Sgrena Is No Quattrocchi, Calipari

Apparently aware that the tragic death of Italian security agent Nicola Calipari undermines her triumphant homecoming, Giuliana Sgrena is shamelessly making the rounds in the news services. If nothing else, she sure can ride the coattails of a real Italian hero. Among the most fascinating displays is this BBC interview where Giuliana Sgrena raises some serious questions, albeit not the sort she probably had in mind...

And so they [became] aware that I was really working against the occupation and people were supporting me and so they told me: "We have seen that you are very appreciated in Italy". And that helped me to be freed.

Well, yeah. Supporting 'insurgents,' especially if you are willing to ally yourself with those who have no problems killing nobler Italians like Fabrizio Quattrocchi, probably does give your would-be killers pause. "Don't kill her yet! She's practically one of us! She could prove useful!"

And when I was freed it was the last of my problems which kind of negotiations were going on.

Perhaps if you had taken Mark Steyn's advice, you wouldn't have gotten yourself (or Nicola Calipari and the others) into this mess in the first place.

We were on our way to the airport when the tanks started to strike against us...

Tanks? And you are still alive? When you just said there was a "hail of bullets" the reason you were still alive could have been that America is filling Iraq with useless marksmen (all that ammunition and, despite being "no accident," the troops failed to kill everyone?) so you got lucky, but now not just one tank, but tanks... Bizarre.

We were not a hidden car. We were just a car on the road with lights and we were not running without any signal.

Why didn't the Italian government see to it that you were transported in an armored vehicle or had a military escort, by the way?

...We don't know what happened.

That much is clear.

Our car was destroyed.

Given the number of car bombs we see on the news, this supports the claim that U.S. troops were indeed serious about stopping what they perceived as a clear threat. Totaling the car is the most prudent move under such circumstances.

And then the driver got out and was shouting "we're Italian, we're Italian"

Stopping and explaining that beforehand was never an option? The Americans materialized out of thin air, guns ablaze! Even assuming everyone in the car was ignorant about past accidents in Iraq, since when has blindly trusting bureaucracy with one's safety been an intelligent move? And under conditions like we see in Iraq?

I can't say it was deliberate because we can't say if there was a lack of information.

Yet you feel comfortable saying, "The United States doesn't approve of this (ransom) policy and so they try to stop it in any way possible"--suggesting, without empirical evidence or experience, that you were the target of a U.S. assassination attempt. We are supposed to consider you a credible witness?

But also a lack of information in this case is [their] responsibility because you are in a war field and you have the responsibility to pass immediately any information.

Whose responsibility? Did the Italians fail to call? Did the Americans fail to call? Were there other circumstance that mean no-one is really to blame? Are the soldiers who actually fired upon the car responsible? Perhaps someone should have made a better effort to locate a specific piece of information he was not aware that he was supposed to know? (Curse those Americans and their feeble psychic abilities!)

Nicola Calipari gave his service to Italy, and gave his life to save Giuliana Sgrena. One brave way for Sgrena to honor his sacrifice would be to recognize the high value of his service, including his work and that of his compatriots in Iraq that she so despised. Some principles are worth more than individual personalities. Calipari knew this. Learn from him, Sgrena. And fast.