Humor attempt falls flat
June 14,2006
CHRIS MAZZOLINI
DAILY NEWS STAFF
Cpl. Joshua Belile thought up the words to “Hadji Girl” in September while drinking coffee with buddies in Iraq.
It was just a joke, Belile says, a play on lines from a movie. His fellow Marines seemed to enjoy the song, so they got Belile up on a stage with his guitar.
Someone taped his performance, and now Belile stands in the center of a growing controversy, one that threatens to drag the New River Air Station Marine and his blackly humorous song into the debate about the alleged incident at Haditha and the war in Iraq.
The four-minute, 13-second video of BelileÂ’s performance was initially posted to the Internet site YouTube. The song tells the story of a Marine in Iraq who falls in love with an Iraqi girl. The girl takes the Marine to her familyÂ’s house.
But the family shoots the girl and then points their “AKs” at the Marine. The Marine then grabs the Iraqi girl’s little sister and “put her in front of me.”
“As the bullets begin to fly, the blood sprayed from between her eyes and then I laughed maniacally,” according to the song’s lyrics. “Then I hid behind the TV and I locked and loaded my M-16, I blew those little (expletive) to eternity.”
Belile, a 23-year-old who lives in Jacksonville and serves with Marine Light/Attack Helicopter Squadron 167, said the song was meant only as a joke, based on lines from “Team America: World Police” and that he apologizes to people who may have been offended by the lyrics.
“It’s a song that I made up and it was nothing more than something supposed to be funny, based off a catchy line of a movie,” Belile said. “I apologize for any feelings that may have been hurt in the Muslim community. This song was written in good humor and not aimed at any party, foreign or domestic.”
Good humor or not, the Marine Corps is now investigating.
“The Marine Corps has recently been made aware of a video posted to a website that purports to show a Marine singing an insensitive song about Iraqis,” reads a statement released Tuesday from Headquarters Marine Corps. “The video has subsequently been removed from the website.
“The video that was posted anonymously is clearly inappropriate and contrary to the high standards expected of all Marines,” the statement continues. “The video is not reflective of the tremendous sacrifices and dedication demonstrated, on a daily basis, by tens of thousands of Marines who have assisted the Iraqi people in gaining their freedom.”
Belile returned from Iraq in March and is a member of a band called Sweater Kittenz, which is scheduled to perform Saturday at the Riverwalk Festival in downtown Jacksonville.
Soon after his return, Belile discovered the video had found its way onto the Internet. So did the Council on American-Islamic Relations, a Washington D.C.-based group whose stated aim is to enhance understanding of Islam.
Ibrahim Hooper, the groupÂ’s communications director, said members of his group got wind of the video through e-mail. After viewing it, Hooper said they found it offensive and in bad taste.
“I think we agree with the Marine Corps, who issued a statement today, that the video is inappropriate and insensitive and shouldn’t be taken as a reflection on the entire body of U.S. military personnel,” he said.
Hooper said he does not agree with arguments that the song was only a joke.
“I don’t think it is a joking matter when you talk about holding up a child to being shot,” he said. “I think especially when we have the allegations of attacks on civilians by military personnel in Haditha and other areas.”
In his defense, Belile said the song is entirely fictional and has no ties to any of the ongoing investigations about Haditha and other incidents of alleged troop misconduct.
“This is in no way, shape or form related to the events that happened at Haditha,” he said. “The song was written long before the events happened. The song reflects nobody’s viewpoint. It’s completely made up, it’s completely fictional.
“I think it was a joke that is trying to be taken seriously,” he said. “I think it’s a joke, and anybody who tries to take it seriously knows it’s a joke. People can’t just laugh at it and let it go.”
After first talking to The Daily News on Tuesday, Belile said in a follow-up telephone call that he had been advised to wait to make a statement until after he received counsel. He asked to have his earlier comments retracted and replaced with “no comment.”
He is expected to be briefed by his command today.
Belile said he was worried about how the video will affect his career, his family and the Marine Corps.
“I will never perform this song again, and I will remove all video and text in relation to this that I have control of,” he said.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations had the video posted on its Web site on Tuesday. Readers can also view it at our website by clicking here.
Contact staff writer Chris Mazzolini at cmazzolini@freedomenc.com or 353-1171, ext. 229.
