Comments on: Rep. Gingrey Blames Soldiers For Walter Reed Squalor: ‘If You Leave Food Around You’ll Get Mice’

By: JOE BELL 2 ellis st wobuen ma 01801

JOE BELL 2 ellis st wobuen ma 01801 — Tue, 10 Apr 2007 00:13:27 +0000

george AWOL bush and his cohorts are now using neutron bombs in iraq while we are still losing in Afghanistan :100,000 russians could not beat these people in 8 yrs. we are going to doit with the united nation that bush doesn’t want to work with ,,, The only democrat ,i saw post on this site is correct about these OILY skunks in this administration , Doctor Frist is now an expert on Darfur ? uh .. DR.Gingrich gingrey is an expert on Walter Reed ? we had cockroaches at Ports mouth Naval Hosp. in Portsmouth va. and it is difficult to control them .witness the administration . But don’t blame the soldiers if the food is in their rooms and they don’t clean ,the OFFICERS are in charge ,not the hired help. so clean up or go to Iraq ,Gingrey ,Gingrich ,giuliani , Romney the hunter

By: JOE BELL 2 ellis st wobuen ma 01801

JOE BELL 2 ellis st wobuen ma 01801 — Tue, 10 Apr 2007 00:04:28 +0000

Dr. Phil is a cockroach of the worst kind .he is a bottom fisher : he is a bodily function that we dododododo daily :why doesn’t he join his colleagues ?at Iraq ,with Macinsane and lieberman and frank and powell and rice and rumsfeld ,they are in good enough shape to fight ,they are so tough ,always a new face to defend bus’h defenseless position .. go to the market in iraq and buy a quart of milk for me will you..

By: Spin Boldak

Spin Boldak — Sat, 07 Apr 2007 13:02:28 +0000

What will any of you impotent clowns do to make sure ‘true believer’
Gingrey pays for his comments? I have your answer– ABSOLUTELY NOTHING! The crackers of GA will re-elect him hands down!

By: Mold Remover

Mold Remover — Mon, 26 Mar 2007 22:12:57 +0000

Is this a wordpress blog? or some other software?

By: BONNIE

BONNIE — Mon, 12 Mar 2007 08:11:05 +0000

30 kids a day are born at military hospitals……balboa in san diego….think they get a private room, well your nuts…. you get a little room with a curtain and a bassanet…. they might watch your baby while you sleep if you put it outside the door…….and they might not…..its no piece of cake… you have to drink 4 quarts of water, and eat a sack lunch before you can go to that room, that has ten other crying babys in….. so if you think these hospitals are great try again…. your are treated like cows….you are all fools if you are planning on blaming bush for their problems….wake up people…..no military hospital is great….they have been this way for years…….

By: BONNIE

BONNIE — Mon, 12 Mar 2007 08:05:39 +0000

you people are stupid…….to think walter reed has not been around for thirty years or more……..clinton had it before bush got a hold of it…..that meldew and mold… rats, those have been thre a while … this is noting new for military hospitals…….bush had noting to do with this and you all know it….. this is getting sickning all you can think about is bush…. think you have done enough to all of them….. well remember pride goethe before a fall…. and your pride is hard to get threw the door at night…….

By: marcel parcells

marcel parcells — Sun, 11 Mar 2007 22:07:53 +0000

if you leave food around in a motel room or a dorm room at a college, youâ€™re going to get some mice show up at some point in time.

I am sick and tired of wounded soldiers using their amputations as an excuse not to do a little housecleaning.

By: iantuttle

iantuttle — Sun, 11 Mar 2007 06:03:33 +0000

Next it will be the troops fault that we are losing in Iraq!

By: Colin Mincy

Colin Mincy — Sun, 11 Mar 2007 03:30:48 +0000

I just find the hypocrisy of the Republican Party astonishing. Democrats are apparently “soft on defense,” and the only person who cares about the United States military are Republican conservatives they would have you believe. But isn’t it interesting that the fallout over the denial of coverage to returning troops and the incredible stories of neglect and poor conditions stemming from the Washington post uncovering of the abuses at Walter Reed worsened under a Republican White House, a Republican House of Representatives and a Republican Senate.

