Friendly Fire
You can view this book's Amazon detail page here.
Tags: Afghanistan, Canada, Friendly Fire, History, Military, Non-fiction, War
- Started reading:
- 19th December 2007
- Finished reading:
- 13th February 2008
- Type:
Hardcover
- Pages:
596
- Publisher:
Wiley; 1 edition (Oct 24 2005)
Review
Rating: 10
When I 1st sat down with this book by Michael Friscolanti which I purchased used from a local Goodwill outlet for a mere 75 cents I didn’t know what to expect. The author sets out in these pages to answer the question “Was justice done?” in regard to the consequences of the ordinance dropped on Canadian troops by US forces in Afghanistan.
Through the 596 pages we get a clear picture of what happened, the actions of almost everyone involved and the “punishment” handed out when the dust settled and smoke cleared. Though Maj. Harry “Psycho” Schmidt, the man who dropped the bomb that night claimed he felt remorse for what he had done, he, his lawyer and the US investigative team dealing with the aftermath all attempted to hide his identity, obscure the facts and blame everyone else. The Canadian team was limited by what the US was willing to allow access to and the situation became convoluted.
In the end the major was found guilty yet received only a letter of reprimand and a fine of two half-month’s pay totaling “$5,672 U.S., a tad more than $1,400 for each dead paratrooper.” This is far from “justice” in my personal opinion but the book does a great job of giving an unbiased look at the entire situation. It was well written, well researched and well worth the read.