View Full Version : Take This War And Shove It!
Dutch Nick
10-21-2006, 20:45
Tuscon Citizen
October 21, 2006
PHOENIX - The brother of an NFL player who was killed in Afghanistan after quitting the team to join the U.S. Army Rangers has spoken out.
Kevin Tillman, a former Army Ranger who served in Iraq and Afghanistan with his older brother, Pat Tillman, has remained silent since his brother's death in 2004. But this week, he wrote a scathing indictment of the war in Iraq, the Bush administration and American apathy.
The brothers, both Arizona State University graduates, joined the Army in response to the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. They served together as Rangers with the 2nd Battalion of the 75th Ranger Regiment.
Pat Tillman, who played defensive back for the Arizona Cardinals, was killed by friendly fire near the Pakistan-Afghanistan border in April 2004. The Defense Department is investigating allegations of a cover-up, including failure by the U.S. Army to tell Tillman's family for several weeks that he had been killed by gunfire from his fellow Army Rangers, not by enemy fire as they initially were told.
Kevin Tillman has not spoken publicly about the war or his brother's death since his discharge from the Army. But in Truthdig.com, Kevin wrote openly about the war and America's response to it.... "Somehow, the same incompetent, narcissistic, virtueless, vacuous, malicious criminals are still in charge of this country. Somehow, this is tolerated. Somehow, nobody is accountable for this."
BlenderWizard
10-21-2006, 20:48
Tuscon Citizen
October 21, 2006
PHOENIX - The brother of an NFL player who was killed in Afghanistan after quitting the team to join the U.S. Army Rangers has spoken out.
Kevin Tillman, a former Army Ranger who served in Iraq and Afghanistan with his older brother, Pat Tillman, has remained silent since his brother's death in 2004. But this week, he wrote a scathing indictment of the war in Iraq, the Bush administration and American apathy.
The brothers, both Arizona State University graduates, joined the Army in response to the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. They served together as Rangers with the 2nd Battalion of the 75th Ranger Regiment.
Pat Tillman, who played defensive back for the Arizona Cardinals, was killed by friendly fire near the Pakistan-Afghanistan border in April 2004. The Defense Department is investigating allegations of a cover-up, including failure by the U.S. Army to tell Tillman's family for several weeks that he had been killed by gunfire from his fellow Army Rangers, not by enemy fire as they initially were told.
Kevin Tillman has not spoken publicly about the war or his brother's death since his discharge from the Army. But in Truthdig.com, Kevin wrote openly about the war and America's response to it.... "Somehow, the same incompetent, narcissistic, virtueless, vacuous, malicious criminals are still in charge of this country. Somehow, this is tolerated. Somehow, nobody is accountable for this."
Yeah, he and half a million other morons have all the answers. If they didn't like what was going on, then why did they join the army in the middle of the war?
We in America have a long history of mistrusting government, and being critical of it, but when it comes down to it, in serious matters, we do trust our elected leaders to do the right thing. We do, after all, elect them, or so we hope. And war is the most serious matter of all.
When Pres Bush told us Iraq was an imminent threat, most Americans believed him. We had been through a horrendous attack less than two years earlier. Only over time did the pieces fall into place, and the public realize that we had been deceived.
The Bush administration did deceive us. Pres Clinton, the Europeans, and others believed Iraq had WMDs, yes, but none of them seriously thought Iraq was an imminent threat to the United States. All that talk of mushroom clouds from the administration was pure BS. There's a difference between some Sarin gas and a nuclear weapon. The Bush administration abused the ambiguity in the term "WMD" in order to manipulate congress and public opinion.
Luv-My-Mini
10-21-2006, 23:08
Yeah, he and half a million other morons have all the answers. If they didn't like what was going on, then why did they join the army in the middle of the war?
I think Dutch Nick and Kevin Tillman were lamenting the lack of accountability, Mr Tillman didn't seem to have any answers. Two of the the more lamentable developements of the past thirty years have been: Never being able to tell the people the truth, even for stuff that isn't that big of a deal, like the fact that NORAD did not actually have any interceptors aloft on 9/11; and the death of accounatbility, where peope like George Tenent or Denny Hastert can "apologize and take full responsibility" without there being any conseqeuences. The last official that I can think of who actually took responsibility and resigned was Nixon of all people.
Freesw, unfortunately I believe you may be correct. I also wonde whether Saddams efforts to kill Bush 1 had any part in the decision-not making any accusations-just wondering.
Yeah, he and half a million other morons have all the answers.
BlenderWizard, Man-O-man now you are trash talking the Tillman brothers... all I can say is to take two they are small; you've earned them both...
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Tillman has good reason to feel sore over his brother's death. Friendly fire incidents are tragic enough. The stonewalling, foot dragging, and politicking that bursts forth with the @$$ covering just adds to the hard feelings. I would not expect a cool, level headed response from him anyway. Soldiers are very often resentful for being sent into harms way with insufficient cause. I even see comments about sending the politicians in to fight it out themselves. But then, it's been that way for many years. Was the last one that actually fought Napoleon? This latest war is certainly not as clearcut as WW2. An incident like this during WW2 would be difficult to deal with. Now that doubts as to the real reasons for the conflict are coming to light, cheapening the sacrifices of our soldiers, the resentfulness felt over the injured and the dead must be staggering.
Yeah, he and half a million other morons have all the answers. If they didn't like what was going on, then why did they join the army in the middle of the war?
Blender, how dare you to call him a moron? :angry:
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