urban areas. They're going to need to get a feel for different areas
around the
country. It's okay that they come here.
I thought it was part of a conspiracy. Why would they do it at night
and not let
the people know they were coming, even the officials? What if
someone thought
it was a bank robbery and opened fire on those soldiers? What they
want to do is
declare the American people dangerous with arms and take our guns away.
I am thankful that we have people training to protect us in case we
have terrorism
or any other kind of assault on this country. We would be in
terrible shape if we
don't. I'm sorry for people that are getting scared but I am
thankful for people
that are training to protect me.
I think this is the first indication of what is going to happen in
2000. The
executive orders have already been signed that the constitution is to be
suspended and we will see King William in power and in charge. And
our rights
as free citizens will be abdicated. We won't have them anymore. We
let him get
off lying and obstructing justice in this last fiasco trial. Our
senators are gutless
wonders. I think that this is just a preliminary of what 2000 is
going to look like.
We better wake up.
I think the people of the Coastal Bend should be very happy to know
that their
military is doing what they are supposed to do. I think it's
wonderful. I think we
should have more of it.
I think that the American public has the right to know what is going
on in their
own hometown. What if there were vagrants living in the burned
building in
Kingsville, or children playing or unaware law enforcement personnel
who used
force to defend their city? I can't believe that (Kingsville Police)
Chief Garza
failed to notify anyone about the training, not even the emergency
management
coordinator. And helicopters flying (with) no lights? Isn't that
putting every
other person in the area in danger of a mid-air collision? Why
should we have to
endure this? I realize that our armed forces need training but in
cities and among
uninformed citizens? Why can't they train in Area 51 far from any
cities or
civilians. I don't think they are telling us everything.
I think that the Army is just doing their job. And the people who
think there's a
conspiracy have too much time on their hands and they need to get a
life.
To all the military services, you are welcome. The Army wants to
train in this
area, you are welcome to land on my place. We need them. We need
them bad.
Come on over to Portland, you're welcome down here. Most of these people
complaining have never been in the military, have never even had a
shot fired at
them in anger. We need them.
I think that David Garcia and the rest of the city officials should
have their house
stormed if they are so patriotic. I think I am against this, mainly
from a safety
issue, but I believe that they have handed these conspiracy
theorists plenty of
ammunition to fortify their overwhelming fear of the government.
It's stupid.
What's going to happen some day when a law-abiding, upstanding, good
citizen
is fearful at unmarked, black, middle-of-the-night, gun-shooting
helicopters
coming down on their homes, whips out their rifle and bam, shoots
them? There
is absolutely no reason for this. I wanted it stopped the first day
I heard about
this. It's stupid and it's irresponsible. This is not training, it's
dangerous. Do we
have a responsible government? I don't think so and this proves it.
I think it's ridiculous that this President Clinton would allow this
type of training
among civilians. I think we have serious problems in Washington,
D.C., and the
White House to allow this kind of thing to go on.
Rush Limbaugh is right -- there are a bunch of those wackos out
there and the
Kingsville officials really sound like they are out of their cage.
If we can't put up
with a little bit of military training, albeit a secret type
mission, then we are in
deep, deep doo-doo.
I appreciate their diligence. If something were to happen everyone would
complain if they weren't here.
I'm very much against this. I think it's disgraceful for them to do
in the town.
That's what Hitler did in Germany when he was getting in power.
Also, they
didn't do that over here when they were training for the Second
World War, so I
think it's inappropriate.
© 1999 Corpus Christi Caller Times, a Scripps Howard newspaper.
All rights reserved.
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