I think the issue with the dialogue is an example of how being truthful isn't always the same as being factual. The Wire's dialogue was often written as if it were coming from a gangster with a Bachelor's degree in Literature, but that didn't stop it from making legitimate and artistic statements about its topic. I imagine this is the same way. While the Marines may not talk with this kind of gusto, the sentiments are similar, even if not expressed in the same way.

"Generation Kill" -- which is based on the eponymous book by Evan Wright..."

Anna Karenina, eponymous. Moby Dick, eponymous. The Godfather, eponymous.

Generation Kill, eponymous? ...eh, not so much.

It's hard for Americans to pronounce so I'll spell it out phonetically...it's: "ibni-sharmuteen." Look it up in your ever handy Arabic-English dictionary. Assholes.

only the geography changes. The psychological tricks troops use to de-humanize the enemy go back to the days of Alexander the Great. To "fuck up some hajis" makes it easier to digest than allowing "I killed another human being."

Today's hajis are yesterday's dinks, slopes, gooks, nips, and krauts. Today's PTSD is yesterday's combat fatigue and shell shock. Today's testerone-driven swagger will be tomorrow's nightmares.

Been there, done that ... still dealing with the aftermath of a war at times light years in the past and too often intruding into the present.

Thanks for the yanks.

Haiji is an honorific title given to a Muslim person who has successfully completed the Hajj to Mecca, and is often used to refer to an elder.

So while the Marines may consider it a "derogatory term for Muslims", the Muslims themselves do not.

So basically if the military consider it an insult, the Muslims consider it a compliment. So neither seems to mind it too much...although the military higher-ups get a bit PO'd when it is used.

This ought to be a killer recruiting ploy for the segment of whizbang teenage whiskey tango cannon fodder that keeps the imperial Marines going. Knights they ain't. Starship Troopers they ain't. And once they're in and have acquired the taste for mayhem, harassment, and blood, they're never going to be good for anything else. God help us.

Soldiers are in the Army. Marines are in the Corps.

Having said that little bit, I think I would find this quite realistic. I spent some time in the Army, and we also cursed as a regular, and generally unnoticed, way of communication.

Addressing a couple of the other posters, though. Although I'm against the action in Iraq, and have posted my opposition vociferously on these message boards, I think it's sloppy thinking to: a)Conflate all conflicts as the same without taking into account the historic, regional and ideological/religious differences; and b)Think that all marines are incapable of deprogramming and becoming productive, peaceful members of society again. The latter, in fact, is just narrow minded prejudice. The Marine Corps may have the saying "once a marine, always a marine", but every ex-marine isn't a brainwashed simpleton unable to re-adapt to life on the outside.

Shouldn't we wait at least a little while before we start consuming entertainment about the war?

People are still dying there, but on teevee it becomes a way to produce a little something to pass the time.

enlightening about overall attitude of today's soldiers about going to war and the disillusionment that combat brings. *If* the series stays true to the book, then it should be good. I, personally, wouldn't classify it as "entertainment" as the book did not glorify the war in any way.

wow, none of you people have ever been in the military. these kids go and kill, dismember, and maim- and have to live with it; along with things like PTSD and other war injuries, and all Badkhen can say about it is "oh no, they made homophobic comments!"

I may not have read the book,I was and always will be a MARINE!!How many of you have had to point a weapon at someone and make a choice of pulling the trigger?Our greeting was eather growls or grunts.If it were not for the CORPS over there,You'd be complaining about $7 a gallon fuel or STD's.

to pull a trigger. I pulled on more people than I wish to recall and way too many to forget. I also saw the guy who shot me on two separate occasions. That doesn't make me an expert on war, it makes me a hater of war.

And I'd rather pay $8 a gallon if it meant no more Marines, no more GIs, and no more Iraqis were killed or maimed.

And you might really be on to some true reality TV. Masalma hawagas!

An interesting wrinkle is that four of the seven episodes were directed by a woman. I talked with the director, Susanna White, about the language of the war, shooting the battle scenes, and how being a British woman helped her depict the US Marines at war. Here's the link:

http://www.utne.com/2008-07-10/Arts/UtneCast-Generation-Kill-Director-Susanna-White.aspx?blogid=32