MovieChat Forums > Lone Survivor (2014) Discussion > Were they stupid? why not just do THIS?

Were they stupid? why not just do THIS?

posted 8 years ago by creatorof2002
10 replies | jump to latest

Call me a racist monster if you want, I would have killed those dirty sand people instead of letting them go but since these people were either more altruistic than me or just did not want to be prosecuted for murder why did they not do THIS:

In the actual events the people they were nice enough to let go showed their gratitude by running back to their people as fast as possible to tell what happened and where so they could pursue the soldiers.

My solution is take them prisoner to buy time. After a few hours their families would start to get suspicious and maybe go look for them but that would buy them some time and even when their families DID start a search they would not know for sure where they were even if they knew the land well. They said exactly where the soldiers were when they ran back to their camp.

I think doing that would have given them better odds even if they ultimately let them go, though as I said I would have slit their throats and buried them.

[–] lalo_greiner 8 years ago

You're right, that's a good idea.

[–] southcoast2002 8 years ago

Tie them at the ankles and wrists, in a circle, blindfold them, take their shoes off and dump them way up the mountain as you make your escape. They won't be able to walk back to the village all tied up in a circle, and it will take ages for them to get free. Then they have to choose whether to find their shoes, or walk back barefoot. They have gained valuable time, no ones hurt. No dilemmas about whether to shoot unarmed people. Job jobbed.

[–] mistamajestyk 8 years ago

Gotta love all the armchair soldiers on this board.

This was a recon mission. Time and precision were important factors. Trudging prisoners through the mountains of Afghanistan was not an option.
Tying them up and leaving them behind was also tricky, because at that altitude, if the villagers were never found, they most likely would have frozen to death as soon as night fell. Say what you will about the enemy, or U.S. Navy tactics, but these men did not want to risk taking any unnecessary civilian lives.

"Oh yeah, one more thing....where can I get a pizza?."

[–] Augustus_Octavian 8 years ago

these men did not want to risk taking any unnecessary civilian lives

That is kinda the poster's point, namely that he is entirely willing to risk these civilians' lives.

[–] anthonysbarat 8 years ago

Something not fully understood from the movie but made a better point of in the book: There were 100 goats milling about right there where they were, and ALOT less cover (trees/foliage), so anybody down in the village would notice this flock of goats standing in one spot and know something was up if they had killed the herders or tied them up. The SEALs were so exposed in this position before the goat herders came along that they weren't moving an inch in daylight already. It was the only way to do their recon on the village and ID the target. Crazy thing too from the book...the herders left the SEALs and headed UP the mountain...very rapidly...but UP not down towards the target village. AN hour later, after immediately buggin out of the recon location and heading up the mountain themselves after the 'goat contact' they made major contact from above them...higher up the mountain. The SEALs fought from a downhill position the entire fight, and were actually falling back (falling off the mountain a few times) towards the target village. How the Taliban forces were all above the SEALs on the mountain originally was never explained, probably unknown to Marcus...

[–] bricksnmortar82 8 years ago

They were outflanked by an enemy who had a huge advantage over them (speed, knowledge of terrain, wisdom enough to know that taking the higher ground up & behind them would cut them off from easy escape/reinforcement).

[–] KingCobra686 8 years ago

Call me a racist monster if you want, I would have killed those dirty sand people instead of letting them go

Yes you are a racist monster.

My solution is take them prisoner to buy time.

That would have greatly slowed them down. Instead of efficiently moving through the terrain, they would be walking slowly and dealing with the constant risk that one of the prisoners would try running away or start yelling. It also would have made it easier for their progress to be tracked through those woods.

[–] tagheuer25 8 years ago

Yeah I thought the same thing. The squad leader gave 3 choices they can take. 1) Let them free and they run 2) Tie them up and wait so they would have time to evacuate. 3) Kill the "compromise" and bury them.

When the leader chose option 1, I immediately thought it was the worst choice of the 3. The best choice would be no 2. Mission failed but they will be safely evacuated. Choice no. 3 is the 2nd better choice. It's war. These terrorists use kids as soldiers. (I think I saw the one teenager captured as one of the hunters). It's a harder choice in a moralistic stand point, given it's 2 teens and 1 elderly and all without arms. (although they were holding a 2 way radio). but it's also the only choice that would have allowed them to not only evacuate safely but actually complete the mission. Leaders sometimes NEED to make the harder choice, even if they do not like it.

Anyway, if it's a true story then they got killed because of the poor decision making of their squad leader.

[–] MrAnonymous (156) 7 years ago

I don't know what to say because I've never been at war. All I can assume is that these guys were there on the ground and they were in the best position to make a decision based on their training, their experience and their humanity without time to consult the internet.

Having never been in that situation I'll refrain from playing Monday morning quarterback and trust that they made the best decision with the available information at the time and without the benefit of hindsight.

[–] [deleted] 6 years ago

Political Correctness makes war rather difficult now for the West. If this were the 1940's they would have carpet bombed these countries already.