American Doug Johnson Beheaded

[Grebdron]

CNN) -- Three chilling photographs on an Islamist Web site appear to show the beheaded body of American hostage Paul Johnson, who was kidnapped a week ago by Islamic militants connected with al Qaeda.

Abdel Aziz Al-Muqrin, the self-proclaimed military leader of al Qaeda in Saudi Arabia, claimed responsibility for Johnson's kidnapping and the death of another American on the same day on behalf of a group called the Al Falluja Squadron.

On Tuesday, he threatened to kill Johnson in 72 hours unless the Saudi government released al Qaeda prisoners and all Westerners left the Arabian Peninsula.

"We gave you the deadline but you did not respect it," a statement on the Web site said. "This is what we promised to do."

A Saudi security source said, "From our end, we cannot confirm this. We have not found a body yet."

Earlier Friday, Al Arabiya as well as CNN had aired an emotional appeal from Johnson's wife.

U.S. and Saudi investigators concluded an intensive meeting Friday, Saudi officials said, as security forces spread all over the kingdom searching for Johnson.

Johnson, 49, a Lockheed Martin Corp. employee, had been kidnapped Saturday in the Saudi capital of Riyadh. He helped maintain U.S.-built Apache helicopter gunships for the Saudi military.

Al Falluja Squadron says it has ties to al Qaeda.

The State Department has urged all Americans to leave Saudi Arabia, but Johnson's sister, Donna Mayeux, said in a CNN interview that her brother "always felt safe in Saudi Arabia."

"My brother is an honorable man," she said. "He has always treated people with dignity and respect."








_______________________________________________

I have a lot of trouble working up sympathy for these contractors. They're there for nothing more than money. And they know the danger going in.

[BorderEevilIII]

Yeah youre right on that Greb but I do feel sad for the Johnson Family... :(

[Moviefan1234]

It saddened me greatly when I saw this headline earlier today. May he rest in peace. My thoughts/prayers are with his family and friends, no one should have to lose a loved one like this.

[Grebdron]

Originally posted by BorderEevilIII
Yeah youre right on that Greb but I do feel sad for the Johnson Family... :(

I do feel for his family. And the wretched bastards who can commit such an act are reprehensible. But DOug Johnson himself would not get my sympathy.

[The Postmaster General]

Originally posted by Grebdron
I have a lot of trouble working up sympathy for these contractors. They're there for nothing more than money. And they know the danger going in.



Regretfully, I agree with this. They make it sound like they are over there to make Iraq a better place, and I have a hard time to believe this is true.

It's like saying construction workers do their job just because they think it's worth $28,000 a year to see the joy on peoples faces when they see their new 7 million dollar dream home.

Right....

Another thing that bothers me about all of this is the whole "We can't confirm it's Johnson" BULLSHIT that the governments pull. I'm looking at the guys ID, the face is the same on the ID, the guy is missing, then radicals show up with a guy who looks identical to the guy who is missing, and they know the guy's name, and the guy is saying he's the guy.

Than the fuck heads go, "We can't confirm anything yet.'

Confrirm that politicians can be dickweeds!

[Grebdron]

Originally posted by BubbaStrangelove
Regretfully, I agree with this. They make it sound like they are over there to make Iraq a better place, and I have a hard time to believe this is true.

It's like saying construction workers do their job just because they think it's worth $28,000 a year to see the joy on peoples faces when they see their new 7 million dollar dream home.



And he was apparently working on Apache attack helicopters.

Not exactly making the drinking water safe for the kids.

[The Postmaster General]

Originally posted by Grebdron
And he was apparently working on Apache attack helicopters.

Not exactly making the drinking water safe for the kids.


Oh, snap! I totally forgot he was a mechanic. That makes me feel slightly more sympathy than that guy who was trying to build radio towers.

What pisses me off is that the Bush administration is the one insisting on putting private contractors over there, and they aren't even looking for deals.

I want my portion of the 200 billion back!

[Grebdron]

Originally posted by BubbaStrangelove
Oh, snap! I totally forgot he was a mechanic. That makes me feel slightly more sympathy than that guy who was trying to build radio towers.

Perhaps you misread me Bubba. I don't feel more sympathy because he was a mechanic. He was a mechanic for attack helicopters. Probably why he was targeted. That, or he was stupid enough to be seen in public.

Man, those civilians should get out, or expect more of this stuff.

[Raoul Duke]

:(

Get every American out of there! NOW!

[Grebdron]

Originally posted by Raoul Duke
:(

Get every American out of there! NOW!

Dude, I would agree. But these Americans are there by choice. Nobody was forcing Doug Johnson to be in Saudi Arabia. He was being a capitalist.

And we can't force anybody to leave, either. We can recommend it, which we have. But we can't force them.

[Jon Lyrik]

Awful.

Truly awful.

My heart is out to his family and friends.

[The Postmaster General]

Al-Qaeda statement:


"Let him taste something of what Muslims have long tasted from Apache helicopter fire and missiles," the statement said.




Good God! What is it good for? Absolutely nothing.

I agree with Jon Lyrick that all of this is horrible -- but I'm saying it doesn't stop at this guy getting killed.

[Raoul Duke]

Originally posted by Grebdron
Dude, I would agree. But these Americans are there by choice. Nobody was forcing Doug Johnson to be in Saudi Arabia. He was being a capitalist.

And we can't force anybody to leave, either. We can recommend it, which we have. But we can't force them.


I know, but even if he is looking for money in the wrong places and such....He doesn't deserve what was done...

I feel really sorry for any American person that still stays in Iraq to make a few more bucks after all this is happening....The great risk just isn't worth what may happen.

