Well, you're right. I spent roughly a year in Baghdad and manned countless checkpoints just like the one that's described in this incident.
I think the thing I want people to really understand is the enormous pressure that these soldiers are under and the enormity of the task that they're faced with.
They're asked to make really split second decisions that could mean the difference between their own lives and obviously Iraqi civilian lives as well. It's a tremendous amount of pressure and soldiers are forced to make these types of decisions in Iraq every single day.
...And then warning shots are probably the last resort before actually firing. And once you do fire, they're firing at the engine block because they want to disable the vehicle.
Your intent is not to kill the drivers but to stop the vehicle from approaching you any closer and having the ability to blow up your unit, your squad or the entire checkpoint. [OPTRUTH website]
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