The one thing that humors me about some Republicans (depending on the day it helps me fly into rages as well), is listening to them try to do damage control on these kinds of inexcusable issues. To listen to Congressman “Dingy” Gingrey make excuses for the substandard conditions at Walter Reed, it is clear as day that this is one of the latest examples of Republicans trying to do damage control. The comparison to him growing up in a motel in Augusta, GA growing up to a medical facility for wounded soldiers who put their lives on the line to defend this country – is an abomination. “Let’s put the politics and rhetoric aside to solve the problem.” In other words, let’s not talk too much or too loud on this issue so the American people can see what hypocrites the Republican caucus are. If Republicans were as serious about caring for the military they all wouldn’t have needed a Washington Post exclusive to know that Walter Reed’s facilities and leadership was in need of a major overhaul. As uncovered with testimony before Congress, government agencies had report after report of the facility being subpar in the treatment of certain ailments, as well as having poor conditions. This is a real travesty. And to have this Congressman make excuses for this and encourage people to push it under the rug is an embarrassment for Democrats and Republicans alike. I hope his constituents are watching…because if that’s the best representation you can find, you ought to put your house up for sale and move to another district. Unless of course…you’re living in a motel.

By: JohnDWoodSr

JohnDWoodSr — Sun, 11 Mar 2007 00:15:00 +0000

Gingrey apparently hasn’t gotten the “official” explanation for the roaches and mice and everything nice situation at Walter Reed. The cockroaches were imported to feed the mice, which were brought in to be fuzzy little fun playmates for the patients. The thinking is that the mice are needed to entertain the patients because low staffing cuts down so much on real human contact. And after all, mice can’t do any real damage to prosthetics, so it’s all good. Now do you understand?

By: bushnuckinfuts

bushnuckinfuts — Sat, 10 Mar 2007 23:52:32 +0000

what a humanitarian this person is, god where do these slimes come from?

By: Large Marge

Large Marge — Sat, 10 Mar 2007 21:44:16 +0000

I like how one Republican gets stuppid and you all blame all republicans. And we wonder whatâ€™s wrong with this country!

Comment by Independent Conservative

Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha
Oh, when one conservative gets smart weâ€™ll comment on that too.

Comment by Shane â€” March 10, 2007 @ 11:11 am

Hey Shane “stuppid” ?

Ha-Ha-Ha You dumb asses do it to yourselves! Ha-Ha

By: Raymond Funamoto

Raymond Funamoto — Sat, 10 Mar 2007 21:19:33 +0000

Gingrey? I thought ya said Gingrich! Oh well, SAME DIFFERENCE–TURDS of a repugnant-repub rightwingnut crank fudge-pachyderm feather STICK TOGETHER AND SHOULD BE FLUSHED TOGETHER DOWN THE CRAPPER!!!!! THAT’S RIGHT, Gingrey, SMEAR and BLAME THE VICTIM–TYPICAL Rovian SHIT-SKID-MARK SMEAR TACTICS–YOU F*CKING repugnant-repub rightwingnut crank fudge-pachyderms MAKE ME SICK!!!!! “Leave food around” INDEED!!!!! BLEARGHHHHHHHHH!!!!! THERE, Gingrey, I JUST PUKED ALL OVER YA–BETTER CLEAN IT UP FAST OR THE MAGGOTS AN’ VERMIN WILL START WRITHING OVER YA IF YA LEAVE FOOD AROUND!!!!!

By: donna craft

donna craft — Sat, 10 Mar 2007 18:39:11 +0000

Oops! I meant Viet Nam era, not area, since I was serving stateside at that time, but we were receiving many med-evacs at the Navy Hospital in Oakland, Calif. Didn’t want to give the wrong impression. I joined in ‘69 and retired after Desert Storm in ‘91, but didn’t serve in theater in either one. As bad as the problem is with bldg 18, it’s only the tip of the iceberg. Med hold is analogus to military purgatory. You can’t go back to active duty and you can’t be discharged until you get a disability rating, so you are basically in limbo, and there is no one to advocate for the service member. So, unless you or your family know your way around the “system”, you are at the mercy of the Pentagon and the V.A. When I was getting my disability rating, I had to go to the V.A. to start the procedure, and was then sent to various and sundry contract doctors (specialists) all over the Charleston area. Fortunately, I had friends to help, was familiar with the system, and was mobile, so was able to navigate the system, but many vets are not so lucky. I’m not complaining about the people in the system. I was treated very well by each and everyone of them. It’s the system that’s the problem. We definitely need ombudsmen assigned to med hold companies to do nothing but advocate for the service personnel. Personally, I think these people should be either active duty or retired military medical personnel with knowledge of the system (and no, I’m not looking for a job!), but it is very difficult to navigate through the burecratic maze that is military and V.A. medicine without some hands on experience.

By: Marie

Marie — Sat, 10 Mar 2007 17:29:19 +0000

Comment by donna craft â€” March 10, 2007 @ 12:05 pm
Thanks, Donna.
I believe things were a little different years ago BEFORE Rumsfeld and the Pentagon outsourced everything possible to profit-oriented corporations.
The conditions at WR are unconscionable, everyone agrees, but I understand these kinds of abuses are rampant. Problems dealing with a beaucracy are certainly nothing new, but people dealing with people have the ability to feel compassion and try to help where they can, corporations are non-persons and they look at only the bottom line: “profit.”