[badberry]

American civilians should really wise up and get the fuck out of the middle east....

It is horrible that it is happening, but like Greb said, they are there by choice and know the risk....

Not that I wouldn't personally blow away every one of the fuckers that kindaps and beheads civilians.

[loner]

Originally posted by Grebdron
I have a lot of trouble working up sympathy for these contractors. They're there for nothing more than money. And they know the danger going in.


So what's wrong with being there for money?? Nothing. It perhaps wasn't the safest place for an American to be working....but there's nothing wrong with going over there for the sole purpose of a job oppurtunity.

[JohnTheHenchman]

Sorry, but civilians don't deserve to die in this situation, especially not like this.

[The Postmaster General]

Originally posted by loner
So what's wrong with being there for money?? Nothing. It perhaps wasn't the safest place for an American to be working....but there's nothing wrong with going over there for the sole purpose of a job oppurtunity.



What ticks me off (and I presume Greb?) is that there shouldn't be private contractors there in the first place.

Yes, it isn't safe. Right. Okay. Why isn't it safe? Because they aren't trained in miliatry combat. All these beheadings aren't against soldiers. Part of me believes that the militants are singling out the contractors because they represent capitalism, but that is another story, and really no excuse for chopping someone's head off.

My point in all of this is that, to me, it's kind of like feeling sorry for the kids who imitate stuff they see on Jackass. Or when people felt bad for that pretty boy in Vegas who sticks his head in a tigers mouth, or his dick in their asses, I can never remember.

The one thing everyone seems to agree on is that he shouldn't have been over there. Do I think he deserved to die? I wouldn't have chopped his head off, I can tell you that. Is it his fault he was over there? You tell me. One thing I am certain is that I don't want my tax dollars going out to under qualified people. The government should know better. Miltary can do the same jobs faster, cheaper, and with more security.

So maybe that's a pretty selfish reason for not feeling bad for him, but I can hardly see it any other way. I didn't know him. I understand the family feeling bad, because I've lost people and have been around loss, but they really need to stop with these interviews stressing how he didn't derserve it -- Once again, I blame the media on all of this, and not the person. Those people are grieving, and they need time to step back and look at the big picture. Maybe if they could see things for how everyone else on this thread seems to see them, they could use their voice to actually do something like making sure that no more people meet the fate that Paul Johnson did.

[DRbeauty]

I just don't understand this. You know it's one thing to be a soldier, it's your duty to defend your country. But to be over there just for the money? The money is not going to comfort your wife and children. Or be there for them

[Grebdron]

Originally posted by loner
So what's wrong with being there for money?? Nothing. It perhaps wasn't the safest place for an American to be working....but there's nothing wrong with going over there for the sole purpose of a job oppurtunity.

Nothing's WRONG with being over there for a job opportunity. But I'm not going to lose sleep, or waste time grieving a guy who had no real reason to be there save for a money grab.



Originally posted by JohnTheHenchman
Sorry, but civilians don't deserve to die in this situation, especially not like this.

Nobody "deserves" to die like this, except maybe those that did it to him.

He put himself in this situation, simple as. He wasn't ordered to go there, he wasn't in the military. He was happy to make his paycheck.

[Morgana]

Given the well-known perils and hatred towards Americans in the Middle East, it's hard for me to feel sorry for this guy. If you voluntarily go over or stay there NOW, you could be signing your own death warrant. Paul Johnson was no doubt aware of this, and it's a risk he was willing to take.

I don't think anyone deserves to die like this, and I do feel for his family, but he made his own choices. They were his choices... however, why he specifically chose to stay regardless of the risks is something I'm not prepared to guess. For one I didn't know him (or his circumstances), and two, I think it might be too late for that. One can only hope anyone wanting to make the same choices will learn from this, and will get the fuck out of the Middle East.

[JohnTheHenchman]

Originally posted by Grebdron
Nothing's WRONG with being over there for a job opportunity. But I'm not going to lose sleep, or waste time grieving a guy who had no real reason to be there save for a money grab.





Nobody "deserves" to die like this, except maybe those that did it to him.

He put himself in this situation, simple as. He wasn't ordered to go there, he wasn't in the military. He was happy to make his paycheck.

Plenty of people put themselves in situations where they could be killed, that doesn't mean, oh well they knew the risks!

Sure they did, but still.

You act like he was making millions, lockheed pays good, but it's not exactly like the guy was making bill gates money.

[Morgana]

I think unless someone presents more information, we just don't have enough to go on as to why he took the risk. The only thing this particular article says is that he had always felt safe in Saudi Arabia. Which, in my opinion, makes him sound naive.

But there could be other (halfway understandable) reasons. Maybe he couldn't get a job in the States. Maybe he was in huge debt... and this was a good way to pay it off. Maybe his wife was a nag and he wanted to get away from her. (Hey this wouldn't be unheard of.) Who knows?

I'm not trying to draw sympathy or otherwise, I'm just saying we don't have enough to work with to judge him fairly.

[Grebdron]

Originally posted by JohnTheHenchman
Plenty of people put themselves in situations where they could be killed, that doesn't mean, oh well they knew the risks!

Sure they did, but still.



I DO feel that way about people who put themselves in harms way. Except of course law enforcement and firemen.

[The Postmaster General]

Originally posted by JohnTheHenchman
Plenty of people put themselves in situations where they could be killed, that doesn't mean, oh well they knew the risks!


Exactly! Just like Johnny Knoxville, no one deserves to be hurt under unusual circumstances.


http://www.poster.net/jackass/jackass-johnny-knoxville-alligator-4004583.jpg