Fighting a War without Bullets?
Commanders have ordered a U.S. military unit in Afghanistan to patrol with unloaded weapons, according to a source in Afghanistan.
American soldiers in at least one unit have been ordered to conduct patrols without a round chambered in their weapons, an anonymous source stationed at a forward operating base in Afghanistan said in an interview. The source was unsure where the order originated or how many other units were affected.
When a weapon has a loaded magazine, but the safety is on and no round is chambered, the military refers to this condition as “amber status.†Weapons on “red status†are ready to fire—they have a round in the chamber and the safety is off.
The source stated that he had been stationed at the base for only a month, but the amber weapons order was in place since before he arrived. A NATO spokesman could not confirm the information, stating that levels of force are classified.
Full article: http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=37125
I think that it’s foolish not to allow a soldier to carry a weapon with a round in the chamber. Going to have to contact my elected officials to get their take on it, and let them know that if they agree with the policy that I will be unhappy with them.