No, they really aren't scared of them. You can point an M-16 in their face and they won't flinch. But, grab a stick or a rock and got at them with it, and watch them run. No joke -- the people in that region were disiplined that way; the tribal elders would smack the living crap out of them with a stick or a rock. I know someone who was over in Iraq last year. They had an LZ setup near a town, and it was surrounded by a fence and barbed wire - the works. The locals were protesting the arrival of their UH-60, and were crawling all over the fences. The soldiers pointed their weapons and gave them warnings, but they presisted on crawling on the fence. They couldn't open fire (as it is agaist the rules of engagement, and just morally wrong in my opinion), so one of the guys headed back to the helo and got a baton -- and started smacking at the fence where the Iraqis' feet were -- and they scattered like roaches when the light turns on