Delays in delivery of badly-need, more IED-resistent armored vehicles (so-called Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicles) to the field have been discussed in a recent diary. According to the Pentagon, that may not be such a bad thing. Apparently the MRAP is becoming a preferred target of insurgents, and it's all the fault of those pesky reporters who are writing about this new vehicle.
According to Reuters, Marine Corps Brigadier General Michael Brogan has stated that MRAPs "are becoming symbolic targets." The reason: Press reports "touting the fact that they protect our troops."
So what was General Brogan's basis for this startling assertion? Nothing, apparently.
Brogan did not give examples of incidents in which he believed an MRAP had been targeted because of its status. He said he was reluctant to give many details of the program for fear that they could be useful to insurgents.
This leaves me wondering whether the Pentagon is working harder to protect the troops, or to protect itself from bad press about its failure to deliver essential materiel to a war zone. You be the judge.