BTW, I think sometime during the Reagan administration (?) the IRS deemed that corporations could be viewed as “persons” and entitled to similar privileges. So, for tax purposes, corporations live and breathe – but when it comes to people, they are a stack of bricks.

By: Shane

Shane — Sat, 10 Mar 2007 17:15:40 +0000

124.Comment by donna craft
And thanks for your post and srevice. Eloquently said. I only worked as a nurses aid in civilian hospital and can tell you somebody there with a sore throat wouldn’t pick up their own kleenex. Well except my mother, lol.
I live in Illinois in an all Republican district so I can sympathise with that aspect too. My dear congresswoman has her link disabled so she doesn’t even take email from residents. No wonder I’m disgruntled.
But when veterans don’t feel they should get quality care or complain it breaks my heart.
Thanks again.

By: Shane

Shane — Sat, 10 Mar 2007 17:11:25 +0000

Comment by soulforpeanuts
Thanks for the great post. But as Americans WE owe it to our soldiers to provide them with the care we would expect for ourselves. Having worked in hospitals as a nurses aid I can tell you no civilian picks up after themselves.
And if veterans are getting crappy care so that Haliburton can make even bigger profits then that is capitalism run amok.
And thanks for your service. Progressives respect and appreciate what you do and are working for peace and your welfare no matter what neocons tell you.

By: donna craft

donna craft — Sat, 10 Mar 2007 17:05:47 +0000

As a retired Navy nurse, I would be very surprised if there were any nurses assigned to bldg 18. During the Viet Nam area, I was responsible for covering the outlying med hold wards on the week-ends (in addition to the inpatient wards I also covered). In addition, there was a master at arms assigned to each ward. We were responsible for checking on all patients awaiting medical boards, making sure their environment was clean and safe, etc, and reporting back our findings to our supervisors. Commanding Officer inspections were conducted on a weekly basis (conducted in each and every patient care area by a senior officer and/or the CO himself, who at that time, was a Rear Admiral in the Medical Corps). Believe me, failing one of those “white glove” inspections was the quickest way to ruin your day, to say nothing of your career! And yes, all patients who were able were required to participate, ie, keeping their immediate environment neat, since the hospital was considered their temporary assignment, but this only applied to those individuals who were deemed by the doctor to be able to participate. Needless to say, we had no vermin, roaches, black mold, or holes in the walls, floors, ceilings, etc! My heart aches for anyone living in such deplorable conditions. Oh, by the way, I was born and raised in Va, and am now living in the SC. Not everyone who lives in the south agrees with these neocons. In fact, I like to think I’m just here doing progressive “missionary” work. It’s a hard job, but somebody has to do it! And please don’t forget, many of our military men and women are from the south, too, so please don’t denigrate ALL of us by labeling southerners as uneducated or stupid just because there is a majority of conservatives voting here. Many of us feel we are not well represented by our elected officials, so we blog, sign petitions, and recommend web sites like this one to our friends, family, and neighbors, hoping to spread the word.

By: soulforpeanuts

soulforpeanuts — Sat, 10 Mar 2007 16:44:35 +0000

To begin im a prior service buddhist soldier who reenlisted in the infantry again after five years as a civilian and student leaving my children, whom i love sooo much. without an enlistment bonus or any college money. Im a pacifist but i will go to war for my brothers. I cannot be disrespected. Army hospitals are old buildings. Soldiers do not receive pampered care like civilians, i know i was wounded in iraq. And yes it is partly the soldiers fault that food is lying around. Imagine being in iraq, then wounded and stressed out in a hospital with less rules and regulations. Soldiers would most certainly relax and become undisciplined, especially since there not being trained properly in basic. Couple that with a system at its saturation point in terms of mental health support and you get walter reed. Soldiers are warriors and warriors cannot be coddled. OOooh cockroaches. The first cockroackes i ever say were in the army, my barracks room was located on top of a dining facility in ft bragg. Conditions in other parts of the world are wayyyyyy worse, trust me ive been around. There isnt enough money to go around, starving people need more help, children need more help, truly poor and weak need more help. i can live with cockroaches (theyre just living things) if other living things get the help and money they need.

By: Shane

Shane — Sat, 10 Mar 2007 16:11:04 +0000

I like how one Republican gets stuppid and you all blame all republicans. And we wonder whatâ€™s wrong with this country!

Comment by Independent Conservative

Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha
Oh, when one conservative gets smart we’ll comment on that too.